Columbia Gorge casino

The Columbia Gorge casino is a casino proposed by the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, a group of Indian tribes in the U.S. state of Oregon. They have sought to build a casino in the Columbia River Gorge since at least 1999. Current plans call for a facility with 250 hotel rooms in the city of Cascade Locks, Oregon. The proposal is located within the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area and is adjacent to a federally designated wilderness area.
The plan, which is opposed by Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber, but supported by the City of Cascade Locks, and the government of Hood River County,
Political context
The Siletz tribe advocated for an off-reservation casino in Troutdale as early as 1992, drawing opposition from then-governor Barbara Roberts.
As early as 1998, the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs owned property in Hood River, and were entertaining controversial plans to open a casino there or in Cascade Locks. Then-governor John Kitzhaber opposed the plans, on two principles: that each tribe should have only one casino, and that tribal casinos should be on tribal trust land established before the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988. Federal law gave Kitzhaber the power to deny the tribe the Cascade Locks location, because it had not been held in trust prior to the 1988 law. He had no such power over the Hood River site or other land the tribes had held for a longer period of time.
Kitzhaber ultimately overruled the Cascade Locks location,
In 2001, the Confederated Tribes purchased an additional of land east of the city of Hood River, adjoining it already owned. The Confederated Tribes then pursued two separate plans for casinos in the gorge until 2004: one in Cascade Locks, the other on the Hood River property. The Hood River plan, which would have called for an eight-story casino, was opposed by Hood River residents. Hood River County Commissioner Carol York was also a strong advocate of the Cascade Locks location, rather than the Hood River location. The Grand Ronde group was the biggest campaign spender in the 2006 gubernatorial primary election, opposing Kulongoski and Kevin Mannix. Grand Ronde, which operates Spirit Mountain Casino, spent over $800,000 in that cycle.
The United States Secretary of the Interior will have to approve a casino if it is to move forward. Current Secretary Dirk Kempthorne has generally opposed off-reservation casinos, but is unlikely to make the decision; instead, his successor after the George W. Bush administration leaves office is expected to consider the proposed casino, along with an off-reservation casino in La Center, Washington being proposed by the Cowlitz Tribe. In January 2011 the Interior Department approved a compact between the tribes and the state. The remaining steps include the demonstration of compliance with the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act and approval from the Governor.<ref name=biz/>

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