Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, January 31, 1995                   TAG: 9501310129
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: C-1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: FRONT ROYAL                                 LENGTH: Medium

SHAWNEE TRIBE MAY BUILD CASINO IN WARREN COUNTY

Members of an Oklahoma Shawnee Indian tribe may move to Warren County and open a casino there if residents show interest in their proposal.

Casinos are legal on Indian reservations.

The Shawnees want to emulate the success of an Indian tribe that grossed $1 billion last year at its Connecticut casino, said Thomas A. Nida of the Winchester-based Breckinridge Group, which tries to attract business to the mid-Atlantic region.

Under federal law, members of the Shawnee tribe can return to a site where their ancestors lived and form a ``state-within-a-state'' that is not subject to state laws, Nida told the Front Royal Rotary Club.

The tribe also is considering an undisclosed site in Virginia and sites in Maryland, West Virginia and Pennsylvania.

Because the Shawnees' migratory path crossed Southwest Virginia, that area is a possible site for the casino, Nida said. However, he would not say whether the other Virginia site is in Southwest Virginia.

The Shawnees will base their decision on the level of public support in each area, Nida said.

If county residents reject the idea, they will be passing up a chance to boost the local economy, Nida said Friday.

State and local governments can take percentages of casino income, he said. At the Pequot Indians' casino in Connecticut, the Indians got 60 percent of last year's take, or $600 million, of which the state took 25 percent, or $150 million, Nida said. All of that money is tax-free. The casino manager, however, gets 40 percent, which is taxed normally.

The Pequot are interested in financing and managing the Shawnee casino, Nida said.

The casino also would contribute to a stronger tax base, create jobs and stimulate restaurant, motel and other commercial business, he said.

Tribe members are interested in the High Knob land because of its proximity to Interstate 66 and potential for resort development, Nida said.

A survey by the Front Royal-Warren County Chamber of Commerce showed 23 members in favor of a casino, 12 members opposed, one member with no opinion and seven members undecided. Forty-three of the chamber's 446 members responded.

Staff writer Lisa Applegate contributed information to this story.