Old Camp Casino Explained

The Old Camp Casino was a tribal casino near Burns, Oregon, United States, owned and operated by the Burns Paiute Tribe.

The "Old Camp" name refers to a tribal settlement that was located on the site in the early 20th century.[1]

History

The tribe had difficulty financing development of a casino due to the reservation's remote location, with only 7,000 people living within a 100-mile radius.[2] [3] Out of four companies that responded to the tribe's 1997 request for proposals, the tribe selected Colorado-based Wolf Gaming to finance and manage the casino.[4] Later that year, however, Wolf Gaming went out of business.[5]

The tribe eventually secured a $930,000 loan from South Dakota-based Indian Gaming of America. The tribe purchased the building itself for $180,000 from the Lummi Tribe, and moved it from northwest Washington to the Burns Paiute reservation.[6]

The casino opened in September 1998 with of space containing 75 slot machines, two poker tables, and a deli. At opening, there were 53 employees.

Another 100 slot machines were later added, while table games, proving unprofitable, were removed.[7]

The tribe closed the casino on November 26, 2012, due to safety concerns stemming from structural problems with the building.[8] The tribe said it would demolish the building and construct a new one, to be opened in spring 2013, but as of October 2014, it had not opened.[9]

See also

References

43.5855°N -119.0919°W

Notes and References

  1. News: More small Oregon towns get tribal casinos. The Oregonian. Portland, OR. Courtenay Thompson. July 15, 1997. NewsBank.
  2. News: Burns Paiute Tribe buys casino, works toward a July 4 opening. The Oregonian. Portland, OR. Courtenay Thompson. May 19, 1998. NewsBank.
  3. News: Burns Tribe gets on casino bandwagon. The Oregonian. Portland, OR. August 14, 1998. Courtenay Thompson. NewsBank.
  4. News: Paiute Indians take a big gamble on casino. The Oregonian. Portland, OR. Courtenay Thompson. June 1, 1997. NewsBank.
  5. News: Casino partnership plan collapses at the altar. The Oregonian. Portland, OR. Courtenay Thompson. December 17, 1997. NewsBank.
  6. News: Old Camp casino opens. Indian Country Today. Oneida, NY. September 14, 1998. https://web.archive.org/web/20150402112331/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-21935201.html. dead. April 2, 2015. HighBeam.
  7. News: Gaming and gaining. The Register-Guard. Eugene, OR. Winston Ross. July 16, 2006. NewsBank.
  8. News: Casino closed temporarily. Burns Times Herald. Samantha White. November 28, 2012. 2015-03-11. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20150402133223/http://burnstimesherald.info/2012/11/28/casino-closed-temporarily/. April 2, 2015.
  9. News: Shuffling the deck. Oregon Business. Jon Bell. October 22, 2014. 2015-03-11.