With construction of a bingo hall in Aquinnah on indefinite hold, the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) has petitioned Gov. Charlie Baker to enter into formal negotiations for a full gaming license, including mobile sports betting.
With construction of an electronic bingo hall in Aquinnah on indefinite hold, the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) has petitioned Gov. Charlie Baker to enter into formal negotiations for a full gaming license, including mobile sports betting.
In a Sept. 8 letter to the governor, tribal chairwoman Cheryl Andrews Maltais said she was making an “official request to enter into formal gaming negotiations with the commonwealth of Massachusetts,” as prescribed by the Indian Gaming Rights Act (IGRA). IGRA provides that a tribe that wants to conduct Class III gaming must first enter into a state-tribal compact.
The letter was released Monday by the Aquinnah select board, which had obtained a copy from the governor’s office.
“I think that it’s important for this letter to be shown to our community,” select board member Tom Murphy said prior to the letter’s release.
Town counsel Ronald Rappaport attended the meeting.
The Aquinnah tribe’s recent focus has been on its plan to create a Class II gaming facility on the Island, which does not require approval from the state. It was shut out of a license for full casino gambling in 2012, when former Gov. Deval Patrick gave the Wampanoag Tribe of Mashpee the chance to negotiate the sole state Class III license reserved for a recognized Native American tribe. (In a bit of irony, it was 10 years ago Monday, when Gov. Patrick signed the law allowing gambling in Massachusetts.)
After receiving a green light from the state, the plan by the Mashpee Wampanoags plan to construct a casino never got off the ground. In early 2020, U.S. Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt moved to “disestablish” the tribe’s reservation and remove its land from federal trust. And last fall, the tribe’s former chairman, Cedric Cromwell, was removed from his post after being indicted for an alleged role in a bribery scheme involving a planned casino in Taunton.
In early 2019, the Vineyard tribe began clearing land near tribal headquarters in Aquinnah to construct a bingo hall, but progress was halted amid a tangled legal dispute with the town. Ultimately, a federal appeals court ruled that the tribe must obtain a town building permit before proceeding with construction, something the tribe has been unwilling to do.
Ms. Maltais’s letter to the governor makes no mention of the proposed bingo hall, nor does it mention the possibility of constructing a casino on the Island or elsewhere.
In her letter, Ms. Maltais recounts past unsuccessful efforts to negotiate gaming compacts with the state.
“First reaching agreement with Gov. William Weld in 1995 only to have it rejected by the Department for the Interior for excessive fees to be paid to the state,” she wrote. “More recently, the tribe requested Gov. Deval Patrick enter into negotiations on March 5, 2012 and renewed that request on November 12, 2013. Governor Patrick refused to negotiate with the tribe under the incorrect belief that the tribe was excluded from IGRA,” she continued.
Ms. Maltais said the tribe is seeking not only to negotiate for a Class III gaming license under the state law that originally awarded a license to the Mashpee Wampanoag, but also for the right to conduct statewide mobile sports betting, if a law now under consideration in the state legislature is enacted.
“The tribe looks forward to frank and successful negotiations to establish a regulatory framework for Class III gaming,” her letter concluded.
Aidan Pollard contributed reporting.
Comments
I don't blame them. Get the
here we go again edgI don't blame them. Get the license, sell it to the highest bidder.. Didn't they do this with a cell phone license years ago?
Absolutely not, a casino in
Mark EdgartownAbsolutely not, a casino in no way embodies the character of MV. Poor Martha…
So dumb. We don't want this
Up island resident ChilmafkSo dumb. We don't want this activity on the Island, simply go to a town that wants this like New Bedford. We will all fight this here. Be smart
Why not?? I want it? They
Ted ChilmarkWhy not?? I want it? They have every right to build this….
The island has been
Amused native AquinnahThe island has been gentrified to the point the original inhabitants can’t afford to live there. Then the “liberal” island community blocks every effort we make to use our rights to better ourselves economically. Island of hypocrites
What a joke as there is no
Bob EdgartownWhat a joke as there is no way A casino could support it self on this island. And the track record of development by the tribe is not a good one so doubtful it would be successful anywhere else as well. It is always follow the money and somehow there must be money made and continuing to pursue a losing cause. One thing it does it tie up public officials and government workers with unnecessary meetings.
Now is the time for Vineyard
David Forbes TisburyNow is the time for Vineyard towns to unite in seeking legal counsel to prevent any possibility of an actual casino being built on Martha’s Vineyard. We should no wait until travel plans advance. Small scale Gambling might be fine, but a casino must be off the table.
Where would the employees
George Stein Oak BluffsWhere would the employees live ? So many jobs looking for staff already. Even the construction crew ! Complain about offIsland firms getting jobs but reality is no place to live exists. I apologize for using my actual name.
Once again, the haves vs the
Islander61 OBOnce again, the haves vs the have nots. This is tribal land and if they, the Wampanoag Tribe, which to use their land for whatever they see that is best for the tribe, then who is anyone to get in their way. If they follow the laws associated with the use of tribal land, and get proper permitting, etc. to make it happen, then bless them. Personally, I may not think it's a good idea but that is not for me to say. We don't have any right to stop someone from making an honest living. Look at the all the businesses on the island, they were allowed to thrive, or fail, all on their own. "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." I think that is written somewhere.
Deval Patrick blew this.
Tom bostonDeval Patrick blew this. Hopefully Baker won't. Best place for their casino is New Bedford. They want that. New Bedford presumably wants that. And the Vineyard wants that.
From the cherished late June
MV cares Martha’s VineyardFrom the cherished late June Manning, written in 1995 in this same paper: “ During the turn of the century the land once owned solely by tribal members was being sold to non-tribal people who used their properties only during the summer months. Properties that once sold for $1 to $50 per acre are now selling for more than $100,000 an acre. We have managed our lands quite well. Tribal members, who respect our Mother Earth, do not build too many houses on our land, or build too large.” Hard to imagine how to square her vision of the Wampanoag, with what is occurring today. Read that last sentence of hers one more time, Cheryl and co. That said, it’s their right to do whatever they please, that’s the right point of view about their self-determination. This land was taken, not given. But it’s hard to imagine the same spirit inhabiting the Wampanoag of today, The light is seemingly extinguished.
The light is certainly not
Aquinnah nativeThe light is certainly not extinguished. We are still here. Sorry if that makes you uncomfortable. Want to be a part of the solution? Give the LAND BACK
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