Choctaws to vote on fourth casino

The Mississippi tribe will vote on Thursday on whether they accept a fourth casino in the territory or not.

US.- The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians revealed that this Thursday will see the vote on whether members accept a new casino or not. If it gets approved, it would represent the fourth casino for the tribe.

The Mississippi tribe currently operates three casinos, two of them in Choctaw in Neshoba County: Silver Star and Golden Moon, which was reopened in 2015 after a US$70 million renovation. The third facility is located 13 miles north of Lauren in Bok Hola in junes County.

Choctaw Chief Phyliss J. Anderson, who has been insisting on a new casino for years, said that it would bring US$50 million in annual revenue, as well as 250 additional jobs. Barry McMillan, one of the people who pushed for the referendum, said that he’s opposed to the casino as he believes that it would cannibalise the two existing facilities in Choctaw, and that US$18 million would be shifted to Red Water.

Anderson said that the cannibalisation would certainly take place, but it would still represent a US$31 million net gain annually for the tribe. She insisted that an independent study showed that Red Water was the best place to locate a new casino, and denied that jobs would be lost.

“With the growing population and over 50 percent of the population under 25, the need for jobs is there. But what this casino will allow us to do is to use those funds to reinvest back into the tribe for government services,” added Anderson.