Illinois whinners

When I was a young whippersnapper and lived in Wisconsin, we all complained about the Illinois people coming up and using us as their playground and dumping ground. We loved their money, but hated their visits. Kind of ironic that now Illinois is complaining about the Wisconsinites ruining their tranquility. Payback is a bitch....


Plan for Indian Casino Splits Illinois Town
By JO NAPOLITANO

YNWOOD, Ill. - A Wisconsin Indian tribe's proposal to build what would be the largest casino in Illinois - a windfall that the mayor and a local congressman are eager to have - is drawing ire from some local residents, who are organizing to oppose it.

Ann De Boer said the proposed casino would shatter her home's tranquillity. The casino, part of a sprawling entertainment complex to be built on 432 acres that now hold farms and single-family homes, would abut her three-acre property on two sides.

"It will bring in transient people, so you won't feel as safe," Ms. De Boer said on a recent afternoon. "We love it here. It's very peaceful. The casino will change all of that."

But Lynwood, a racially and economically diverse suburb of 8,000 people 28 miles south-southeast of Chicago, is hard up for jobs, and while some might prefer another employer, the entertainment complex is the only big business eager to come to town. The tribe that has proposed it promises 5,000 jobs, with an average annual salary of more than $45,000.

"We're struggling," Mayor Russell Melby said of Lynwood's financial status. "This would be a big economic engine for us."

The facility, proposed by the Ho-Chunk Nation, a tribe that has already built several casinos in Wisconsin, would include a water park, an 8,000-seat amphitheater, four restaurants, a nightclub, an Indian cultural center and a museum. But the most contentious part of the proposal is a 220,000-square-foot casino that would have 3,000 slot machines and 100 gambling tables. That would dwarf the state's nine riverboat casinos, which by law can accommodate only 1,200 gamblers each.

The Ho-Chunks, formerly known as the Winnebagos, are a sovereign nation based in Black River Falls, Wis., and as such they do not have to apply for a state gambling license or adhere to any state restrictions. Instead they must deal with the federal government, and they have already had some success.

Representative Jesse Jackson Jr., Democrat of Illinois, said he supported the plan and would submit a bill calling for the parcel to be placed in a federal trust. That would allow the Ho-Chunks to retain proprietary management of that land and to build a casino. If Congress approves Mr. Jackson's proposal, the tribe may then approach Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich to work out the details.

If the governor rejects their request, the Ho-Chunks can appeal to the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs, which would then determine whether the proposal was in the best interest of the tribe and the surrounding community. The tribe, which has already bought up almost all the land, is pursuing both routes.

A spokeswoman for the governor said he had not yet reviewed the Ho-Chunks' proposal.


Riverboat owners cringe at the notion of the Ho-Chunks competing for what is now their business.

The Ho-Chunk Nation would have tremendous advantages, they say. It would have no limit on the number of gambling positions, would not have to adhere to state regulations and would not pay taxes, allowing it to put more money into advertising and promotions, luring customers away from two nearby riverboats.

The Rev. Tom Grey, executive director of the National Coalition Against Legalized Gambling, said he was troubled by the proposal for different reasons. Mr. Grey said he was worried about an increase in vice.

"I think they are in for a hard fight," he said. "This is an addictive product that has a cost to it. And who pays for that? The taxpayers."

Some local residents share Mr. Grey's concerns and have established a group called Citizens for Our Community. A recent group meeting drew some 700 people. Among them was Carl Smits, a 35-year-old farmer who lives four miles from the site of the proposed casino.


"It's bringing our youth into close proximity to gambling and setting them up to be gamblers when they grow older," Mr. Smits said in a telephone interview.

But Tom Vierk, 71, who owns a bowling alley here, said he welcomed the jobs that the casino would bring, and he dismissed claims that it would promote gambling addiction. After all, he said, there are several casinos nearby in Indiana; why not keep those dollars in Illinois?

"If you go to Indiana,'' Mr. Vierk said, "all you'll see are Illinois license plates."