The American Indian tribe known as the Cow Creek Umpqua that operates the Seven Feathers Casino in Canyonville, Oregon has said that it plans to block what it reports as an aggressive attempt by the local Coquille Indian Tribe to construct a new and thusly competing casino in Medford.
Attorney for the Cow Creek Umpqua tribe, Wayne Shammel, said recently that some tribes that are located in Oregon agreed some years ago to limit the number of operating casinos as a way of preventing market oversaturation. According to Shammel, if the Coquille Indian Tribe is allowed to build a new casino in Medford, that action would open the gates to other gambling facilities within the state. At one point, he referred to it as a “casino arms race” should it be allowed to take place. He went on to say that of the Seven Feathers customers that patronage the casino, most are from the Medford area. A new casino in Medford could siphon off many of these customers as the Medford casino would be closer. Shammel went on to say that Medford is the largest urban market for the Seven Feathers Casino and even larger than nearby Eugene, Oregon.
The Coquille tribe already operates a casino in North Bend called The Mill Casino. Recently the Coquille tribe bought property known locally as Kim’s Restaurant and Roxy Ann Lanes which is located along the South Pacific Highway in Medford. They have also said that they have agreed to lease a golf course that is located next to these two properties. Once that happens, they plan to have the property placed into a US government trust which is the first step toward achieving reservation status for the land.
The Cow Creek tribe is claiming that the Coquille tribe has no territorial rights in the Rogue Valley which is where the property exists. They contend that if the Coquille tribe is allowed to expand its territory into Medford, then they (the Cow Creek tribe) may reconsider its own current policy and make a move themselves into this area.
According to a spokesperson for the Cow Creek tribe, this action to open a casino at this location by the Coquille tribe goes against an executive order that was previously signed by Gov. John Kitzhaber. That order created a framework that allowed each tribe within the state to own one casino. Chairman of the Coquille tribe, Edward Metcalf, said that he believe that having more casinos means more people will come into any particular region of the state which he sees as a good business move. He went to say that if the casino is allowed in Medford, it will only provide access to gaming machines. It would not have card tables which are available at the Seven Feathers and at The Mill Casino.
Current federal Indian gaming regulations allow that a Class III casino can have craps, slot machines, roulette, and blackjack. Under the same act, a Class II casino is not allowed that level of gaming and is only allowed to have limited gaming machines. The Mill Casino and the Seven Feathers are both Class III facilities. Edward Metcalf said that the proposed gaming machine facility in Medford would be a Class II facility.