The Grand Ronde tribal confederation on Thursday announced it was purchasing the defunct greyhound racetrack in Wood Village, sparking new speculation about whether a casino could end up on the site.
The tribe for years successfully fought efforts by private investors to build a casino at the site that would compete with the Grand Ronde's Spirit Mountain Casino southwest of Portland.
Tribal officials said their purchase of the Multnomah Greyhound Park will ensure that no competing casino will be built there, and they think the 31-acre site could be a profitable mixed-use development. But they also didn't rule out the possibility of trying to open a casino there someday.
"I wouldn't say we would never do gaming there," said Justin Martin, a Grand Ronde lobbyist, adding that the tribe could go in that direction if the "face of gaming changes in Oregon."
If the tribe chose to try to open a casino, it would face several federal regulatory hurdles and a state policy that limits each tribe to one casino that must be on reservation land.
Lake Oswego attorney Matthew Rossman, who along with businessman Bruce Studer sponsored ballot measures in in 2010 and 2012 to build a private casino at the racetrack, said he thinks the Grand Ronde is eyeing the site for its own gambling operation to head off competition from a planned Cowlitz tribal casino in nearby La Center, Wash.
"The Cowlitz threat to Oregon is real," said Rossman, citing news reports that the tribe hopes to break ground by the end of the year. Rossman said he and Studer continue to talk with investors about a potential casino in the Portland area that could keep gambling revenue from moving north of the Columbia River.
While the Cowlitz have federal approval for a casino in La Center, 16 miles north of the Columbia River, the tribe is still embroiled in legal challenges from the Grand Ronde, City of Vancouver and other opponents.
The purchase price of the greyhound track, which closed at the end of 2004, was not disclosed. The track, owned by Art McFadden, went on the market this year with an $11.2 million asking price.
Wood Village City Manager Bill Peterson said he and other city officials had several discussions with tribal officials about the site over the last several months.
"We still do not know what the intended land-use purposes are," he said, adding that city officials believe a mixed-used development of some type could be successful.
The Spirit Mountain Casino, about 35 miles west of Salem and about 60 miles southwest of Portland, is the state's largest. The Grand Ronde tribe has worked hard for years to make sure it remains the closest major gambling resort to the Portland metropolitan market.
In addition to opposing the Cowlitz and Wood Village proposals, the tribe also fought an effort by the Warm Springs tribal confederation to build a casino in Cascade Locks. That effort is now on the back burner as Warm Springs leaders instead built a casino on Highway 26 about 100 miles from Portland.
The Grand Ronde tribe said in a press release Thursday that it was working on a business plan for the greyhound track that "would help to further diversify its economic base" and noted that it has other real estate interests in the Portland area.
"While we cannot rule anything out in terms of the future of gaming in Oregon," tribal Chairman Reyn Leno was quoted as saying, "our priority at this time is to develop this property in a manner that diversifies our investment holdings."
-- Jeff Mapes
503-221-8209
@jeffmapes