Hollister
– Hollister’s Mike Walters believes an Indian casino in San
Benito County would deteriorate the community. Dave Nicholaysen
said county leaders would face recall elections if they consider
the idea. Tom Dietrich said he would uproot his family from the
area if one is built.
Hollister – Hollister’s Mike Walters believes an Indian casino in San Benito County would deteriorate the community. Dave Nicholaysen said county leaders would face recall elections if they consider the idea. Tom Dietrich said he would uproot his family from the area if one is built.
They were among a handful of county residents, along with San Benito County Sheriff Curtis Hill, who spoke during Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting in opposition to a proposed Indian casino near Highway 25 in San Benito County.
“I see ourselves looking down the barrel of a firearm, and we’re not on the stock end,” Dietrich told supervisors. “And yet, who is going to be behind the trigger? It’s not those with the casino. It is you, ladies and gentlemen. You are going to be the ones pulling that trigger if you allow this to go any further.”
Hill also took the opportunity to reiterate his opposition to the proposal. He’s in the process of compiling data on the effects casinos have on law enforcement, he said.
“I am adamantly opposed to it and will continue to be adamantly opposed to it,” said Hill, who believes crime rates would rise and traffic safety would be compromised with a casino.
Nobody from the audience spoke in favor of the idea.
Despite the fact the state and federal government have final say over a Miwok Indian band’s hope to build a $100 million to $300 million casino resort here, a spokesman for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has said the governor won’t sign a compact agreement without local support, including that of elected officials.
Investors say a local casino would be similar in size to Yolo County’s Cache Creek Casino that combines 66,000 square feet with 1,762 slot machines and 120 table games.
Only one supervisor, Ruth Kesler, has taken a firm stance on a casino. Kesler, whose term expires in December, is opposed to it.
Other supervisors have indicated they’re willing to explore the idea. Supervisors Reb Monaco and Pat Loe have discussed the proposal with investors backing the California Valley Miwok’s plan.
After two residents who oppose the casino took to the podium, board Chairman Bob Cruz announced that supervisors had invited two casino authorities with the California State Association of Counties to a future public workshop.
At that meeting either Oct. 21 or Oct. 22, Yolo County Supervisor Mike McGowan and Sonoma County Supervisor will discuss the effects of a casino and answer questions from concerned residents.
The people at Tuesday’s meeting, though, wanted to express opposition early, before the governor and federal Bureau of Indian Affairs consider the project’s merits. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has said there would have to be strong local support for his approval of a compact agreement, according to a governor’s office press spokesman.
Marylin Hill – who isn’t related to the sheriff – said a casino would increase crime rates, including domestic violence; increase traffic congestion; and foster gambling addiction.
The tribe wants to listen to, and address, resident’s concerns, according to their attorney Phillip Thompson. The tribe and its investors, by law, have to hold their own town hall meetings sometime in the coming months. Thompson said there will be three of them, if not more.
He pointed out that casinos “are not a big-time contributor to crime.” He also said there would be “various programs and processes” that could be established to counter gambling addiction-related problems.
“We’re not getting the firestorm of opposition I thought might come,” he said. “We want to try to make this as helpful as we can to the community.”
Plus, the investment groups behind the deal, Game Won and Game Too, have indicated they’re willing to negotiate with the county and help fund local infrastructure upgrades, such as the widening of Highway 25 from two to four lanes.
But Nicholaysen, who moved to the area a year ago, said there are better ways to earn revenues than by cutting deals with casino backers.
“You’re going to have a fight on your hands. The families here don’t want that kind of stuff here,” Nicholaysen said. “If you entertain this thing, it’ll go to a recall. I guarantee that.”
After hearing those comments, Cruz spoke out against Dietrich’s threat of a recall. He did so again after the meeting.
In the wake of a group’s efforts to remove District Attorney John Sarsfield from office, Cruz called the notion of recalling public officials over the casino proposal “a sad thing to me.”
“Do you really think this board is advocating for a casino to come in here? Give us a break,” Cruz said after the board meeting. “My God, what are we coming to?”
Casino Q&A
Phillip Thompson, lawyer for the California Valley Miwok Tribe,
answers questions about the proposed casino. The landless, federally recognized tribe and a group of non-tribal local investors will decide within the next two weeks whether to go ahead with the idea.
Q: News of the casino proposal leaked to the press. Is that affecting the search for land?
A: “We’re still on our same timetable, … (but) it could affect the purchase of the parcel.”
Q: Has a casino site been secured yet?
A: “We think that somebody may want to (sell) the land for a price at a later date. … That could be over a year from now. … It’s not appropriate at this time to talk about the land.”
Q: Is the casino group looking at sites
in San Benito County, Santa Clara County or land straddling the
county line?
A: “It would probably have to be in one county.”
Q: Have any of the local investors been involved in the gambling business in the past?
A: “Not that I’m aware of. They’d probably end up hiring expertise.”
Q: Are there any links between this tribal casino proposal and one for San Pablo in the East Bay?
A: “None whatsoever.”
Q: What kind of wages would the casino pay its workers?
A: “I think our wages will be fair living wages.”
Q: Would the casino serve alcohol?
A: “I would anticipate that some kind of alcohol will be served.”
Q: Would local residents have any input on the project?
A: Yes. The tribe would set up public meetings, a Web site and a toll-free phone number to solicit public comment and let locals “help us shape” the casino. “That is a pledge we are making. … It’s going to be an open process.”
