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By Elizabeth Doran and Michelle Breidenbach

CHITTENANGO, N.Y. -- The Oneida Indian Nation will open a $20 million casino in Chittenango in 2015, expanding its gaming empire as New York welcomes its first non-Indian casinos.

Oneida Indian officials say they don't need approvals from any governments to launch the Yellow Brick Road Casino, which will have 436 Vegas-style slot machines and a Bingo hall in Tops Chittenago Plaza on Route 5, 14 miles east of downtown Syracuse.

The Oneidas - whose sprawling Turning Stone Resort Casino in Verona has dominated gaming in Central New York for two decades - plan to open the new casino in the spring.

The Oneidas announced their plans just four days after a state panel recommended licensing three non-Indian casinos in Upstate New York.

Rochester developer Thomas Wilmot is planning to build one of those, a $425 million casino and hotel, 42 miles west of Syracuse in Seneca County. Wilmot promises his casino will have 2,000 slot machines and 85 table games - about the same number as Turning Stone.

The Oneidas' Chittenango casino looks like their first counter-punch in what promises to be a high-stakes fight for gamblers' dollars. At 67,000 square feet, it will be much smaller and less glitzy than Wilmot's proposed resort or Turning Stone, but located closer to Syracuse.

Ray Halbritter, Oneida Nation representative and chief executive officer, said the new casino would be opened whether or not New York approves Wilmot's Lago Resort & Casino. He said the decision to build the Chittenango casino was not influenced by Wilmot's plan.

"Competition isn't anything new to us - we have Vernon Downs,'' he said, referring to the harness race track with video lottery machines. "And there are casinos in Connecticut, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts.

"From the day we opened, we told our management to always make your decisions as if a competing casino was right across the street,'' Halbritter said.

No limit on Oneida casinos

The terms of the 1993 Oneida Nation Gaming Compact with New York and a 2013 compact permit the Oneida Nation to operate casino games on nation lands, Halbritter said.

Because the Chittenango casino is on Oneida reservation land, no permission is needed from federal, state or local governments to open the casino and the Oneidas don't need a license from New York, Halbritter said.

Halbritter said there is no legal limit on the number of casinos the Oneidas could open on their reservation land, adding "the only limit is good business sense."

The National Indian Gaming Commission allows Class 3 gaming, including slot machines, on tribal lands held in federal trust within the terms of compacts between states and independent Indian nations like the Oneidas.

The 2013 gaming compact signed by the Oneidas and Gov. Andrew Cuomo also settled outstanding land claims and gave the nation the exclusive right to gaming activity in a 10-county area around the Turning Stone Casino.

The agreement puts a cap of 25,370 acres of Oneida land within the boundaries of Madison and Oneida counties.

The compact spells out the kinds of casino games allowed on that land, but it does not appear to mention the need for any more approval from the state.

The New York State Gaming Commission did not respond to questions about its role in any oversight or approval of new Oneida nation gaming.

The federal government does not have to approve the opening of an Indian casino, but does play a role in reviewing gaming ordinances and licenses approved by the Indian nation's own governments, according to a spokesman for the NIGC.

The Oneidas' Yellow Brick Road Casino will be located in a shopping plaza the nation owns on property that is part of 25,000 acres of trust land.

In exchange for exclusive casino rights in the 10 counties, the Oneida nation agreed to share, for the first time, 25 percent of its slot revenues with state and local governments. The Oneidas said then they expected to pay about $50 million per year from Turning Stone slots for the exclusive 10-county casino rights. Revenues from the Yellow Brick Road Casino will be part of that, said Oneida nation spokesman Joel Barkin.

Wilmot plans to open his casino in 2015 just outside of the 10-county region if he succeeds in obtaining a license from New York. He'll have to pay New York $35 million for the license. He'll also be required to pay an annual tax to New York estimated to be $79 million in the first year.

What prompted the development of the Yellow Brick Road casino now was the trust land settlement and 2013 compact that ended decades of legal battles between the nation and the state and counties, Halbritter said. That settlement was upheld by a federal judge in March.

The Oneidas didn't want to invest millions in the new casino if there were ongoing disputes about the land, the Oneidas say.

"The settlement resolved issues and helped bring some security to us,'' Halbritter said.

The Oneidas can only open a casino without seeking state approval if it's on their reservation land, which is only in Madison and Oneida counties. If they wanted to open a casino in Onondaga County, for example, they would need to follow the same procedures and get the same approvals as any outside developer, Halbritter said.

The Chittenango casino is the only one planned at this time, Barkin said.

Inside the Chittenango casino

The new casino, just one mile from the Onondaga County line, will be in the vacant portion of the Tops plaza off West Genesee Street, or Route 5, in the village of Chittenango. It will not have table games, but will feature a 500-seat Bingo hall. There will be two casual dining restaurants, a country-western bar, and the Oz General Store, which will sell tobacco products, pre-packaged food and beverages, bingo supplies and other items.

The Oneida nation plans to apply to the New York State Liquor Authority for a license to serve alcohol at the new casino.

The casino's name has been selected to reflect Chittenango's identity as the birthplace of L. Frank Baum, author of the "Wonderful Wizard of Oz," nation officials said. It also will have "Wizard of Oz" themes throughout the interior.

The casino will employ about 250 people once it opens.

Market research conducted by the Oneida nation pointed to "a definite demand" for this type of gaming in this region. It will likely attract people from local counties and statewide, Barkin said.

The new casino will provide customers with a different experience than Turning Stone Resort Casino, Barkin said. Turning Stone, the fifth-largest tourist attraction in the state, offering gaming, golf courses, hotels, entertainment, spas, 20 dining choices and in 2016 luxury retail outlet shopping.

The Yellow Brick Road Casino will be aimed at people who aren't staying overnight, as there will be no hotel as part of the project, and it will offer convenient gambling.

"It will be a different experience than Turning Stone,'' Halbritter said. "It will be more of a casual venue, and one that will pay respects to the community's identity. It will be an exciting, fresh look."

The casino will be open 24 hours a day.

Support from Chittenango mayor

Chittenango Mayor Ronny Goeler, one of the few local officials whom the Oneidas have told about their plans, said the casino will help revitalize the area, and bring tourists to the area who will then frequent local businesses.

Goeler said he and the Nation are working cooperatively on cross-marketing the casino and businesses in the village.

"This is going to be really good for Chittenango,'' he said. "It will create jobs, and may even get people to move here."

The casino will offer a counter-service restaurant offering a variety of grill and deli-style options including burgers, hot dogs, grilled chicken sandwiches, chicken tenders, French fries, deli sandwiches, soups and salads, as well as dinner entrees. There also will be a pizza restaurant.

The country-western style bar will feature live entertainment from local musicians.

Hayner Hoyt Corp. of Syracuse is handling general contracting and construction management for the new casino and Hnedak Bobo Group, who designed the Seneca Indian Nation's Buffalo Creek Casino, is handling the design work.

Members of the Central and Northern Building Trades Council union will be called on to provide dozens of construction jobs while the renovation takes place.

The Chittenango project comes on the heels of last month's announcement that Turning Stone Resort Casino will build a $100 million, 250-000-square-foot luxury retail, dining and entertainment center on its grounds. It is slated to open fall 2016.

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