Michigan Indian

Majority of Creditors Approve of Greektown Casino Reorganization

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

From the Freep:

Greektown Casino said Tuesday its plan of reorganization was supported by a majority of creditors, paving the way for it to emerge from bankruptcy after confirmation hearings next month.

Charles Moore, a turnaround expert for the casino’s estate, told the Michigan Gaming Control Board on Tuesday that 80.6% of pre-petition lenders representing $220.7 million in claims voted to accept the casino’s plan.

Voting results on the alternative plan offered by Luna Greektown LLC and Plainfield Asset Management LLC were not available Tuesday.

Creditors representing much smaller amounts owed voted overwhelmingly to reject the Greektown reorganization plan, according to a filing Tuesday with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Detroit. Confirmation hearings on the plan are to begin Nov. 3 and are expected to last four days.

The pre-petition lenders will receive equity in the new casino and be the new owners, Moore told state regulators. Fine Point Group would continue to manage the casino, he said.

The board also was told of a settlement between the City of Detroit and Greektown Casino that would give the city a $15.3-million payment and free the casino to seek a 5% tax rollback from state regulators.

Moore said that Greektown would approach the board at its next meeting Nov. 10 for approval. That would give the casino time during confirmation hearings the prior week to receive court approval for the rollback first.

The casino, under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, would reduce its annual city and state taxes by $15 million with the rollback.

The city had argued that Greektown Casino was not eligible for the tax break already extended to MotorCity Casino and MGM Grand Detroit casino because it violated its development agreement.

The casino, which opened its hotel in February, had argued that it met the requirements for its permanent facility then.

Moore also told the state gaming board that Greektown’s goal is to emerge from bankruptcy by Dec. 31.

City of Detroit OKs Greektown Bankruptcy Plan

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

From the Detroit News via Pechanga:

Detroit — A plan to hand control of Greektown Casino-Hotel to its largest group of creditors has been tentatively approved by the city of Detroit and could get the casino of out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy by the end of the year.
The tentative agreement was unveiled this morning at a meeting of the Michigan Gaming Control Board. The casino would be in the hands to the largest group of secured creditors, represented in the case by banking and investment giant Merrill Lynch.

“This is a major milestone,” said attorney Daniel Weiner of Bloomfield Hills-based Schafer and Weiner, who represents the debtors. The tentative agreement was reached with the city Friday, but needs approval by City Council, Mayor Dave Bing, the gaming board and U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Walter Shapero. A confirmation hearing in bankruptcy court is set for Nov. 3, which would be followed by a vote of the gaming board.

The other suitor for the hotel and casino was an effort lead by Bloomfield Hills business man Tom Celani, in partnership with Connecticut-based hedge fund Plainfield Asset Management.

Greektown’s owners, the Sault Tribe of Chippewa, filed for Chapter 11 protection on May 29, 2008. The Detroit casino has more than $777 million in debt.

Chuck Moore, a financial advisor working on the Greektown case, said he anticipates that the tentative bankruptcy agreement will ultimately be approved.

“We anticipate a contested confirmation hearing, but it will be approved,” Moore told the Michigan Gaming Control Board.

FMLA Claim against Soaring Eagle Casino Dismissed

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the court order in Sober v. Soaring Eagle Casino (E.D. Mich.), dismissed on grounds that the plaintiff failed to exhaust tribal court remedies (she did not appeal tribal court’s dismissal of her claim to the tribal court of appeals) — Sober v Soaring Eagle DCT Order

Here are the materials:

SCIT Motion to Dismiss

Sober Tribal Court Order

Boozhoo to Tribal Repatriation Specialist Blog

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here.

Kudos to Eric Hemenway and Little Traverse.

Header image

House Resources Committee Hearing on NAGPRA

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

The video is here.

At about the 15 minute mark, Rep. Kildee discusses the Flint dig and the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe’s involvement.

Miigwetch to A.K.

Politics at LTBB

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

from the Petoskey News-Review (H/t Pechanga and Indianz) and a second article is here:

During its regular meeting Sunday, Sept. 27, the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians Tribal Council made a declaration against comments made by its tribal chairman to the press.

Tribal Chairman Ken Harrington’s comments were made in response to the Tribal Council’s meeting on Sept. 13, during which tribal elders spoke out about their concerns regarding Harrington’s hiring practices, as well as his morals and ethics while in office.

