In response to Judge Teresi's April ruling that now adds the State Legislature to the list of regulatory agencies that must sign off on the venture, Park Place's Tom Gallagher stated, "We are not a party to the lawsuit and therefore have no comment on the judge's decision or any process for appellate review. We remained committed to work with the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe and the State of New York in both Akwesasne and the Catskills in whatever manner is permitted by New York law."

Park Place offers consulting services to the St. Regis Mohawk tribe's existing Akwesasne Mohawk casino in Hogansburg in Franklin County near the Canadian border.

Cellini believes that with the necessary lobbying from Governor Pataki, the odds to have a casino in Sullivan County approved by a vote in the State Legislature is not as long as some may think. "I think both parties understand that there is a need in this area," he relates.

Hank Bunce, president of the Ulster, Sullivan, Delaware & Greene County Building Trades Council, says of the court decision, "At this point it is a stumbling block in front of it, it hurts." Bunce blames casino opponents, including New York City developer and Atlantic City casino owner Donald Trump for orchestrating and funding some of the opposition to Indian casino gaming in the Catskills. He stresses that although the court ruling is a setback, "This is just one thing that we will have to overcome when the time comes (for approval)."

Sullivan County Manager Daniel Briggs also tries to put a positive spin on the court decision. "I think it simply delays whatever is going to occur. I don't think it is fatal, but it is an obstacle to having casino gaming in Sullivan County," he says.

Briggs notes that in addition to the Park Place proposal, several other parties are also exploring possible casino developments in Sullivan County. Briggs confirmed published reports that the development team that built the Mohegan Sun casino in Connecticut is looking to build a similar project off Exit 107 in Bridgeville.

A formal announcement of the venture, in partnership with the Stockbridge-Munsee tribe of Mohicans, was expected in early April, but to date has yet to be formally presented publicly. A spokesperson for the development team, that includes Sun International and a Connecticut-based hotel management company, had no comment on when the plan for the 300 acre site would be released.

Briggs says that in light of a host of new development projects in the pipeline, the recent court decision while troubling, is not catastrophic for Sullivan County. "I think that if this happened two years ago it would have been seen as the last nail in the coffin," he relates. However, the Sullivan County economy is more diversified than it was two years ago and not entirely dependent on casinos as its sole avenue of growth, he adds.