Litigation | Openings & Closings

United Keetoowah Band faces deadline to shut down casino

Monday, August 26, 2013

The United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma faces an August 30 deadline to close its casino.

The tribe has operated the Keetoowah Cherokee Casino in Tahlequah for more than 20 years. But the land was never in trust so the tribe finally submitted a land-into-trust application to the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The BIA agreed to place the 2.08-acre site in trust. Litigation from the Cherokee Nation, however, has stopped the acquisition of the land.

Barring a change in course, the United Keetoowah Band must close the facility by August 30 as part of a settlement with the state of Oklahoma. The state won't ask for an extension.

"As the agreement states, if the land is not taken into trust by Aug. 30, then the casino must close," a spokesperson for the state attorney general told The Tulsa World.

Get the Story:
Tribal casino closing deadline set for Aug. 30 (AP / The Tulsa World 8/23)
Aug. 30 deadline stands for Keetoowahs to close casino or get land in trust (The Tulsa World 8/23)