Abstract:

PORTLAND (AP) - Determined to build a casino in the Columbia River Gorge, the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs this week signed an option to buy a 30-acre island at the eastern edge of Cascade Locks.

The land option is the strongest signal yet that the tribes have shifted their sights from Hood River to Cascade Locks as a casino location. Tribal officials are meeting regularly with representatives of the city and the port to work on a memorandum of understanding.

Full Text:

Copyright Columbian Publishing Company Apr 25, 1999

PORTLAND (AP) - Determined to build a casino in the Columbia River Gorge, the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs this week signed an option to buy a 30-acre island at the eastern edge of Cascade Locks.

 The property, known as Government Island, is connected to the mainland by a causeway. It was put up for sale by the Port of Cascade Locks for $1.9 million last year.

 A casino in Cascade Locks would be about 40 miles from Portland, closer to the metro area than any other casino in the state.

 The land option is the strongest signal yet that the tribes have shifted their sights from Hood River to Cascade Locks as a casino location. Tribal officials are meeting regularly with representatives of the city and the port to work on a memorandum of understanding.

 The talks are going well, according to Cascade Locks Mayor Rogers Wheatley and tribal spokesman Rudy Clements, who is chairman of the board that oversees gaining for the Warm Springs tribes.

 Warm Springs representatives will meet May 12 with a team from Gov. John Kitzhaber's office to begin negotiations toward a new tribal gaming compact.

 Clements said the tribes are prepared to sign over to state ownership a 40-acre parcel of trust land just east of Hood River, adjacent to the Historic Columbia River Highway and inside the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area if the governor agrees to accept the Cascade Locks property as a casino site.

 The tribes'plan to build a 75,000-square-foot casino on the Hood River County land was met with a storm of opposition when it was announced last fall.

 But if the exchange idea doesn't fly, those 40 acres remain what Clements called "the next best economic fit for us."

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