November 2011 CUJ - Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian ...

Battle over proposed Spokane casino continuesAIRWAY HEIGHTS, Wash. (AP) -Spokane County commissioners werebarred from commenting when businessleaders opposed to a new Indian casinoasked them for help in defending FairchildAir Force Base.The Spokesman-Review reported commissionersare bound to remain silentunder a deal in which the county wouldreceive payments to offset the effectsof the Spokane Tribe’s casino and hoteldevelopment.Commissioner Mark Richard defendedthe intergovernmental agreement thatrequires commissioners to remain neutralon the casino project, which is underconsideration by the U.S. Department ofIndian Affairs.The Spokane Tribe’s proposal is a hotlydisputed issue in Spokane County, inpart because the proposed casino wouldbe close to the Kalispel Tribe’s NorthernQuest casino resort on the western outskirtsof Spokane. The Spokane Tribe’sproposed casino needs federal permissionbecause it would be located off theirreservation.County commissioners Al French andTodd Mielke are looking for ways toregain their ability to influence the decisionon permitting a 14-story casino hotelnear the flight path of Fairchild trainingmissions.The hotel is the sort of ``encroachment’’that would weigh against Fairchildin another round of military baseclosures expected in 2014, according toGreg Bever, past chairman of GreaterSpokane Incorporated, the region’s economicdevelopment agency.``We need the county’s voice on this issue,’’Bever told commissioners this week.Bever and Greater Spokane PresidentRich Hadley opposed the Spokane’scasino proposal in a Sept. 12 letter to theBureau of Indian Affairs.``We are concerned that the 4,500 jobsat FAFB will be placed at risk if a majorcasino resort complex is developed,’’they wrote.In addition to navigational interference,they cited concerns about puttinglarge concentrations of people in the pathof hundreds of monthly flights at lessthan 2,000 feet from the ground.Richard said he felt ``kind of ambushed’’by Bever’s comments. He saidhe supported the Spokane Tribe’s AirwayHeights proposal as a matter of fairness.While the Kalispel Tribe already has anAirway Heights casino, the Spokanes are``the tribe for which this community isnamed,’’ Richard said.Spokane Tribe Chairman Greg Abrahamsonsaid Wednesday the projectposes no navigational threat to Fairchildor the nearby Spokane InternationalAirport.He pointed to a Nov. 3 ruling by theFederal Aviation Administration that thetribal hotel tower wouldn’t interfere withnavigation and needn’t have warninglights or markings.``The tribe has met with Fairchild officialsand no so-called encroachment’ issueshave been identified,’’ Abrahamsonsaid in a news release.He said the development, on 140 acresat the western edge of Airway Heights,is expected to generate 3,800 permanentand part-time jobs. It will include retailshops, medical offices and a tribal culturalcenter.CommunityForumMeetingMissionSenior CenterNov. 28, 20115 PM potluck6 PM MeetingKit Morgan, Legal Aid“Surrogate Decision Making”Noelle Richards -RARE youth projectsCome join us!more info call541-429-7386ND tribal official, wifesentenced for theftGRAND FORKS, N.D. (AP) - A formerSpirit Lake Nation councilman and hiswife won’t serve prison time for stealingfrom the tribe.U.S. Attorney Timothy Purdon says69-year-old Carl Walking Eagle of FortTotten was sentenced Wednesday toabout four months of home detention tobe followed by three years of supervisedrelease, and 65-year-old Barbara WalkingEagle was sentenced to two years ofsupervised release.The couple also must pay about $8,400in restitution, and Carl Walking Eaglewas fined $1,000 and also ordered towrite a letter of apology to the tribe.The Walking Eagles were accused ofhiding household income so they couldget fuel assistance. Carl Walking Eaglewas the tribe’s vice chairman at the time.The couple pleaded guilty in August totheft and embezzlement charges.Judge issues ruling ontribes and child supportJUNEAU, Alaska (AP) - A judge’sruling allowing Tlingit and Haida tribalcourts in southeast Alaska to adjudicatechild support in cases involving tribemembers is being touted as a victory fortribal authority.``The Court’s order reaffirms theTribe’s inherent jurisdiction to handle thefull range of family law issues affectingits citizens, including the particular issueof child support for the benefit of tribalchildren,’’ the Central Council of Tlingitand Haida Tribes of Alaska said followinglast week’s Superior Court ruling.In his ruling, Judge Philip Pallenbergdelineated a long history of complicationsthat he said were inevitable with asystem of dual sovereignty.Tara, We’re Sad.November 2011Confederated Umatilla Journal43