The Schaghticoke Tribal Nation, based in Kent, announced it has received the authority to pursue the development of a commercial casino in Connecticut. But the Secretary of the State’s office quickly put the brakes on its plans.
Secretary of the State Denise Merrill said in a statement that the application was apparently received in error and didn’t meet the intent of the special act passed last year that gave the Mashantuckets and Mohegans the right to pursue a joint commercial casino.
She said, “In 99.99 percent of the cases, we have to receive and file an LLC application without regard to the stated purpose of the entity. Anyone can start a business and we believe it should be easy to do. It appears in this case that the application meets the standard to create an LLC but not the requirements of the Special Act. We are looking into what additional action should be taken.”
Richard Velky, chief of the Schaghticoke Tribal Nation, said in his original announcement, the tribe was intending to issue a request for proposal for municipalities regarding the establishment of a possible casino gaming facility. “We view this as a significant economic development opportunity; our objective will be to maximize economic opportunity for the residents of Connecticut, and to maximize revenue gained by the State of Connecticut,” he said.
Velky was not immediately available for comment regarding the secretary of state’s statement.
