As directed by the Board of Supervisors, the County Administrator and Supervisor John Gioia held several meetings with representatives of the Guidiville Band of Pomo Indians, a federally recognized Indian Tribe, herein after referred to as “Tribe.” Technical staff of the County and the Tribe also met, to analyze and discuss the impacts of the Pt. Molate Project on the off-Reservation environment and the community generally in Contra Costa County.
The Tribe has requested that the Bureau of Indian Affairs take into trust approximately 266 acres of the former Naval Fuel Depot Point Molate, on which the Tribe and its developer, Upstream Point Molate LLC, propose to construct new facilities and improve existing facilities to develop a mixed-use tribal destination resort and casino (“Pt. Molate Project”). The proposed Pt. Molate Project site is located in the City of Richmond (“City”), in Contra Costa County, California, north of the San Rafael Bridge along the shoreline of San Francisco Bay. The site is approximately one mile north of Interstate 580, with direct freeway access through Western Drive, a City-owned roadway to the site. An approximately 1,200-foot pier that extends into the San Francisco Bay from the central point of the site will be used as a ferry terminal for workers and visitors to the site.
If the federal government places the Pt. Molate Project site land into trust, the Tribe anticipates entering into a tribal-state gaming compact with the Governor of California (the “Compact”) to permit the Tribe to conduct Class III gaming activities on its trust lands. Pursuant to the Compact that would be negotiated in the future, the Pt. Molate Project includes construction of a destination resort that includes two hotels totaling 1,075 rooms, 170,000 square feet of business, conference and entertainment facilities, an approximately 124,000 square feet of casino gaming floor, 54 luxury accommodation cottages and casitas, a 300,000 square foot retail shopping center, public plazas, pedestrian/bicycle trails, shoreline parks, a Tribal park, Tribal government offices and cultural facilities, restoration of 34 of the historic buildings located on-site, up to 340 units of multi-family housing, and transportation facilities including a public ferry terminal.
The Tribe has already entered into a Municipal Services Agreement (MSA) with the City of Richmond outlining terms for the provision of public services including police, fire, sewer, water, and establishing annual payments in lieu of taxes
The County’s position has been that the Compact also requires the Tribe to negotiate with the County of Contra Costa and enter into an Agreement to mitigate off-reservation impacts. The intention of this proposed Agreement is to satisfy this requirement and to provide additional community benefit. The County and the Tribe would submit this proposed Agreement without amendment to the State to satisfy such Compact requirement.
The Parties agree that this Agreement, and the MSA and the Mitigation Plan to be appended to it between the Tribe and the City of Richmond will provide sufficient mitigation of all off-reservation impacts of the Pt. Molate Project to the County and the City. The off-reservation impacts of the Pt. Molate Project including increased level of public protection costs of the Sheriff, use of Detention Facilities, District Attorney, Public Defender, Probation, as well as impacts to Health, Human Services, Traffic and other County services that are County-specific and not covered by the City MSA and Monitoring Plan will be mitigated through this proposed Agreement.
The City of Richmond and the Bureau of Indian Affairs (“BIA”) (“the Lead Agencies”) caused to be prepared a draft Environmental Impact Report / Environmental Impact Study (“EIR/EIS”) for environmental review of the Pt. Molate Project in accordance with the requirements set forth in the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) (42 USC 4321 et seq.); the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) Regulations for Implementing NEPA (40 CFR Parts 1500-1508); the BIA’s NEPA handbook (59 IAM 3); the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA); and CEQA Guidelines (California Code of Regulations, Title 14) and City of Richmond’s guidelines and procedures for implementation of CEQA (Resolution No. 125-03).
The cooperating agencies to the EIS/EIR are the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the County, and the Tribe. Under this proposed Agreement, the County will inform the State that any Compact requirement for a Tribal Environmental Impact Report (“TEIR”) is satisfied by the issuance of the Final EIS/EIR and that the County will not request any other TEIR process, and that no other environmental review document will be produced by the Tribe, the City, or the County regarding the Pt. Molate Project after the certification of the Final EIR/EIS.
