Canadian casino a go as protests ordered to cease
The long-awaited green light is finally shining over construction of a massive casino project in the Canadian province of Alberta following the ruling of a top provincial court justice.
Two sisters, Eliza Holloway, 75, and Alice Twoyoungmen, 67, have been informed by Alberta Justice Karen Horner that they can no longer protest on the site of the new would-be casino, clearing the way for construction to begin more than a year of legal battles that also involved a third sister, Winnie Francis. The casino is to be located at the junction of the Trans-Canada Highway and Highway 40 on the Morley Reserve.
Administrator for the nations of the Morley Reserve, Trez McCaskill, said he was pleased with the ruling against the women – who are elders in the tribe – especially in light of the fact that the vast majority of Stoney Nakoda nation members voted in favor of the casino project.
“We’re feeling anxious to move on with developing a diversified economy for the Stoney Nakoda nation,� McCaskill told the Rocky Mountain Outlook. “The casino is a big part of it and hopefully we’ll be addressing concerns with chief and council and any concerns people have can be addressed without this type of delay.�
The elders’ sit-in protest began last summer as construction was set to commence. Along with the aid of numerous supporters, the women claimed the proposed spot was ancestral family land and was not to be developed. The battle made headlines throughout the province and created high tensions on the reserve, eventually leading to supporters recruiting the aid of the infamous Kahnawake Warrior Society of Quebec.
Proponents of the casino countered with the claim that the concept of private property does not exist on a reserve, and that this particular parcel had been legally leased from the federal government by the provincial government for economic development purposes.
Francis was eventually able to come to terms with her native Wesley nation this past spring, although Holloway and Twoyoungmen continued with their efforts. The delay is estimated to have cost the casino anywhere from $27-40 million due to rising construction rates. It will be financed by the natives themselves, who will not look to recoup the costs. Work is scheduled to begin in July with completion by next summer.
posted by Rex Harris