While much of the focus lately has been an the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indian’s planned downtown arena and currently-under-construction cultural center and museum, let us not forget: the tribe is also planning a casino on the prime corner of East Palm Canyon Drive and Date Palm Drive in Cathedral City. Here’s the latest on the project.
The casino, which was first announced in April 2017, will be a major focus of the Cathedral City city council meeting on Wednesday evening, according to the Desert Sun. The council will consider agreements with the tribe including:
- A payment to the city’s general fund from the tribe in the amount of $150,000 a year over 10 years to pay for added police, fire, and emergency services that will likely be needed due to the new casino.
- $5 million paid out over 10 years by the tribe for road improvements throughout Cathedral City.
- Funding from the tribe for additional projects including a new stoplight at Buddy Rogers Avenue and Date Palm Drive and “noise reduction measures” in the area. It’s not quite clear what those measures would be.
The tribe paid $5.5 million for the land where the casino will eventually be built. Despite the fact the Carl’s Jr. at Date Palm and East Palm Canyon has closed, no timeline has been announced for construction. There is also no word on a potential opening date for the casino.
