Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe wants better deal

Tuesday, June 16, 2009  

The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe of Massachusetts hopes to negotiate a new casino deal with investors after voting against extending an existing agreement.

Tribal leaders said the existing agreement was unfair because it would have put more money in the hands of investors. The agreement was signed by former chairman Glenn Marshall, who is serving a federal prison sentence on corruption charges.

Tribal leaders are talking with investors Sol Kerzner and Len Wolman, who financed the Mohegan Tribe of Connecticut, about a new deal. Investors recently stopped making monthly payments to the tribe, though they have maintained payments on a proposed casino site.

The tribe has a pending land-into-trust application for the casino but it could be in doubt as a result of the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Carcieri v. Salazar. The tribe didn't gain formal federal recognition until May 2007.

Get the Story:
Tribe retreats on casino deal with investors (The Cape Cod Times 6/16)
Wampanoags decline deal with investors (The Boston Globe 6/16)