The Redding Rancheria in northern California is still reportedly optimistic that it will be given official permission to transfer the casino license for its Win-River Resort and Casino to a new facility it wants to build on the outskirts of the city of Redding.

Land-into-trust claim:

According to a Saturday report from the Redding Record Searchlight newspaper, the federally-recognized tribe filed a land-into-trust application with the Bureau of Indian Affairs in 2016 in hopes of being granted the go-ahead for a planned scheme that would see it replace its existing Shasta County resort casino with a much larger gambling venue.

Public discussion:

The newspaper reported that the Win-River Resort and Casino relocation plan has necessitated the production of a draft environmental impact statement, which is now being examined by the public via a consultation period that is set to run until June 17. Following the completion of this stage of the process, the Bureau of Indian Affairs will submit a final report on the tribe’s plan before making an ultimate determination after considering all of its ‘economic, environmental, technical and other factors.’

Plot purchased:

The Redding Record Searchlight reported that Redding Rancheria is confident that this process will ultimately result in it gaining approval to relocate the license for its Win-River Resort and Casino, which has been running since 1993 complete with an 84-room hotel. Such consent would purportedly allow the California tribe to begin constructing a new nine-story facility on a 232-acre parcel of land that it already owns along Interstate 5 just south of Redding.

Grand plans:

The Rancheria wants to begin work on its new casino resort as early as the summer in order to have the full facility up and running by the end of 2025. The tribe purportedly detailed that the plan calls for this finished property to feature a 69,541 sq ft casino alongside a 250-room hotel and a 1,500-seat amphitheater.

Tracy Edwards, Chief Executive Officer for the Rancheria, detailed that her tribe’s plan envisions the relocated Win-River Resort and Casino to moreover offer restaurants and a retail element as well as conference and events centers. She purportedly declared that gaining land-into-trust status is necessary ‘before a tribe can game on property’ as the designation giving such plots ‘a different status than land owned by the city or land owned by an individual.’

Edwards told the newspaper…

“We want this development to be something the whole community can be proud of. We have shown that it is our priority and part of our culture to give back to the community to make it a better place to live.”