The Parties agree that this proposed Agreement will satisfy the requirements of the anticipated Compact and sets forth (1) the County and Tribe’s obligations in providing Mitigation Measures for any potentially Significant Effect on the Off-Reservation Environment; (2) the provisions relating to compensation for law enforcement, fire protection, emergency medical services, health and human services, traffic improvements, and any other public services to be provided by the County to the Tribe as a consequence of the Pt. Molate Project; (3) provisions providing for reasonable compensation for programs designed to address gambling addiction; (4) provisions providing for mitigation of any effect to the County specifically on public safety attributable to the Pt. Molate Project; and (5) a continued strengthening of the government-to-government relationship between the County and the Tribe.
The proposed Agreement addresses a number of issues already agreed to by the Tribe and the City of Richmond including Aesthetics, Air Quality, Hazardous Materials, Water Resources, Noise, Storm Water , Wastewater Management, and Solid Waste, .
The proposed Agreement also addresses the need for a transportation analysis in the EIS/EIR as the basis for estimating required transportation and traffic mitigations for the project.
Regarding law enforcement, the proposed Agreement provides funding for Public Safety, including Sheriff’s services, probation services, District Attorney services, Public Defender services and County jail incarceration.
Regarding public health and safety, the Tribe agrees to contract with the County to provide emergency ambulance service to the Tribe, with respect to emergency visits to the County Hospital, Doctors Medical Center, or any other hospital from Pt. Molate Project patrons or employees. The Tribe agrees to reimburse the County for actual costs of uncompensated ambulance service provided to Pt. Molate patrons and employees who are transported by the County’s designated ambulance provider from the Pt. Molate Project site to any hospital.
In addition, the Tribe will adopt a comprehensive Responsible Gambling Program to support the development of awareness and prevention programs for problem and underage gambling on its property. The proposed Agreement calls for two (2) health professionals to be employed by the County to treat problem gambling addiction. The County agrees to provide these additional professionals for gambling addiction prevention and treatment. Compensation to the County for this County cost is included in the funding agreement.
The Tribe recognizes that the County will incur costs associated with increased off-Reservation social and economic impacts and costs associated with increased public protection activities including costs of the County Sheriff, use of Detention facilities, District Attorney, Public Defender, and Probation. Additionally, the County will incur costs associated with public health and social services, including uncompensated emergency and medical care. In recognition of these costs, the Tribe will pay the County the annual sum of $12 million for public safety, health, and social services related costs, and community benefit payments, commencing with the Pt. Molate Project Start Date
In return for the $12 million, the County will develop a program to address the off-Reservation County service impacts that may result from the Pt. Molate Project. Subject to the sole discretion of the County Board of Supervisors, this program will address all of the following: increased level of public protection costs of the County Sheriff, District Attorney, Public Defender, Probation and use of Detention Facilities; social service concerns resulting from the Project operations; increased demand for emergency response, medical services; and increased potential for addiction to gambling.
Notwithstanding any other provision in this proposed Agreement, the use by the County of payments received from the Tribe is subject to the sole discretion of the County Board of Supervisors, with the exception of payments received for specific transportation mitigations, and amounts which would be designated as part of the community benefit payment for seven years to support the County Health system, $7 million of the annual payment would be directed by the County for programs and services in West Contra Costa County, and the remaining $ 5 million would be used for programs and services throughout the County. Of the $12 million, $2 million per year for seven years would be directed to help support the County Hospital and clinics, and $2 million per year for seven years would be directed to health programs and services in West Contra Costa County, including Doctors Medical Center and clinics.
Three $ 1 million advances on the first year’s community payments would be made from the Tribe to the County if certain milestones occur:
- $1 million upon the Tribe’s receipt of a positive Indian Lands Determination from the United States, approving the Point Molate site as restored lands for the Tribe and all appeals of and challenges to such determination being completed and favorably resolved in the Tribes favor;
- $ 1 million upon the receipt of a positive Fee-to-Trust Determination from the United States accepting the Point Molate site into trust as the Guidiville Reservation and all appeals of and challenges to such determination being completed and favorably resolved in the Tribes favor, and
- $1 million upon the California Legislature’s approval of a Compact between the Tribe and the State of California approving Class III gaming at the site.
If any of the three $1 million advance payments are made, they would be deducted from the first payment(s) due from the Tribe after the Point Molate Start Date.
Additional Payments would be made to support the County Health System if Credit is granted under the Compact with the State. If the State allows for a full credit against payments made to the County by the Tribe, then the Tribe would make additional payments to the County up to a total of Ten Million Dollars ($10,000,000) per year for so long as the Compact credit is in force. These payments would be used to support capital and operating financial needs of the County Health system, with expenditures by the County roughly split between West Contra Costa County and the County as a whole. The Tribe would be obligated to make these additional payments only if the full value of the payments to the County is credited against amounts that otherwise would be required to be paid to the State of California under the Compact.
