OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — Gov. Jay Inslee has concurred with approval that the federal government granted the Spokane Tribe to build an off-reservation casino in Airway Heights.

Inslee on Wednesday said he agrees with the U.S. Department of Interior's determination last year that the project is in the best interests of the tribe and not harmful to the surrounding community. Federal law requires concurrence from the governor for the tribe to proceed.

Inslee says the project will create thousands of jobs and generate millions of dollars in wages and state and local taxes.

The land is off the Spokane's reservation, but the tribe owns it. According to the governor's office, the last time an off-reservation casino was approved was when Gov. Gary Locke approved the Kalispel Tribe's Northern Quest casino in 1998, also in Airway Heights.

 

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