Indianz.Com > Indian Gaming

April 14, 2011

Navajo Nation Council delegate joins Indian gaming group

Navajo Nation Council Delegate Joshua Lavar Butler is serving as secretary to the Arizona Indian Gaming Association. Butler will represent the Navajo Nation within the organization. The tribe just broke ground on its first gaming facility in Arizona. "The Navajo...

April 8, 2011

Ernie Stevens wins re-election to sixth term as NIGA chairman

Ernie Stevens Jr., a member of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin, won re-election as chairman of the National Indian Gaming Association. Stevens will serve a sixth two-year term for the organization. He defeated Ivan Makil, the former president of the...

March 28, 2011

Gaming helping tribes in Washington rebuild their reservations

Three tribes in Washington have seen big changes in the last two decades, all thanks to Indian gaming. The Nisqually Tribe operates the Red Wind Casino. The casino saw double-digit growth in revenue and profit in 2010 despite the weak...

March 24, 2011

California tribes study economic impact of gaming, businesses

California tribes have commissioned a study to determine the economic impact of their casinos and their businesses. The California Nations Indian Gaming Association, the Tribal Alliance of Sovereign Indian Nations and the California Association of Tribal Governments are participating in...

Snoqualmie Tribe makes change to outdoor concerts at casino

The Snoqualmie Tribe of Washington is making changes to the outdoor concert series at its casino. Last summer, residents complained about noise at the Snoqualmie Casino. The tribe is now shortening its season and ending shows earlier in hopes of...

March 21, 2011

NIGA Debate: Interviews with Ernie Stevens Jr and Ivan Makil

The National Indian Gaming Association holds its annual tradeshow and convention on April 3-6 in Phoenix, Arizona, where members will decide who will lead the organization. Ernie Stevens Jr., a member of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin, has served as...

March 18, 2011

Mohegan Tribe starts gas station exclusive to casino workers

The Mohegan Tribe of Connecticut will be opening a gas station exclusive to the 8,000 employees of Mohegan Sun. The station will be located on land that is not held in trust, The New London Day reported. The tribe has...

Mississippi Choctaws donate $50K, police cars to casino town

The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians donated $50,000, two police cars and five handguns to the town of Sandersville, where the tribe's new casino is located. The town asked the tribe for assistance in dealing with the Bok Homa Casino,...

March 17, 2011

Shakopee Tribe spreads its wealth thanks to successful casino

The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community of Minnesota donated over $28 million to tribes, Indian organizations and non-profits and loaned another $60 million to tribes in the last fiscal year, all thanks to Indian gaming. The tribe operates the Mystic Lake...

March 9, 2011

Oklahoma tribes make state the fourth largest in gaming market

Oklahoma is the fourth biggest state in the overall U.S. gaming market, according to the new Indian Gaming Industry Report. Since gaining voter approval for Class III gaming in 2004, tribes have seen phenomenal growth. In 2009, they took in...

March 8, 2011

Ak-Chin Indian Community hopeful for turnaround on revenues

The Ak-Chin Indian Community of Arizona says business at its casino appears to be improving. The tribe, like others in Arizona, has taken a hit during the recession. "I would say (the decline in revenue is) impactful,” Chairman Louis Manuel,...

Rosebud Sioux Tribe to use Shakopee Tribe loan for casino work

The Rosebud Sioux Tribe of South Dakota has secured funding to make upgrades to its casino. The tribe will redo the entire gaming floor at the Rosebud Casino, Hotel, and Fuel Plaza. The tribe is also installing a new surveillance...

March 7, 2011

South Dakota tribes buck trend and see growth at their casinos

Indian gaming revenues fell for the first time nationwide in 1998 but tribes in South Dakota saw growth at their facilities, according to the new Indian Gaming Industry Report. Tribes in South Dakota operate 11 facilities. They took in $103...

March 3, 2011

Oklahoma, Florida and Washington see jump in casino revenues

Tribal casino revenues fell 1 percent in 2009, according to the new Indian Gaming Industry Report, but three states bucked the national trend. Oklahoma is home to 111 tribal casinos. The facilities took in $3.12 billion in 2009, an increase...

March 2, 2011

Indian Gaming Industry Report cites dip in tribal casino revenues

Tribal casino revenues fell for the first time since 1998, according to the new Indian Gaming Industry Report by Alan Meister. Tribes across the nation took in $26.4 billion in 2009. That's 1 percent lower than the $26.7 billion in...

