The Fall River Herald News has been a Casino Cheerleader, reporting one-sided information, refusing to print opponents' letters to the editor and pretending their is no opposition.
This must have been a difficult story for them to publish.
Casino opponents dominate the floor at Freetown, Lakeville forum
Lakeville and Freetown residents on hand at the forum at Apponequet Regional High School expressed disapproval with the Aquinnah casino proposal on Tuesday, May 22, 2012.
LAKEVILLE —
Questions ranging from traffic and property values to tribal sovereignty, along with anti-casino sentiments, dominated a forum for a resort casino in either Freetown or Lakeville at adjacent locations off Route 140.
The lengthy forum at a packed Apponequet Regional High School auditorium was hosted by the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head, Aquinnah, and is the last forum before Freetown hosts a non-binding referendum vote on May 29 and Lakeville hosts one on June 2. A previous forum was held in each community earlier this month for two separate proposals: one on Freetown Street in Lakeville and one off County Road in Freetown.
After a slideshow presentation that laid out several similar Indian casinos all over the country, the tribe and developer KMD Development Group were barraged with several questions from town residents and officials. By 8 p.m., 15 people had stepped up to the microphone to ask questions or offer an opinion, but only one resident spoke in favor of the proposal. That one Freetown resident noted that the former A.A. Will quarry would be developed into a more visually appealing sight and a casino would create jobs.
Not everyone shared her view.
County Road resident Rhonda Silvia-Alves, a Freetown business owner, drew rousing applause as she spoke against it. She accused selectmen in both towns and the tribal council of acting in a divisive manner. Calling out Lakeville Selectman Derek Maksy — who said both towns would get a “piece of the pie” — Silvia-Alves retorted, “Perhaps we don’t want the pie.”
“This is small-town America and small-town America at its best. We want to keep it that way,” Silvia-Alves added.
Silvia-Alves and many residents questioned if the non-binding vote was indeed non-binding. Tribal Chairwoman Cheryl Andrews-Maltais stressed that the vote would be non-binding; however, she also conceded that the towns would not be voting again unless the town government structure allows for it.
Lakeville resident John Jacobs interpreted that by voting “yes,” the towns can no longer back out of being a host community, but could merely rearrange the “parts on deck.”
Developer Kevin Dwyer, of the California-based KMD Development Group, argued that the towns still have control after a “yes vote” because they control water and sewer rights. However, that did little to dissuade residents from concluding that the upcoming votes might indeed be binding.
Andrews-Maltais said several times throughout the evening that the tribe is under a tight deadline and is doing the best it can. Dating back to last November, the state Gaming Act gave the Aquinnah tribe until July 31 of this year to identify land and a host community; secure a successful referendum vote from the community; negotiate a compact with a governor that must be ratified by the state Legislature; and then put land into a trust under the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs.
The lengthy forum at a packed Apponequet Regional High School auditorium was hosted by the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head, Aquinnah, and is the last forum before Freetown hosts a non-binding referendum vote on May 29 and Lakeville hosts one on June 2. A previous forum was held in each community earlier this month for two separate proposals: one on Freetown Street in Lakeville and one off County Road in Freetown.
After a slideshow presentation that laid out several similar Indian casinos all over the country, the tribe and developer KMD Development Group were barraged with several questions from town residents and officials. By 8 p.m., 15 people had stepped up to the microphone to ask questions or offer an opinion, but only one resident spoke in favor of the proposal. That one Freetown resident noted that the former A.A. Will quarry would be developed into a more visually appealing sight and a casino would create jobs.
Not everyone shared her view.
County Road resident Rhonda Silvia-Alves, a Freetown business owner, drew rousing applause as she spoke against it. She accused selectmen in both towns and the tribal council of acting in a divisive manner. Calling out Lakeville Selectman Derek Maksy — who said both towns would get a “piece of the pie” — Silvia-Alves retorted, “Perhaps we don’t want the pie.”
“This is small-town America and small-town America at its best. We want to keep it that way,” Silvia-Alves added.
Silvia-Alves and many residents questioned if the non-binding vote was indeed non-binding. Tribal Chairwoman Cheryl Andrews-Maltais stressed that the vote would be non-binding; however, she also conceded that the towns would not be voting again unless the town government structure allows for it.
Lakeville resident John Jacobs interpreted that by voting “yes,” the towns can no longer back out of being a host community, but could merely rearrange the “parts on deck.”
Developer Kevin Dwyer, of the California-based KMD Development Group, argued that the towns still have control after a “yes vote” because they control water and sewer rights. However, that did little to dissuade residents from concluding that the upcoming votes might indeed be binding.
Andrews-Maltais said several times throughout the evening that the tribe is under a tight deadline and is doing the best it can. Dating back to last November, the state Gaming Act gave the Aquinnah tribe until July 31 of this year to identify land and a host community; secure a successful referendum vote from the community; negotiate a compact with a governor that must be ratified by the state Legislature; and then put land into a trust under the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Andrews-Maltais said that if it were up to the tribe, it would not follow such a tight deadline.
Developers Edward Samson and Dwyer said although the process the state has set forth is ambitious, the process for finally opening a casino would take nine steps and span seven years or more.
According to a preliminary plan, the proposed casino off Route 140 would include a 145,000-square-foot casino, 150,000-square-foot hotel, a 130,000-square-foot parking garage, 36 table games, and a 150-key hotel. The total acreage would be 500 but only 8 to 10 percent would be developed, leading to more land preservation and a “nice buffer between the project and the surrounding communities,” Samson said.
Andrews-Maltais emphasized that the tribe has roots in the area dating back to the Pilgrims landing at Plymouth Rock. She noted that an Aquinnah sachem signed the original peace treaty with the Pilgrims in 1621, and the tribe is concerned with preserving the history, culture and character of the area.
The resort casino would create 900 construction jobs, 1,350 permanent jobs and would have a payroll of $100 million with 85 percent of the revenue expected to stay within the state, according to the slideshow.
Andrews-Maltais said the tribe would be a good community partner, and Indian casinos are regulated by federal guidelines, which promote more safeguards against some of the negative casino side effects.
Addressing traffic, Dwyer stressed that either an access road will be developed or a ramp off Route 140 would be built to avoid traffic on the residential neighborhoods nearby. Dwyer said he and the developers concluded that they would work to avoid strain on County Road, a residential thoroughfare that he says cannot handle the strain of 3,000 car trips per day.
That did little to sway Freetown resident Sally Massa, who noted that many people seek short cuts and would find it on County Road.
Andrews-Maltais also noted a study that suggests that the commercial property values would increase within five miles of an Indian casino.
And horses can fly!
To that, one Lakeville official said that the 3,900 homes within that radius will experience a decrease in property values. He said this would be especially unfair if the casino does not move forward but property values drop during the planning stages.
Some residents, including Nelson Platt, questioned how the casino will impact the tribe, as 75 percent of its members live away from Martha’s Vineyard and do not benefit financially from tribal government.
Andrews-Maltais said such a concern is not germane to the vote at hand.
Samson addressed a question about crime, stating that the federal oversight leads to a higher police presence at Indian resort casinos. Samson said there is more crime at the average American bowling alley.
Dumb comment!
Polls for the May 29 referendum vote in Freetown will be open from noon to 8 p.m. at the Freetown Elementary School. Lakeville residents will vote from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. on June 2.
Read more: http://www.enterprisenews.com/answerbook/bridgewater/x1832940821/Casino-opponents-dominate-the-floor-at-Freetown-Lakeville-forum#ixzz1vh507ZzX
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