The citizens of Richmond and its City Council are battling over the proposed development of a new casino at Point Molate, a former naval refueling station, by what one activist calls a "rent-a-tribe" who originally were settled over a hundred miles away.
Richmond certainly has its share of problems, what with having lost its primary industrial reason for being (a Ford plant) about fifty years ago, and the city has suffered for jobs ever since. With most of the potential job creation at this casino in construction, and having watched neighboring San Pablo open a casino that has not exactly proven a cash cow to the city just yet, some Richmond residents aren't convinced. The fight's been raging for years, and the anti-casino faction is pleading with City Council to reject the latest environmental impact report.
We say, give the old people some slots to yank. What else have they got to do?
KQED's report can be heard below.