February 24, 2011

Travel: Eastern Cherokee casino blossoming into Vegas resort

"When it opened in November 1997, Harrah’s Cherokee Casino contained less than 90,000 square feet of gaming space, three restaurants and no hotel. Zip forward 14 years and, behold, the blossoming of a Las Vegas-style resort, one of the largest...

February 23, 2011

Snoqualmie Tribe leaders approve $14M buyout for casino CEO

Leaders of the Snoqualmie Tribe of Washington approved a $14 million buyout for the top executive at the Snoqualmie Casino. The council voted 4-3 to offer the buyout to Mike Barozzi. Just two months ago, the council had agreed to...

Top marketing executive for Mashantucket casino resigns post

Robert Victoria, the chief marketing executive at Foxwoods Resort Casino, resigned on Monday for "personal reasons," The New London Day reports. Victoria landed some high-profile marketing deals for the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation. The tribe is the exclusive advertiser during...

February 7, 2011

Oneida Nation launches ad campaign against off-reservation casino

The Oneida Nation of New York is running a television ad campaign that targets the off-reservation casino proposed by the Stockbridge Munsee Band of Mohican Indians of Wisconsin. The ad, titled "Shameful," claims Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-New York) “engaged in...

January 31, 2011

Viejas Band partners with California Lottery on promotional effort

The Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians and the California Lottery are teaming up. Lottery players will be able to play for free on certain games at the Viejas Casino. Patrons at the casino will be able to participate in second...

January 24, 2011

MinnPost: Shakopee chair one of 25 to watch in gaming industry

"There's no doubt that gambling initiatives of various kinds will crank up in the Legislature over the next four months, from racino proposals to expanding in-bar charitable gaming. As that unfolds, the profile of Chairman Stanley R. Crooks of the...

January 21, 2011

Gamblers weren't deterred by a blaze at Shakopee Tribe's casino

A fire at the casino owned by the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community of Minnesota couldn't keep the gamblers away. The fire caused some damage to the roof of the Mystic Lake Casino and there was never a major threat...

January 19, 2011

Yavapai-Apache Nation preparing for some gaming competition

The Yavapai-Apache Nation of Arizona is gearing up for some changes at the Cliff Castle Casino. The tribe hired a new general manager last year. Robert Pokorney says the casino will take a different approach to marketing now that the...

January 5, 2011

Spokesperson for Morongo Band's Internet poker group joins rival

The California Online Poker Association, a group led by the Morongo Band of Mission Indians, has lost its spokesperson to a rival Internet gambling group. Patrick Dorinson was helping the tribe with efforts to legalize Internet poker in California. Now...

December 14, 2010

Report anticipates 1.9 percent decline in tribal gaming revenues

Tribal gaming revenues are expected to drop for a second year in a row, according to a new report from PricewaterhouseCoopers. The report says revenues will fall by 1.9 percent in 2010. That follows a 0.9 percent drop in 2009....

November 23, 2010

Arizona Indian Gaming Association fills deputy director position

The Arizona Indian Gaming Association has named Valerie Spicer as its new deputy director. Spicer, who has Mescalero Apache heritage, has worked in Indian gaming for more than two decades. She most recently worked on tribal issues at Gaming Strategies...

November 3, 2010

Signatures being gathered for Passamaquoddy Tribe gaming plan

Voters in Maine appear to have approved a commercial casino that was on Tuesday's ballot and the Passamaquoddy Tribe is hoping to cash in on the pro-gaming sentiment. The tribe is working with the owner of the Scarborough Downs track...

Voters in Oregon easily reject non-Indian casino project on ballot

Voters in Oregon easily rejected Measure 75, which would have authorized a non-Indian casino. According to unofficial results, nearly 68 percent of voters said no to the casino. Only 32 percent said yes. Tribes opposed the project. The Confederated Tribes...

October 29, 2010

Tribes top the list of campaign donations from gaming interests

Political contributions from gaming interests are down this year but tribes are topping the list of donors in this election cycle, according to Scripps Howard Foundation Wire. The Chickasaw Nation of Oklahoma ranked number one among gaming interests. Most of...

Gila River Indian Community mentors members for gaming jobs

The Gila River Indian Community of Arizona offers a mentoring program for tribal members who want to enter the gaming industry. The program began about a year ago. So far, 12 tribal members have participate and eight have been promoted...