MUSKEGON, Mich., Dec. 16, 2021 — This afternoon, the U.S. Department of the Interior granted Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s request for a six-month extension to decide the fate of the Muskegon Casino Project. The Little River Band of Ottawa Indians has proposed a 70,000-square-foot gaming floor and 220-room hotel to sit atop the site of a former horse racing track in Fruitport Township. Proponents of the plan point to the estimated 1,500 to 3,000 jobs it would create and the nearly 2 million visitors it would attract yearly. In response to the announcement, state Rep. Terry Sabo (D-Muskegon) issued the following statement:
“Ever since day one, we knew that an extension was a possibility. I have had numerous conversations with Gov. Whitmer about the casino in which she and her team have expressed the enormous legal complexity of the issue. Before they make their decision, they have to examine each and every page of the nearly 10,000-page document they received from the federal government. While the Republican-controlled Michigan House of Representatives has already formally passed a resolution of opposition, Gov. Whitmer has not. She is instead looking over the issue in its entirety, and I remain optimistic that this project, which will bring good-paying jobs and serious investment to Muskegon County, will soon come to fruition.”