While tribal elders were making comments, a reporter from the News-Review was excused from the meeting without motion.

The following day — Sept. 14 — Harrington agreed to meet with the reporter to provide updates regarding the elders comments.

In the Sept. 15 edition of the News-Review, it was reported that Harrington told the reporter that the council discussed the tribal elders comments and came out on his side.

Margaret Bailey Chandler to Enter Mich. Hall of Fame

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

From Indianz:

Margaret Bailey Chandler, a member of the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians who died in 1997 at the age of 67, will be inducted into the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame.

Chandler’s work helped secure federal recognition for her tribe. She served as tribal historian and advocated for treaty and fishing rights.

“She had to fight for what she believed in, and look what she did,” granddaughter Valerie Chandler told The Muskegon Chronicle. “She made such a difference in so many people’s lives.”

The induction ceremony will be held October 21. Continue reading →

News Coverage of Michigan Indian Day 2009

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

From the State News (video of interview with Don Lyons):

The slow, repetitive rhythm of the drum provided the background for the closing event at Michigan Indian Day Friday evening in the Union.

After a day that exposed many MSU students to the trials and hardships of Michigan’s Native American population, students and American Indians from around the state gathered in the Union Ballroom to close out the day with a drum circle complete with traditional dances and songs.

MSU’s School of Social Work hosted 10 symposiums on the state-honored day, which centered on Native American boarding schools and the damage they caused the culture, MSU’s Michigan Indian Day co-chair Suzanne Cross said.

“Sometimes in textbooks the American Indian … is a general overview of the population,” Cross said before the event. “Being in the room with a lot of American Indians — including elders — can give a different perspective and (you) can hear some of their lived stories. (You can) actually hear it from them what happened and how their lives have been impacted by this.”

The powwow concluded with a particularly significant song considering the context of the day, said Don Lyons, drum circle member and social work graduate student.

Continue reading →

Michigan Indian Day is TOMORROW!

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Registration materials are here.

Here is the agenda:

Morning keynote:

9:15-10:30 AM — Historical Context of Boarding School Experiences & the Reverberation to Subsequent Generations

—Suzanne Cross, PhD

10:45 AM-Noon — S-1 — Intra & Inter Generational Effects of Boarding School Experiences: From the Voices of Native Women

—Le Anne Silvey, PhD, MSW

10:45 AM-Noon — S-2 — Intergenerational Trauma: Recognizing & Treating Grief & Loss in American Indian/First Nations College Students

—J. Tawa Sina, PhD

10:45 AM-Noon — S-3 — Boarding Schools & Scholarship: Considerations in Research

—James M. McClurken & Veronica Pasfield

10:45 AM-Noon — S-4 — Traditional Approaches to Prevention of Stress, Diabetes & Heart Disease

—Reddog Sina, DO, PhD

1:30-2:45 PM — S-7 — Healing the Hidden Scars: Coping with the After Effects of Historical Abuse

—Susan M. Montroy, MSW/LMSW

1:30-2:45 PM — S-8 — The Role of Language in the Revitalization of Identity Formation

—Helen Roy, Adam Haviland, and Autumn Ellie Mitchell

1:30-2:45 PM — S-9 — Substance Abuse Prevention & Treatment

—Cheryl Samuels, PhD

1:30-2:45 PM — S-10 — Elders’ Discussant Session: Historical Trauma, Boarding School Food Socialization, Intergeneration Eating Habits & Health

—Heather Howard, PhD

Afternoon keynote:

3:00-4:15 PM — Healing the Wounds: Historical Trauma & Urban Health Disparities

—Jerilyn Church and Josette French, MD

LRB Sturgeon Release in Manistee River

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

From the Chicago Tribune:

MANISTEE, Mich. – A Northern Michigan Indian tribe is releasing young sturgeon into the Big Manistee River on Saturday to help restore the ancient fish in the Great Lakes region.

It’s the sixth year that the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians has placed sturgeon in the river.

Lake sturgeon date from the days of the dinosaurs. They can live from 50 to 150 years. Once plentiful in the Great Lakes, their numbers have been greatly reduced because of overfishing, habitat loss and pollution.

The tribe’s natural resources department operates a facility where young fish are reared until big enough to have a good chance for survival. Then they’re put back into the waterway from which they came. Tribal elders will take part in the release.