Menominee Indian Tribe & Hard Rock revisit Wisconsin casino efforts

Hard Rock

Hard Rock International and Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin have disclosed plans to relaunch proposals to open and casino and entertainment centre in the city of Kenosha.

A previous project was approved by the city, county of Kenosha, and United States Bureau of Indian Affairs and Department of the Interior, but was rejected by then Governor Scott Walker during the midst of his early presidential campaign in 2015.

This revived effort, the tribe said, is aimed at providing the necessary resources for the ongoing and growing needs of its members

“Much has changed since our 2015 effort, but the needs of our tribe and its members have continued and in some cases grown more acute,” Ronald Corn, Menominee Chair, said. 

“We need to make greater investments into health care for our children and elders; we need to make more investments into educating our young people; and we need to do more to reduce the high levels of poverty, hunger, and unemployment on our reservation. 

“A casino and entertainment centre in the city of Kenosha is the best path for our tribe to obtain the resources to help achieve those important goals.”

Menominee will be the owner of the casino and related facilities, with Hard Rock gaining responsibility for the development and management of the project.

“Hard Rock has a long standing partnership with the Menominee Tribe and is proud to support them in their continued efforts to bring a world-class gaming and entertainment resort to the Kenosha community,” said Jon Lucas, Hard Rock International COO.

In addition to noting one key change of a reduced casino size to reflect the increased number of gaming facilities in Wisconsin and northern Illinois, due to these latest proposals concerning a different site the project will have to develop a revised federal gaming application as well as negotiate updated intergovernmental agreements.

“The proposed project will not be as big as it was previously envisioned, but it will still create jobs and be substantial. It will still be a Hard Rock brand and be an incredible addition to the community, the local and regional economy, and the state,” Corn said.

Furthermore, praise was also issued to the Seminole Tribe of Florida, which owns Hard Rock, for its ongoing interest in and support of the Kenosha project