[Tom Burns]

Pokagon Indians will build a second casino in southwest Michigan. Details are on WEFM.

[taxthedeer]

Pokagon Indians will build a second casino in southwest Michigan. Details are on WEFM.

Van Buren County town of Hartford, that's about at the 54 mile marker. A little less than an hour away from Michigan City.

[Southsider2k12]

Yeah, here are the details...

http://www.wsbt.com/news/local/New-casino-...y-99383004.html

There’s big news out of southwest Michigan. A new casino and hundreds of jobs appear to be on the way.

The Hartford Township supervisor says the proposed site is on Red Arrow Highway, just west of Hartford. That's north of I-94 in Van Buren County, not far from the Berrien County line.

The official announcement came Tuesday afternoon. The gaming authority of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians voted to move forward on expanding their gaming operations.

According to a press release from the tribe, “This vote represents the first step in an extensive process. The proposed project is a satellite gaming facility in Hartford Township, Mich.”

The sleepy streets of downtown Hartford were buzzing with news that a new casino could be in the cards.

"I think jobs,” said Sherri Miller. “I think economy. As you can see, we have nothing. Whatever we can get in."

Holly Garland owns Arrowhead Bar and Grill. A casino in town would be a big win for her business.

"The more people we've got driving through town, the more business,” she said. “In this economy, we'll take what we can get."

And city leaders say the area could see benefits. And not only from the potential 200 to 300 jobs the casino is expected to bring, also...

"They've been talking about revenue sharing,” said Yemi Akinwale, Harford city manager. “I don't know the formula for that yet. But, looking at what is happening in New Buffalo, I think it will be a benefit for us down the line."

The process will be long. The gaming authority will need to come up with an agreement with the local government on the details of the project. But if the excitement in Hartford is any indication, that shouldn't be a problem.

“It's a charming town, and it will stay that way,” Akinwale said. “But we want others to be a part of it.”

[Southsider2k12]

http://www.wndu.com/localnews/headlines/99353439.html

A Michiana Indian tribe is ready to try and launch a ‘satellite.’

A satellite casino, that is.

The tribal owners of the Four Winds Casino in New Buffalo today voted to expand gaming operations by pursuing a satellite facility near Hartford.

Hartford is in Van Buren County and has its own exit off I-94. Hartford is about five miles north of Coloma, and 45-miles away from New Buffalo.

The Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians has had state permission to pursue the satellite project since October of 2008 when it renegotiated a gaming compact with Michigan.

The Hartford area casino would be much smaller than the Four Winds in New Buffalo.

Sources say the Hartford area project as discussed would include 500-slot machines—about one sixth the number that the tribe has in New Buffalo.

Hartford is a one traffic light town of some 24 hundred residents that does have some vacant storefronts dotting the downtown.

“Over night they will be definitely our largest employer in the community yes,” said Hartford City Manager Yemi Akinwale. “We are going to embrace the Pokagon Band with open arms cause of the opportunity that it brings in to our community and I believe that they will get community support and I’m pretty sure we will do whatever we can to make their project a successful one.”

Sources say the casino project could bring up to 300-new jobs to town. “It would bring a lot of jobs to our community which we don’t have as of right now” said Cody Scott a Hartford resident.

Judy Willis agreed that the area needs jobs, but at what cost? “We definitely need jobs in town but I don't know there's a price to pay for them I think sometimes you know, ‘cause casinos make money, they don't give it away,

Willis said her objections to the casino were mainly due to her religious background. “What bothers me? I think that it can be an addiction for people just like drugs and alcohol and I think that a lot of families get torn apart.”

Few families would live closer to the proposed casino than Darren Frazier’s. “It would be about a mile, mile and a half from the house, I myself see no problem with it.”

After all, the Hartford High school sports teams carry the nickname the “Indians,” and Hartford is a city where a lot of tribal members have been neighbors a lot longer than they’ve been proposed casino developers.

“I've grown up and went to school with many of the Indian families, that are part of the tribe, and I have only had good experiences with them,” Frazier said.

In fact, former tribal chairman John Miller now serves on the Hartford City Council, according to the city manager.

The proposed casino would actually be in Hartford Township although the facility would rely on sewer and water service from the City of Hartford.

Today the Gaming Authority of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi voted to move forward with the expansion project near Hartford.

A written release from the tribe indicated that the move represents the first step in an extensive process.

The tribe will now app roach the local units of government involved to try and negotiate details of the project.