The operators of Oregon’s largest casino, the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, have purchased a former greyhound racetrack in Wood Village, Ore. The announcement immediately fueled new rumors about whether a casino will be built on the property.
Tribal officials announced the purchase of the former Multnomah Greyhound Park on Thursday, saying they bought the property to ensure that no competing casino will be built there, The Oregonian reported.
“I wouldn’t say we would never do gaming there,” said Justin Martin, a Grand Ronde lobbyist, adding that the tribe could go in that direction if the “face of gaming changes in Oregon.”
The Grand Ronde, owners and operators of Spirit Mountain Casino southwest of the metro area, have opposed plans by the Cowlitz Tribe to build a casino resort along Interstate 5 west of La Center. The Cowlitz casino would be much closer to most of metro Portland than Spirit Mountain, which is more than an hour’s drive away for most residents.
The greyhound track closed in 2004 and the 31-acre site near Interstate 84 in the heart of Portland’s east metro area has since been eyed by developers as a casino site. The Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde effectively campaigned against those efforts. The property is within the historic homelands of the Cascade and Clackamas Chinook tribes (both of which are confederated at Grande Ronde), which gave up the territory to the United States by treaty in 1855, according to a tribal press release issued Friday.
If the Grand Ronde were to try to open a casino at the track, they would face regulatory hurdles, including a state policy that limits each tribe to one casino on reservation land. That policy cooled the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs’ plans for a casino at Cascade Locks, Ore., in the Columbia River Gorge.
“While we cannot rule anything out in terms of the future of gaming in Oregon, our priority at this time is to develop this property in a manner that diversifies our investment holdings,” Grand Ronde Tribal Chairman Reyn Leno stated in a press release.
The property was purchased for an undisclosed price. Track owner Art McFadden listed the racetrack earlier this year with an $11.2 million asking price.
Any casino developed on that property would compete with the Cowlitz Tribe’s planned casino-resort with a hotel and shopping center on the tribe’s new 152-acre reservation along Interstate 5 west of La Center. Ground preparation started on that project this fall, with construction possible next year. The Cowlitz project still faces opposition, including from the Grand Ronde.
The federal government officially recognized the Cowlitz Indian Tribe in 2000, and in 2010 the Bureau of Indian Affairs approved an application to take 152 acres of land into trust for a new Cowlitz reservation.
The Grand Ronde’s announcement comes shortly before the Cowlitz Tribe plans to start selling bonds to finance its resort. Last week, Moody’s Investor Service assigned a B3 Corporate Family Rating to the Cowlitz Gaming Authority’s $485 million financing for its casino. Bonds rated B are considered speculative and subject to high credit risk, according to Moody’s.
Cowlitz Tribe Chairman Bill Iyall did not return calls for comment Friday.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
