Rohnert Park has received the first payment from the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria, money that will be spent mitigating the impacts of the new casino, the Press Democrat is reporting.
Last week, the city received a $2.6 million payment, which will be used to hire two new traffic enforcement officers and help local police deal with an expected increase in crime, according to the story.
The casino may also draw more "unsavory" establishments to west Rohnert Park including new massage parlors, pawn shops and check checking businesses, according to a new report by a city task force.
All in all, Rohnert Park will receive around $11 million a year for the next 20 years. However, at Tuesday's council meeting city officials acknowledged that they don’t know exactly what to expect when the 3,000 slot casino opens on November 1.
“We have no idea what the impacts will be,” Vice Mayor Joe Callinan said.
At $800 million, the casino is the largest project in Sonoma County’s history. But unlike other developments, it never underwent an independent environmental analysis, per the California Environmental Quality Act, only an Environmental Impact Study conducted by the tribe.
Car trip estimates for the casino have varied from between 20,000 a day, according to the new study by the city, to 40,000 a day, according to the Stop 101 Casino Coalition. Many also worry about the casino's impacts on groundwater supply, already impacted by years of development.
The casino will utilize more than 7,000 acre feet of water over the next 13 years, according to Graton Rancheria's Environmental Impact Study. The water will come from two wells on the tribe’s property, along with 100 acre feet that will be purchased each year from Rohnert Park.
To read about casino's impacts on water, click here.
To read more, read Press Democrat's coverage here.
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