NY governor announces plan

The Middletown (N.Y.) Times Herald-Record has reported on its online site that New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer and the St. Regis Mohawks have reached a deal to bring a $600 million Indian casino to Monticello Gaming and Raceway. The casino will likely face a number of court challenges, the story noted, including a federal lawsuit filed last week by an environmental coalition led by the National Resources Defense Council. It argues the proposed 800,000-square-foot casino and surrounding development would be detrimental to Sullivan County's environment.

The deal, which Spitzer announced in an interview Monday afternoon with the Times Herald-Record, might finally bring casino gambling to the Catskill Mountain region after a decades-long effort.

"This is an important step, if not the final conclusion," Spitzer told the Times Herald-Record. "I will work because 3,000 full-time jobs, a $600 million development project is critically important for Sullivan County, the Catskills and I look forward to getting this done."

Under the compact, the state would receive 20 percent of slot-machine revenues for the first two years after it opens, 23 percent for the next two years and 25 percent thereafter.

According to the report, in December, the federal government gave environmental approval to the project. Spitzer will now sign off on that environmental review and send a letter signifying New York State's support to U.S. Department of Interior. The federal government would have to take the 30-acre casino site into trust for the Mohawks and their partners, Empire Resorts, to move forward on the project. The report added that only three times before have governors allowed state land to be taken into trust for an off-reservation casino — none in New York.

Spitzter's quick action, just six weeks after taking office, signals his administration if fully behind the plan.

"This brings us to the goal line, now we have to just punch across the that one last yard," Spitzer told the Times Herald-Record. "We're ready to dive into the endzone on this one."

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