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California Tribe Offers Bay Area Land Deal

CALIFORNIA – As reported by the LA Times: "An Indian tribe and its Las Vegas partner angling to build a gambling hall in Sonoma County have given the local community a sizable gift — a $4.2-million option to buy nearly 1,700 acres along the environmentally sensitive San Francisco Bay.

"The Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria and Stations Casino planned to build a casino resort on the land, which straddles a state highway on the bucolic north shore of the bay.

"But that proposal met harsh resistance from environmentalists and neighboring communities. So the tribe and casino company in August switched targets and now aim to build a gambling hall on land just outside Rohnert Park, a plan that has met with tough opposition in that small city.

"…The $4.2-million option gives the Sonoma Land Trust the right to pay an additional $15.4 million toward a total purchase price of $19.6 million for the land. The purchase must be completed by August 2004 or the land will revert to its original owners.

"Ralph Benson, executive director of the land trust, expressed confidence that a major fund-raising campaign will produce the needed money. He called the deal with the tribe and casino company `a no-strings-attached deal' and said the trust is not taking a stand on the casino in Rohnert Park.

"The tribe's foes in Rohnert Park, meanwhile, characterized the deal as another attempt to curry favor with Sonoma County residents uneasy about another casino…"

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