Kings Mountain Catawba Casino
The groundbreaking for the Catawba Indian Nation's $273 million casino and resort project in Kings Mountain is set for Wednesday, but it appears the tribe still needs to clear at least one major. The Catawba Nation held a groundbreaking ceremony on July 22, 2020, to mark the start of construction on its new $273 million casino in Kings Mountain, North Carolina. After seven years, the Catawba Indian Nation received approval for a Kings Mountain casino this week. They likely face additional battles over the project as the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.
The Catawba Nation is reaching into history for its forthcoming, and still controversial, gaming facility on ancestral territory in North Carolina. The Catawba Two Kings Casino Resort draws its name from Catawba Chief King Hagler. During his leadership in the mid-1700s, he allied his nation with the American colonists who revolted against the British at the time of the Revolutionary War. “Catawba Two Kings Casino Resort celebrates our rich history and hopeful future in our ancestral lands in North Carolina – where our people were established hundreds of years ago, as the names Catawba River, Catawba County and Catawba College suggest,” Chief Bill Harris said in a news release on Monday. The logo for the Catawba Two Kings Casino Resort features a silhouette of King Hagler. set against a representation of Kings Mountain. A Revolutionary War battle took place at Kings Mountain, with the Catawbas fighting alongside the colonists. “The name pays tribute to the 18th century Catawba Chief King Hagler and to the City of Kings Mountain, which will be home to the new casino resort. It also symbolizes the unique relationship that the Catawba people have historically had – and will continue to strengthen going forward – with fellow residents of the region,” Harris said. The facility will be located at a 17-acre site near Kings Mountain in Cleveland County. The land falls within the service area that was defined by Congress through a land claim settlement act. The tribe began seeking federal approval to have the parcel placed in trust almost seven years ago. The Trump administration reversed its position on the matter in April after initially telling the Catawbas they couldn't acquire land in North Carolina despite the service area definition. The decision is being fought by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, whose leaders claim the areas as their ancestral territory. The tribe operates two gaming facilities in the western part of North Carolina. The board of commissioners in Buncombe County, located far to the west of Kings Mountain, also opposes the new development. The Catawba Nation, whose headquarters are located across the border in South Carolina, hopes to open the casino in the summer of 2021. A groundbreaking took place on July 22. The first phase of the Catawba Two Kings Casino Resort will include 1,300 electronic gaming machines, table games and restaurants, the tribe said in the news release. Casino gets its official name (The Shelby Star August 28, 2020)SC indian nation casino opposed by Buncombe; Cherokee say $750M at stake (The Asheville Citizen-Times August 19, 2020)
Leaders break ground on new casino in Kings Mountain (WBTV July 22, 2020)
• Determining Eligibility for Land-into-Trust in Section 19 of the Indian Reorganization Act
• Procedure for Determining Eligibility for Land-Into-Trust under the First Definition of 'lndian' in Section l9 of the Indian Reorganization Act
• Determining Eligibility for Land-Into-Trust under the First Definition of 'lndian' in Section 19 of the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 [PDF 14.6MB]
United South and Eastern Tribes: Tribal sovereignty should not be held hostage by Washington politics (March 13, 2020
Trump administration changes course with withdrawal of pro-tribal homelands policy (March 10, 2020)
Sault Ste. Marie Tribe wins major victory in homelands litigation (March 6, 2020)
'Do your job': Tribes slam Trump administration on sovereignty and homelands (February 12, 2020)
Bill Graham: Catawba Nation deserves 'fair shake' under federal law (August 29, 2019)
'Meanspirited': Eastern Cherokee chief responds to attack on his people (June 20, 2019)
Republican U.S. Senator blasts Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians for 'bullying' (June 19, 2019)
Catawba Nation continues to see opposition to casino on homelands (May 21, 2019)
Catawba Nation asks Congress to fulfill promise in land claim settlement (May 3, 2019)
