Looks like this is not dead yet. Lansing State Journal just posted that it's still pretty much status quo with Schuette's lawsuit but the tribe seems pretty determined to see it happen.
I was wondering about this just recently, I still hope to see it happen. I though that the decision from the Feds was supposed to come a lot quicker than this, hopefully Bernero is right and it'll be approved before the end of the year.
LANSING — A federal judge has blocked an attempt by Attorney General Bill Schuette to prevent an Upper Penninsula American Indian tribe from building a casino in Lansing.
U.S. District Judge Robert Jonker ruled Wednesday that the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians did not violate any law when submitting a trust application to federal officials without entering into a revenue-sharing agreement with other recognized American Indian tribes in Michigan. Schuette first sued the tribe in 2012.
“There is nothing wrong in principle with filing a land in trust application,” wrote Jonker in his nine-page opinion. “The only thing the filing allegedly violated here was a bilateral promise — a contract.”
The article seems to imply this was the last legal challenge. The rest of the obstacles are dealing with the federal government's permitting process. I'm actually kind of amazed that this has stood up so well. This particular case kind of changes the game in terms of off-reservation casinos for good and bad.
I don't know anything other than what I have read here and in the LSJ but I am pretty sure Republicans do not like Lansing or it's Mayor, and their efforts to block this deal seem aimed more toward trying to defeat the Mayor rather than any concern about Native Americans or gambling.
I think a casino would be good for Lansing and maybe urban downtown's are the place for casinos not out in the countryside somewhere. They should also still be associated with and benefit tribes, that land was their's to begin with and I don't think they have ever been paid for it so why let them build a casino where ever they want.
I do think they could revisit the design as it is, it looks already outdated and a bit like an airport concourse hub. I think the tribe could be compelled to build something to benefit the community of Lansing. Perhaps a Native American museum or a winter garden depicting the banks of the Grand River before Europeans arrived. If they are going to spend and make millions it would be great if they offered more to Lansing than a huge parking ramp.
The LSJ ran a story on the proposed casino today, nothing much of note except that the tribe's lawyer is quoted as saying the Department of Interior's decision on the land being taken into trust will be handed down within the next few weeks. Whichever way the decision goes it's expected to be challenged in Federal court.
Looking back at the picture hood posted from June 2014, it looks like the casino will be a pretty small building on the corner, and that the parking garage will take up most of the site. There doesn't appear to be any ground-floor retail or businesses in the parking garage, meaning that for pedestrians this will be mostly another "dead block".
We in Lansing have had our own history of turning our backs to the waterfront and building parking garages and police headquarters that kill activity along the water, and we do the same for major roads that if planned better could incentivize pedestrian travel but instead make it feel cold and uninviting.
Yeah, that's an old rendering. I imagine the more recent ones are in the general thread. Anyway, the casino in the new ones seems to take up at least half the Cedar frontage and the garage the rest. Originally, there was the small "temporary" casino to go at the corner of Michigan and Cedar, but I'm not sure if that's still part of the plan.
I now it's all old stuff to folks here, but I went to Fire Keeper's Casino in Battle Creek for the first time this week. First I- 69 is really bad for most of the way, every seam in each section of concrete was broken, I hope they put some money into the Inter-states around here. I thought the casino was really nice, clean, with the smoke somewhat under control. I only lost $4 dollars! The buildings were of a nicer design than I was expecting, but the huge parking lots and structures where what I thought about in relation to Lansing. I am hoping they will find some kind design that has something on the corner of Michigan and Cedar other than a parking ramp. While I like that much of the people space looks out to the river, the corner of Michigan Ave should be retail, a cafe,a night club, maybe a Native American Museum, anything but a parking ramp. Add to levels to a smaller footprint for parking along Cedar with ground floor store fronts along the street. I could also see them building a satellite parking near by perhaps down at Cedar and Kalamazoo. Let's see if we could do better that this design.
Comments
Lansing State Journal
The article seems to imply this was the last legal challenge. The rest of the obstacles are dealing with the federal government's permitting process. I'm actually kind of amazed that this has stood up so well. This particular case kind of changes the game in terms of off-reservation casinos for good and bad.
I think a casino would be good for Lansing and maybe urban downtown's are the place for casinos not out in the countryside somewhere. They should also still be associated with and benefit tribes, that land was their's to begin with and I don't think they have ever been paid for it so why let them build a casino where ever they want.
I do think they could revisit the design as it is, it looks already outdated and a bit like an airport concourse hub. I think the tribe could be compelled to build something to benefit the community of Lansing. Perhaps a Native American museum or a winter garden depicting the banks of the Grand River before Europeans arrived. If they are going to spend and make millions it would be great if they offered more to Lansing than a huge parking ramp.
Casino plan 'slowly clearing the hurdles,' Bernero says
Another update on the progress of the casino proposal: Lansing casino project gets pre-Trump federal response
Looking back at the picture hood posted from June 2014, it looks like the casino will be a pretty small building on the corner, and that the parking garage will take up most of the site. There doesn't appear to be any ground-floor retail or businesses in the parking garage, meaning that for pedestrians this will be mostly another "dead block".
We in Lansing have had our own history of turning our backs to the waterfront and building parking garages and police headquarters that kill activity along the water, and we do the same for major roads that if planned better could incentivize pedestrian travel but instead make it feel cold and uninviting.
Yeah, that's an old rendering. I imagine the more recent ones are in the general thread. Anyway, the casino in the new ones seems to take up at least half the Cedar frontage and the garage the rest. Originally, there was the small "temporary" casino to go at the corner of Michigan and Cedar, but I'm not sure if that's still part of the plan.
I now it's all old stuff to folks here, but I went to Fire Keeper's Casino in Battle Creek for the first time this week. First I- 69 is really bad for most of the way, every seam in each section of concrete was broken, I hope they put some money into the Inter-states around here. I thought the casino was really nice, clean, with the smoke somewhat under control. I only lost $4 dollars! The buildings were of a nicer design than I was expecting, but the huge parking lots and structures where what I thought about in relation to Lansing. I am hoping they will find some kind design that has something on the corner of Michigan and Cedar other than a parking ramp. While I like that much of the people space looks out to the river, the corner of Michigan Ave should be retail, a cafe,a night club, maybe a Native American Museum, anything but a parking ramp. Add to levels to a smaller footprint for parking along Cedar with ground floor store fronts along the street. I could also see them building a satellite parking near by perhaps down at Cedar and Kalamazoo. Let's see if we could do better that this design.