Backed by area investors, a band of Indians from the Miwok tribe
is seeking support from San Benito and Santa Clara county officials
to build a casino adjacent to Highway 25 that could be opened
within two years and would cost as much as $300 million.
Backed by area investors, a band of Indians from the Miwok tribe is seeking support from San Benito and Santa Clara county officials to build a casino adjacent to Highway 25 that could be opened within two years and would cost as much as $300 million.
The group has held meetings with several county officials, including San Benito County supervisors Pat Loe and Reb Monaco and Santa Clara County Supervisor Don Gage. Backers recently hired a high-profile San Jose public relations firm to promote the plan that would include building a 50,000- to 100,000-square-foot resort in San Benito County just south of the Santa Clara County border.
Although such a project could create 1,500 to 3,000 jobs while invigorating the local tourism industry, the group acknowledges a casino’s construction would call for a speedier-than-planned expansion of the rural highway. San Benito County Sheriff Curtis Hill, meanwhile, staunchly opposes the idea, saying it would lead to more crime and damage the local environment.
Gage, Loe and Monaco said it’s too early to take a stance on the casino proposal.
“I’ve never been involved in one of these processes,” Gage said. “There will obviously be impacts, but there could also be some benefits.”
About a year ago, someone briefly approached Gage and some other local leaders with an idea to build a casino between San Martin and Morgan Hill, but they later backed out. Gage said he didn’t know if there was any connection between that effort and this one.
The Miwoks and their investors are early in the process, said Phillip Thompson, a Washington, D.C., attorney representing the group. But if county supervisors support it, the casino could be built, and opened, in 18 months to two years, Thompson said. There’s no official proposal before either county.
Even with supervisors’ support, the Indian tribe would have to acquire land and get approval from the state to conduct gaming activities.
During that stage – which could take one to two years alone – the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs would have to sign off on environmental, cultural and historical reviews before a deal could be struck, according to Thompson.
The federal government recognizes the Miwoks as a sovereign nation and, therefore, its members can avoid local government controls when developing land.