The Tribe and the City of Richmond have agreed that the Tribe will hire 40% of its non-management operational employees from the City of Richmond at the opening of the facilities. Under our proposed Agreement, the Tribe commits to collaborate with the County with a goal to hire a total of 70% of non-management operational employees of the Tribe (including those under the Richmond agreement) from within the County at the opening of the facilities. To help effectuate this goal, the Tribe will make three equal payments of $50,000 to the County to pay for staffing.
Under this proposed Agreement, the County will no longer oppose the Pt. Molate Project and will support the Pt. Molate Project. As reimbursement to the County for staff time reviewing the EIR and working with the Tribe on the Intergovernmental Agreement, the Tribe will provide $60,000 to the County to be paid within sixty (60) day of entering into this proposed Agreement.
Finally, the proposed Agreement provides a process for mediation and arbitration of any disputes that occur under the Agreement, as well as a limited express waiver of sovereign immunity by the Tribe in order to enforce the arbitration decision through the Superior Court of California.
David Twa, County Administrator, presented the staff report and noted that the Board would be providing direction today and having public discussion, not taking action on the matter.
Supervisor Gioia clarified that the final decision to place the land at Point Molate into trust for the Guidiville band ultimately resides with the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Interior, not the County. He said the role of the County was to secure the best community benefits in regard to economic development and shared revenue possible through negotiation with the tribe. He noted that the County could negotiate a better agreement before the federal approval process than would be likely afterward, should the project be approved.
Chair Bonilla called for public comment. The following people spoke:
Robert Davila, resident of Richmond; Pastor Edwin Brown, Beacon Light Church;
Dennis Roos, resident of Richmond; Andres Soto, Coalition to Save Point Molate;
Jones Leibson Smith, resident of Richmond; Greg Feere, Contra Costa Building Trades Council;
Aram Hodoss, Plumbers & Steamfitters Local 159; Rick Alcoraz, Building Trades Council;
Leigh Olden Sr., Local 324; Wayne Ellis, resident of Richmond;
Antwon Cloire, resident of Richmond; Baron White, resident of Richmond,
Dr. Henry Clark, West County Toxics Coalition; John Marquez, resident of Richmond;
John Gallegos, resident of Kensington; Gloria Magleby, resident of Bay Point;
Sue McNamara, resident of Pittsburg, Donald Duncan, Guidiville Band of Pomo Indians,
Rhoda Magleby, resident of Pittsburg Christian Herman, resident of Walnut Creek;
Jim Levine, Upstream; Michael Derry, Guidiville Band of Pomo Indians;
Marshall Walker, resident of Richmond ; Michael Davenport, resident of Richmond ;
Alan Titus, resident of Mill Valley; Jim Bickert, Deputy Sheriff’s Association;
Raymond Landry, Divine Org Consulting; Reverend Andre Shumake, Sr., resident of Richmond;
Bill Pinkhan, resident of Richmond; Ted J. Smith, resident of Richmond;
Gail McLaughlin, mayor of Richmond; Mr. Phillips, resident of Contra Costa County;
Gia Daniller, Coalition to Save Point Molate; Dan Gosney, resident of Richmond;
Justin Shanahan, resident of Richmond
James Butler, California Coalition Against Gambling Expansion
Kevin Vanbuskirk, Sheet Metal Workers Local 104 & CC Building Trades Council:
Rafael Madrigal, 23rd Street Merchants Assoc, Contra Costa Hispanic PAC.
Supervisor Gioia read into the record a letter from the Sheriff’s Department supporting the project.
Supervisor Glover said the County had the responsibility to derive as much economic and community benefit for West County and the County as a whole, while seeking mitigation where it might be needed.
Supervisor Uilkema requested further information on when the projected employment opportunities would actually become available to the local residents.
Supervisor Piepho requested further information on any liability the County may have in regard to the land placed into trust, and a timeline of what actions would be taken by the various governing bodies involved.
Supervisor Bonilla expressed interest in possible impacts regarding firefighters, transportation, and traffic.
Chair Bonilla thanked everyone for providing input.
This matter will return to the Board on November 10, 2009.