$130 Million casino to resume
A $130 MILLION casino in Buffalo is set to resume its construction, the Seneca Indian Nation announced recently. It was previously delayed due to the poor economy.
The area immediately around the casino is largely industrial and sits on the outskirts of the city’s downtown. The tribe has promised $1 million in grants for groups to improve infrastructure, landscaping, lighting and signage in the area. “We are all in this together and we will succeed through collaboration,” Seneca President Robert Odawi Porter said.
It is set to be unveiled next summer and will take on 500 people. The Associated Press reported that before the recession, the Senecas planned a $333 million casino and hotel complex that was to be one of the largest private projects ever undertaken in the upstate city.
The Senecas also operate two successful casinos in Niagara Falls and on reservation land in Salamanca in Cattaraugus County. Still pending is a federal lawsuit filed by an antigambling coalition seeking to prevent gambling on the Buffalo site. Citizens Against Casino Gambling in Erie County argue the casino site, which was purchased by the Senecas, does not qualify as sovereign territory and worry a casino would drain money from Buffalo’s economy, cause a net loss in jobs and a host of social ills.
