Letters to the Editor
Tribal Council will appeal Appeals decision
Dear Editor:
In response to a Nov. 2 decision by the Intertribal Court of Southern California Court of Appeals regarding land assignments, the Bishop Paiute Tribal Council has announced it will ask for a re-hearing of the case. Meanwhile, the Tribe will move forward with its plans to expand the Paiute Palace Casino.
“The court’s opinion affirms that the power to determine land assignments rests with the governing bodies, the Bishop Paiute Tribal Council and the Owens Valley Board of Trustees, and that’s where it stands,” said Chairman Gerald Howard.
“The Intertribal Court doesn’t have the authority to tell the Bishop Paiute Paiute Tribe how to assign land. That’s the sovereign right of our Tribe,” Howard said. “The court was not asked to decide on that matter; it was a trespass case where the Bishop Tribal Court has jurisdiction. We believe the Nov. 2nd opinion contains erroneous information that creates confusion, so we want to ensure our side of the case is fairly heard.”
However, from a legal standpoint, the Bishop Tribal Council is not bound by the decision of the Appeals Court, according to the Tribe’s attorneys. The power of land use and occupancy firmly rests with the Tribe’s governing bodies.
Under the Council’s leadership, the Tribe is moving forward with its plans to expand the Paiute Palace Casino, with or without the land parcels in question. Council members say they’ve received widespread support from tribal members who need the 150 jobs the project will bring in construction and casino employment.
“The Tribal Council has made every effort to reach out to the family involved in order to resolve this matter,” Howard said. “There have been numerous meetings over the years, and almost every member of this family has received a grant of land assignment. In many cases, members of this family have assignments for parcels of land much larger than what most of our tribal members receive. Because of our limited land base, many of our tribal members are on a waiting list to receive a land parcel to build their homes. Tribal Council has been more than fair in dealing with this family and we are committed to providing more economic opportunities to our tribal membership and the surrounding community, and we are not going to allow a few disgruntled members to detrimentally impact our Tribe’s economic development efforts.”
The proposed phased expansion will include a hotel and restaurant, an expanded casino floor and conference/meeting space. The project is being developed under the Bishop Paiute Development Corporation. For more information, please contact the Bishop Paiute Tribe at 760.873.3584.
Gloriana Bailey, Director
Bishop Paiute Development Corp.
Goodbye and thank you
Dear Editor:
The Baviera Family would like to wish our friends of the Eastern Sierra’s a warm happy holiday season. We would like to say thank you for all your love and support the last few years. Our lives changed so quickly in such a short period of time leaving us with a really hard decision to leave our home in Crowley Lake, where we raised our boys for the last 25 years. We are sorry we did not get to say goodbye, it was really difficult at that point in time.
We take along with us some wonderful memories from school events, sporting events, parties and many more to simply just sitting in our yard looking at the sunset with our kids. We will never forget all the great families we’ve met along the way, the laughs we had and the fun we experienced.
There are so many of you that were there for us in the last few years during the difficult times we were going through, we wish we could name you all. Please know you are like family that surrounded us with such love and support that will never be forgotten.
When someone down here says “why would you leave such a beautiful place?” My answer is “it was hard to leave the beauty of the Sierras but most of all it was hard to leave the beauty of this wonderful community of residents.”
God bless you all, may you get lots of snow!
Chip, Paula, Chad, Cole, Casey Baviera
We are in the San Fernando area and eventually looking to locate in the Ventura area. If you would like to connect, my email is paulafrancisb@gmail.com. Thanks again!
