10:45 AM PDT on Wednesday, April 6, 2005

By kgw.com and AP Staff

CASCADE LOCKS, Ore. -- Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski has approved a tribal casino in the scenic Columbia River Gorge over the objections of conservationists who say it will bring traffic jams and pollution.

kgw.com/Friends of Columbia River Gorge

An aerial view of the land that is the proposed site for a Cascade Locks casino.

Kulongoski signed an agreement Wednesday morning, allowing the first tribal casino on nontribal land in Oregon to be built in the financially struggling town of Cascade Locks.

It's a policy shift that could prompt the eight other tribes with casinos in Oregon to consider casinos on non-reservation land closer to Portland.

Located about 40 miles east of Portland, Cascade Locks is a quick freeway drive from the state's major metropolitan area and a casino there likely would be a big moneymaker for the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs. Tribal leaders estimate it would draw 3 million patrons yearly.

The tribes would close their existing on-reservation casino, Kah-Nee-Ta, near the town of Warm Springs when the new one opens.

In pushing for the Cascade Locks casino, the Warm Springs tribes said they they needed a larger casino to bring down the high unemployment rates on the reservation.

Len Bergstein, a spokesman for the tribes, said the negotiated agreement also calls for Warm Springs to give a portion of the casino's revenue to the state. He declined to say how much, noting that details would be announced Wednesday.

"There is essential agreement between the negotiators for the state and for Warm Springs to build the casino," Bergstein said.

Kulongoski's predecessor, Gov. John Kitzhaber, had turned down the project in 1999 because he opposed off-reservation casinos.

AP photo

The small town of Cascade Locks nestled beneath the cloud-shrouded, rugged hills of the Columbia River Gorge.

Many residents in Cascade Locks said they were eager for the casino to come to town of 1,000 for the jobs and tourists it could bring.

However, the day manager at the Charburger Restaurant in Cascade Locks said Tuesday he's worried a casino will transform the town, which is known for its nearby waterfalls and hiking trails.

"I think it will bring in a different crowd to town," Rod Bennett said. "It will be more crowded and there will be more crime."\

The conservation group Friends of the Columbia Gorge said air and water quality in the area will be harmed by the traffic the proposed 500,000-square-foot casino would generate.

"We're disappointed the governor would break the state's current policy on gaming and allow the first off-reservation casino in the heart of the Columbia River Gorge," said Michael Lang, spokesman for the group. "The Gorge should be protected... and not turned into an overcrowded Mecca for casino gambling."

The Cascade Locks casino likely would cut into the market for the Spirit Mountain Casino, the state's biggest Indian gaming center, which is located in Grand Ronde, about 60 southwest of Portland.

A spokesman for the tribe that operates Spirit Mountain said Tuesday that in view of Kulongoski's move, his tribe will look into moving closer to Portland.

"If off-reservation casinos are going to be a reality, then we have a responsibility to our tribal citizens to look at other options," said Justin Martin, government relations director for the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde.

The proposed Cascade Locks casino still will require federal approval, and conservationists said they would try to block the deal at the federal level.

"The governor can support a casino resort in the Gorge, but he can't approve the casino," said Lang.

The federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act confines tribal gambling to Indian lands, usually existing reservations.

But the U.S. Interior Department can determine that an off-reservation casino is in a tribe's best interest, wouldn't harm the surrounding community and if the governor of the state where the casino will be built agrees.

About 20 tribes nationwide have gotten permission for off-reservation casinos under these exceptions, according to the Bureau of Indian Affairs' Office of Indian Gaming Management.

If Kulongoski had denied permission to build in Cascade Locks however, the tribes had said they were prepared to build a casino upstream in Hood River on tribal property.

There was stiff opposition to building a casino in Hood River because it would require carving out a steep bluff, and the gambling facility would be clearly visible from the river.

KGW photo

An artist's conception of the entrance to the proposed Cascade Locks casino.

The Cascade Locks casino would be on 110 acres zoned for industrial use within the city's urban growth boundary.

The site is along the river, but developers say the casino would be set back far enough where it wouldn't be visible from the river or from Interstate 84.

Kulongoski's legal adviser, MardiLyn Saathoff, said the governor felt that approving the Cascade Locks proposal would avoid a more environmentally damaging casino in Hood River.

She said the tribe also agreed to meet stiffer-than-normal environmental regulations and to let the state approve the design. Bergstein added that the agreement calls on Warms Springs to use some of the casino's profits to enhance "environmental protection" in the gorge, but he declined to offer specifics.

In addition, the tribe will pay for the estimated $20 million exchange off of Interstate 84 to be built for the casino, and turn over three parcels of property near Hood River to the state to be protected from development, Saathoff said.