The St. Regis Mohawk Indians, whose reservation land is located within the state borders of New York, may be the first tribe to get a green light to build a casino that was originally apart of a post 9/11 plan that included five casinos in the Catskill Mountains of upstate New York. According to Governor Pataki, unlike other tribes who have attempted to buy former reservation lands and declare sovereign territory (now denied by the U.S. Supreme Court), the treaties governing the Mohawks stand on their own.

The Mohawk tribe has already received an approval from environmental agencies to build a proposed $600 million casino on thirty acres of land adjacent to the Monticello raceway, which according to most residents and communities in the Catskills region, is more than enough gambling for the time being. Without having yet built a single casino in the Catskills, initial talks of building five were viewed as being overambitious.

The Catskills region is supportive of casino gambling to help jumpstart its economy and perhaps restore the Catskills as a popular tourist destination for skiers and visitors to nearby New York City. With thousands of temporary construction jobs on the line, as well as permanent employment for many local residents, local officials in Catskill communities are welcoming the Mohawk tribe with open arms.

At this stage in the approval process, the Mohawks still need to collect a state signature on the environmental review as well as further federal approvals. And in order to build their $600 million casino resort in the Catskills of northern New York, they will need to amend their current gambling compact. And with Governor Pataki in office, the chances of this happening are looking good. It may not be five casinos in the Catskills, but it's a start.