Two Idaho tribes plan resort and casino near Boise. Here's why
A Native American tribal group with ancestral ties to the Treasure Valley plans to build its first and only casino near Boise.
The Shoshone-Paiute Tribes, based at the Duck Valley Reservation on the Idaho-Nevada state line, said in a news release Wednesday that it's partnering with the Coeur d'Alene Tribe in North Idaho to develop and manage the casino.
It would be located about 15 miles southeast of Boise.
Natalie Podgorski, a spokesperson for the Sho-Pai, told the Idaho Statesman by phone that the Coeur d'Alene Tribe last week bought 561 acres of land, situated in both Ada and Elmore counties, to give to the Sho-Pai for the project. The property is about two miles south of the exit for the Boise Stage Stop on Orchard Access Road. About 40 acres would be used for the casino, she said.
The proposed resort and casino is estimated to generate tens of millions of dollars a year for Idaho's economy and create thousands of well-paying jobs, according to the release.
It would draw patrons from the more than 780,000 people who live in Ada and Canyon counties, in addition to the nearly 30,000 who live in Elmore County. It would also attract travelers along the route between Boise and Mountain Home.
'Today, we have no meaningful economic opportunities and our community is facing some heavy challenges because of it,' Sho-Pai Chairman Brian Mason said in the release. 'We want to solve our own problems and provide for our people. Tribal gaming will allow us to make these dreams into a reality.'
The Coeur d'Alene Tribe will pay for the permitting and construction, according to Podgorski. She said the tribes don't yet have an estimate for how much the project will cost.
Once the casino is built, the Sho-Pai would own it and the Coeur d'Alene Tribe would manage it.
'Because this will be the Sho-Pai's first and only casino, they don't have the experience yet,' Podgorski said. 'But the Coeur d'Alene Tribe has been operating gaming in Idaho for more than 30 years. I think the ultimate hope is to empower the Sho-Pai people throughout this project so that eventually, someday, they might fully manage the operation on their own.'
Coeur d'Alene Tribe Chairman Chief Allan said in the release that his tribe has experienced the 'transformative power of gaming' and wants to help the Sho-Pai achieve the same.
'When I was growing up, many tribal members lived in poverty and could not find jobs,' Allan said. 'Today, we have a state-of-the-art medical center, ample employment for tribal members and can financially support every tribal member who wants to earn a college degree. None of this would be possible without tribal gaming.'
The Sho-Pai don't have a casino on their remote reservation in Southwest Idaho but have been working on plans for a gaming project in the Mountain Home area since the 1990s.
Last year, those plans put the Sho-Pai at odds with the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes, based at the Fort Hall Reservation near Pocatello, who bought land in Elmore County to develop a $311 million gaming enterprise. It would be the Sho-Ban tribes' fourth casino; two are on the reservation and one is in nearby Pocatello.
The Sho-Pai urged Gov. Brad Little and the Biden administration to reject the Sho-Bans' proposal, arguing that the Sho-Pai has greater ancestral ties to the territory. Fort Hall is about 180 miles from Mountain Home.
Mountain Home, about 90 miles away, is one of the closest sizable cities to the Duck Valley Reservation.
The Sho-Pai go to the city to buy goods and services and, for over 40 years, tribal members have been born at a hospital in Mountain Home and elders have had funeral arrangements and embalmings in the Elmore County seat.
Mason, the Sho-Pai chairman, told the Statesman last year that while his tribes generally support the economic endeavors of its sister tribes, the Sho-Bans' proposal was 'a bridge too far.' He said the project would relegate his people to continued poverty. The Sho-Pai have about 2,300 members.
The Sho-Ban did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
Members of the Duck Valley Reservation face high rates of suicide and unemployment, and the community struggles to provide emergency services or adequate education because of its location, according to the release.
'The challenges we face daily are not insurmountable,' Mason said. 'We simply need resources to invest in long-term solutions for our people. Gaming will give us the tools we need to strengthen our community, grow our infrastructure and provide more opportunities to our youth for generations to come.'
Podgorski, the Sho-Pai spokesperson, said the casino project includes plans for workforce housing. The casino would be about two-hour drive from the reservation, and she said it'd be unrealistic for tribal members who might work at the casino to commute every day.
The Sho-Pai and the Coeur d'Alene Tribe are now working on getting the land into a trust.
Then, they'll need to get approval from the Interior Department. The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, which provides a framework for gaming on Indian land, requires that land used for gaming under the act be held in trust, a process where Interior acquires the title to the land and holds it for the benefit of the tribe. Loosened restrictions have allowed tribes to build casinos on land further afield from their reservations.
If the tribes' application is approved, it would then go to Little's desk for his blessing. Little's office did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
Idaho has Native American casinos in Lewiston, Pocatello, Kamiah, and south of Coeur d'Alene, and on the Fort Hall Reservation. In Jackpot, south of Twin Falls and the Nevada border, is a nontribal casino that includes table games.
The casinos in Idaho offer video gaming and bingo, not table games like blackjack, craps and poker.
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