The owner of casino properties in Salamanca, Buffalo and Niagara Falls, the Seneca Nation, is organizing community support events, urging the public to help the tribe ensure the continued operation of their three casino properties.
Organizing Public Support Events
The Seneca Nation announced it would hold community support events throughout May during which the public would have the opportunity to sign letters to state leaders, encouraging them to come to a new gaming compact with the tribe, reported local news media outlet, Olean Times Herald.
Seneca Nation’s current compact with New York State expires in December and the Nation, which has been engaged in negotiations with state officials for several months, is urging the state to speed up the process and sign a new deal before the end of the State Legislature session on June 8.
Commenting on the initiative, Seneca Nation President Rickey Armstrong Sr. outlined that as the work on the state budget is near completion, “no other issue can be more important and impactful… than finishing honest negotiations on a fair and equitable compact with the Seneca Nation.”
The public initiative is set to kick off this Thursday at Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino and those willing to sign support letters will have four hours between 11 am and 3 pm to do so at the resort’s hotel lobby.
The people of our region understand and appreciate what the Seneca Nation means to Western New York, and we are asking our neighbors and our guests to let New York officials know that they support us.
Rickey Armstrong Sr, President, the Seneca Nation
He further outlined that tens of thousands of individuals, families and businesses, both locally and statewide rely on the Seneca Nation’s businesses for their livelihood and prosperity, further emphasizing “the important difference” these businesses have made for the past 20 years in the lives of their employees, partners, the Seneca people, and the entire region.
Deeply Invested in the Region
The Seneca Nation has invested nearly $2 billion in its three casino properties since signing its compact in 2002 and currently, the casinos provide employment to approximately 3,000 people, making the Nation’s business entity one of the largest private employers in Western New York.
In addition, the Seneca Nation provides more than 5,000 direct jobs and spends nearly $600 million per year indirectly supporting thousands of additional jobs, delivering a total economic impact to the Western New York economy of more than $1.1 billion annually.
“We want to see our positive impact continue well into the future,” Armstrong Sr. added, adamant that “a fair and equitable gaming compact is the key driver for that to happen.”
Starting on Thursday, the support events will continue on Friday at the William Seneca Building in Irving; May 11 at the Seneca Buffalo Creek Casino in Buffalo; May 12 at the Seneca Allegany Administration Building; and, May 18 at the Seneca Allegany Resort & Casino in Salamanca.
The public is also urged to sign an online petition that will be delivered to state officials together with the support letters at a future date.
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