Leaders of a Native American tribe that wants to build a village and casino in South Bend have called a news conference to discuss their plans now that the federal government has approved the land being placed into trust.
The Bureau of Indian Affairs sent the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians a letter Nov. 17 saying the tribe's request to have nearly 166 acres placed in trust had been approved. The plans include an 18-story hotel with 500 rooms and a village with 44 housing units.
The Department of Interior's Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs wrote the approval helps fulfill the intent of Congress "to remedy the decades the Tribe endured as the Federal Government shirked its trust and treaty responsibilities."