Indian Gaming

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission voted to give the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe more time to make progress on its casino.

The commission was prepare to accept initial applications from commercial casino developers. But the panel decided to wait another 90 days, until after March 15, 2013, to consider alternatives to a tribal casino.

"It's basically to give them a last shot and to make it clear that we have gone as far as we can go to give them a shot to be successful," Stephen Crosby, the chairman of the commission, said during a public meeting on Tuesday, The Cape Cod Times reported.

The tribe took the vote as a positive sign. "With a great location, a host community agreement, an ongoing environmental review process, and a successful public referendum, we are ahead of any other potential development," Chairman Cedric Cromwell said in a statement.

H.3702, also known as the Expanded Gaming Act, authorized three casinos in the state, including one for "a federally recognized tribe." The law envisions opening up Region C -- southeastern Massachusetts -- to commercial developers if the tribal plan doesn't succeed.

Get the Story:
Mashpee tribe ruling raises ante (The Cape Cod Times 12/19)
State gambling commission backs off plan to open up Southeastern Massachusetts to private companies (The Boston Globe 12/19)
Wampanoag casino bid faces new obstacles (The Falmouth Bulletin 12/19)
Pols split on tribe’s ‘right’ to open casino (The Boston Herald 12/19)
Gaming panel gives tribe more time to clear casino hurdles (The Boston Herald 12/18)

Related Stories:
Judge holds hearing in gaming rights lawsuit in Massachusetts (12/18)