The fee-to-trust process will remove the Pasco property from Franklin County tax rolls and by extension, exempt it from paying the property taxes that support the municipal services it will require. It has also purchased land in Moses Lake, Methow, Wenatchee and is scrutinizing sites in Canada, Erickson said. The Colville consider the area now known as eastern Washington state and parts of Canada part of the territories once claimed by the member tribes: Chelan, Chief Joseph Band of Nez Perce, Colville, Eniat, Lakes, Methow, Moses-Columbia, Okanoga, Palus, San Poil and Wenatchi.

The vision seeks to connect the Palus, one of its 12 individual tribes, to its traditional territory along the Columbia and Snake rivers. The Colville operate casinos under the “12 Tribes” brand at Lake Chelan, Omak and Coulee Dam. The casino and travel center will bolster opportunity for the tribes, which has an enrollment of approximately 9,520 members and is based in Nespelem. The Colville paid $2.9 million for 184 acres north of King City Truck Stop and east of Highway 395, part of a regional effort to acquire lands through its traditional territories. “We’re pleased to announce this important milestone in our efforts to enhance economic development for the Colville Tribes,” Erickson said in a subsequent press release.

12 tribe casino