Monday, September 11, 2006

As reported by CBC News: "Alberta's first aboriginal-run casino is weeks
away from opening as construction on the $178-million River Cree Resort and
Casino wraps up more than two months ahead of schedule. "The complex, which
opens at the end of October, is located on the Enoch Cree Nation reserve at
the southwest edge of Edmonton. "Robert Morin, the president of the Enoch
Casino Corp., hopes as many as 200 Enoch Cree will be hired in the next
month. So far, 5,000 people have applied for the resort's 700 to 800 jobs.
".Of the nearly 300 construction workers who were hired for the project, 30
were Enoch band members - an important boost to the community given the
unemployment rate on the reserve is nearly 65 per cent. "By the time workers
finish putting in the gaming room's 600 slot machines and 40 gaming tables,
the casino will be a third larger than the city's largest gambling
operation, Yellowhead Casino. ".Gambling revenue will be shared amongst the
Enoch Cree Nation, the Alberta Lottery Fund, the band's business partner,
Las Vegas-based Paragon Gaming Inc., and Alberta's other First Nations."