Catawba Nation homelands bill slated for first hearing on Capitol Hill (April 22, 2019)
Catawba Nation faces more opposition to homelands bill thanks to Eastern Cherokees (April 3, 2019)
Catawba Nation predicts 'huge' economic impact with casino on homelands (March 20, 2019)
'Sad': Catawba Nation fires back after Eastern Cherokees slam homelands bill (March 18, 2019)
Catawba Nation remains in limbo years after submitting casino application (September 7, 2017)
National Indian Gaming Association honors the late Catawba Nation Chief Gilbert Blue (June 15, 2016)
Catawba Nation still waiting for action on casino in North Carolina (January 27, 2016)
BIA said to be planning hearing on Catawba Nation casino bid (11/11)
Opinion: Catawba Nation casino won't benefit local community (08/12)
Editorial: Catawba Nation casino represents jobs and revenues (08/04)
Catawba Nation still waiting for answer on casino land-into-trust (7/31)
Catawba Nation in talks to bring Hard Rock into gaming plans (7/27)
Business owners support Catawba Nation off-reservation casino (02/25)
Federal review of Catawba Nation off-reservation drags along (02/09)
Pastors continue to rally opposition to Catawba Nation casino (02/05)
Kings Mountain Nc Catawba Casino
Catawba Nation waits for BIA decision on off-reservation casino (01/28)
Catawba Nation casino opponents meet with BIA officials in DC (12/17)
Dec. 14—A federal judge Monday in Washington, D.C., agreed to expedite a lawsuit that could block the Catawba Indians from building a casino near Charlotte.
District of Columbia District Judge James Boasberg agreed to expedite the suit that the Eastern Bank of the Cherokees filed against the Catawbas and the U.S. Department of the Interior.
The Cherokees are trying to stop the S.C.-based Catawbas from opening their $273 million Two Kings Casino Resort in Kings Mountain, about 30 miles west of Charlotte. The first phase of the casino, with at least 1,300 slot machines, could open by next fall, the Observer reported last week.
This summer the Cherokees sued the Catawbas and the Interior Department claiming that political pressure from the project's developer prompted the government to pave the way for the casino and bypass Congress in the process.
'Given the Catawbas' rapid development of the site and their plans to open a temporary casino as early as May or June of 2021, the harms that (Cherokees) described in detail . . . are imminent,' the Cherokees said in requesting Monday's action.'
The federal court asked that final legal documents be submitted by Jan. 18. The judge could order a hearing in February.
The Catawbas broke ground for the casino in July, four months after the federal Department of the Interior agreed to take the 16 acres near Interstate 85 in Cleveland County into trust, a designation that would allow the tribe to build the casino. The Catawbas are based in Rock Hill, S.C. That state does not allow gambling.
The Catawbas said they have a right to the land based on a provision of a 1993 agreement that gave them federal recognition. The agreement gave the tribe a 'service area' in six N.C. counties, including Mecklenburg and Cleveland.
But the Cherokees, who have operated their own casinos in western North Carolina since 1997, have called the Catawbas' efforts 'a modern-day land grab.'
In earlier filings, the Cherokees claim that casino developer Wallace Cheves, a major political donor, 'leveraged his political connections to pressure the (Interior) Department.' Between Jan. 2019 and last July, Cheves gave nearly $500,000 to President Trump, the Republican Party, U.S. Sens. Thom Tillis and Lindsey Graham and other GOP lawmakers, according to the Federal Election Commission.
Cheves could not be reached Monday.
The Cherokee's lawsuit says Cheves used 'his Executive Branch connections to bludgeon the (Interior) Department.'
Cherokee Principal Chief Richard Sneed said he was grateful for the court's decision Monday.
'The facts clearly show that (the Interior) Department acted illegally in granting Catawba land in North Carolina for the express purpose of constructing an off-reservation casino,' he said in a statement. 'We remain confident that the Department's decision won't withstand the scrutiny of the court and will be overturned.'
Is Kings Mountain Catawba Casino Open
Catawba tribal administrator Elizabeth Harris called the judge's decision Monday 'a minor change that does not affect any other deadlines in the case, including the filing of relevant briefs and motions.'