Indian Gaming > BIA says no to off-reservation casinos in Barstow

January 8, 2008

BIA says no to off-reservation casinos in Barstow

Three tribes sought off-reservation casinos in Barstow, California. The Bureau of Indian Affairs rejected all three last week.

The Los Coyotes Band of Cahuilla and Cupeno Indians and the Big Lagoon Rancheria sought side-by-side casinos on about 43 acres. But the BIA said the site was too far from the tribes' reservations -- about 550 miles from Big Lagoon and 115 miles from Los Coyotes -- o benefit tribal members [PDF: Big Lagoon | Los Coyotes].

The Chemehuevi Tribe also proposed a casino in Barstow. The BIA again pointed to the 135-mile distance between the reservation and the gaming site.

The Los Coyotes Band and the Big Lagoon Rancheria were supported by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) and local officials in Barstow. The BIA did not take into account this support in rejecting the casinos.

Get the Story:
Feds deny tribe's plans to build casino near Barstow (The North County Times 1/8)
Off-site casinos appearing unlikely (Copley News Service 1/8)
Federal government rejects tribes casino plans (The Desert Dispatch 1/8)