Sullivan Reacts to BIA Announcement

Statement

Yesterday, Congressman John Sullivan issued the following statement in response to the Bureau of Indian Affairs' announcement that an official land lease must be in place before any further development on the proposed Kialegee Tribal Town Casino site in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma can transpire. This announcement calls into question the claim made by the casino developers that a lease is not required for the purpose of building a casino.

"First, I would like to applaud the Bureau of Indian Affairs for taking this step in insisting that a legitimate land lease be in place before any further development on the proposed Broken Arrow casino site can occur.

I am cautiously optimistic that once the parties involved go through the normal process of siting a gaming facility -- a process they have ignored to this point -- the numerous questions surrounding this proposed casino will become glaringly obvious and this development will be stopped.

When I joined with the concerned citizens of Broken Arrow in taking up this fight almost two months ago, my chief concern was with the lack of transparency surrounding this development. It is now painfully clear to those of us opposing the casino that our concerns were valid.

Make no mistake about it: I do not believe this fight is over. I will continue to do all I can to beat back this casino development until a final decision is made and all possible options to stop the gaming facility have been exhausted."

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