Smoke Signals G
MARCH 1, 2003
Tribe Proposes Idea To Fund Baseball Stadium in Portland
Oregon Schools could benefit from the proposal, media provides major coverage.
By Brent Merrill
At Smoke Signal's press time, Tribal Chairwoman Cheryle Kennedy was
meeting with Portland Mayor Vera Katz to discuss the Tribes' idea of possibly
funding a Major League Baseball Stadium in Portland in exchange for the op
portunity to establish a Tribally-owned and operated casino in the state's larg
est metropolitan area.
As news of the idea leaked out to the me
dia early last week, Tribal officials were
shocked and surprised at the attention the
idea was getting, but were pleased with the
initial reaction of the media and the citi
zens of Oregon. People, including Governor
Ted Kulongoski, Portland Mayor Vera Katz
and Portland City Council member Dan
Saltzman, seemed to be open to the Tribe's
idea and that openness was reflected in several television polls that favored the
idea of potentially bringing Major League Baseball to Portland.
Following his State of the State Address Governor Kulongoski said he was
willing to listen to any ideas that might help improve Oregon's struggling
economy and help the state's Native people.
"They (The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde) are sovereign people and if
this is what they think helps them and their people, I think it is something they
should advance," said Kulongoski in a KATU interview with reporter Katy Brown.
On Thursday (February 27) Mayor Katz at the very
least seemed intrigued by the idea after the meeting.
"Opening discussions about the Tribe's interest, the
Tribe's interest to stimulate the economy in this com
munity and the state and help us perhaps with some
funding for education and being partners," said Katz
as reported by KOIN's Drew Mikkelson.
Portland City Councilman Dan Saltzman was posi
tive in his response to questions from the news media
as the story broke on KGW news reports.
"I don't have any philosophical problems whatsoever
with a casino in the metropolitan area," said Saltzman,
who said he liked the idea of the city gaining Major
League Baseball and not having to use public funds.
The Tribe sees the proposal as an idea that could be
a win-win for the Tribe, and possibly other Tribes, and the city.
"We really believe in giving back," said Kennedy. "We believing in assisting
when at all possible."
After the meeting with the Mayor, Kennedy also sounded optimistic.
"We have mutual concerns," said Kennedy. "We have a community develop
ment fund that one of our primary emphasis is education. We all know what
the education situation is like in Oregon and it's a shared concern."
Kennedy said there is a possibility that if the proposal reaches fruition, some
casino profits could be designated to go towards improving Oregon's education
needs.
Katz and Kennedy said there would be future meetings to discuss the Tribe's
idea.
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Portland Mayor
Vera Katz
Several things must happen for this proposal to be more than pleasant, timely
discussions about the need to improve the state's economy, education situation
and the desire to attract professional baseball to Portland. The Tribe wants to
remain competitive in the current gaming landscape in Oregon.
Saltzman said he has been worried about the use of public funds to lure the
Expos to Portland given the current economical situation in Oregon and was not
opposed to teaming up with the Tribe in order to ease the financial pressure of
acquiring a team.
"If they are willing to step forward and fund a stadium, I think that is one
down and two to go," said Saltzman.
First, Governor Kulongoski is the man who must decide if off reservation
gaming is going to be allowed in Oregon. Recently, when pressed on the off
reservation issue, Kulongoski deflected the controversy by saying that the cat
had already been let out of the bag when the Siletz Tribe was allowed to build
Chinook Winds Casino in Lincoln City off of their reservation. Any off-reserva-tion
casino must be approved by the Governor's office and the Interior Secretary
Gale Norton.
Next, Portland would have to find a legitimate, willing owner or owners that
could put together a realistic and attractive proposal to Major League Baseball
in order for the move of the Montreal Expos to the northwest to happen. The
new ownership and their proposal would have to be better than the package
currently being discussed by potential ownership groups in Northern Virginia
and Washington D.C.
Finally, the move would have to be approved by Selig and the other team
owners.
Katz and a team from Portland will make a presentation to Major League
Baseball at the league's meetings next month in Arizona.
One of the next steps for the Tribe will be to talk with the other Tribes in
Oregon to see what their reaction to the proposal is and what interest in the
project they might have.
w
Baseball Proposal Tribal Chairwoman Cheryle Kennedy (right) is hoping Interior Secretary Gale Norton (left) will
approve the Tribe's offer to fund a Major League Baseball stadium in Portland in exchange for the right to establish and
operate a casino in the city. Norton and Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski would both have to agree to the proposal for it
to happen.
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Tribal Member Jake McKnight Joins Crew Searching for Shuttle Debris
Debris continued from front page
nization of the search."
In addition to the six Tribal
employees, the team also will in
clude four U.S. Forest Service
workers from the Siuslaw Na
tional Forest and nine from the
Willamette National Forest.
The team's special expertise is
in gridding the search areas by
walking as well as following com
pass lines in rough vegetation.
"The work is often difficult," ac
cording to a memo from the
USFS's Southern Area Director,
"walking ten feet apart for 12 hours
a day through forests and fields,
which are often cold and wet. Liv
ing conditions are very similar to a
large fire. Crews are camping,
meals are provided by caterers and
shower units are in place."
Making the effort more interest
ing, a "What to Expect" news release
noted, "At this time, temperatures
are generally too low for snakes to
be very active, however, if we get
more than two days in a row of 70
degree temperatures, they may be
come active. The two most common
types of snakes are copperhead, cot
tonmouths and alligators are rare
to encounter this time of year and
are slow moving with the lower tem
peratures; watch where you put
your hands."
The assignment was to last a mini
mum of two-weeks but could continue
for as long as a month, said Nepstad.
"It's too bad it has to be done," said
Tribal Council member Ed Larsen,
"but I'm glad and honored we're
able to help in any way we can."
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Jake McKnight
Brandi Duff
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Bill Borck
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Shane Harmon
Jeremiah spencer
Joshua Clift