Kempthorne said to be moving slow on Mohawk casino

Tuesday, April 24, 2007  

Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne won't be approving an off-reservation casino for the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe of New York any time soon.

The Interior Department agreed to delay a lawsuit filed by the Natural Resources Defense Council so that Kempthorne can review the project. But his concerns about off-reservation gaming could tie up a decision for months.

"We are not hearing that the secretary is going to act immediately," an attorney for the NRDC told The Middletown Times Herald-Record. "We are hearing exactly the opposite."

NRDC is challenging the environmental assessment for the $600 million casino in the Catskills. The group wants a more complete environmental review of the project.

Get the Story:
Deal between casino foes and feds to delay St. Regis Mohawk's plans for Monticello (The Middletown Times Herald-Record 4/24)