Shinnecock leaders have been trying for 30 years to win formal acknowledgement from the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which questioned whether the tribe had remained an American Indian entity since 1900. Heavy lobbying eventually won the day for the 1,000-member tribe, most of which lives on 800 acres in Southampton, NY.

 

The tribe is likely to get permission to open a “Class II” casino, which can operate slot machines, but no table games. Concerns over traffic congestion and quality-of-life issues in the Hamptons have Shinnecock officials searching for alternative locations for their casino, including in Suffolk County, at the Belmont Park horse track in Nassau County, the Aqueduct Raceway in Queens or near the Catskills.

 

The farther away the better, say tribes with competing Indian casinos in Connecticut (the Mohegans and the Pequots).

-Noel Brinkerhoff

 

U.S. Eases Way to Recognition for Shinnecock (by Danny Hakim, New York Times)

Long Island Tribe Nears Federal Recognition (by Eric Gershon, Hartford Courant)

Hurdles Remain for NY Tribe's Long Island Casino (by Frank Eltman, Stamford Advocate)