Residents surveyed on casino Indian tribe won't give specific results, says people in Canal Fulton lack knowledge of plan

An Oklahoma Indian tribe has completed a private telephone survey of Canal Fulton residents to gauge their feelings about the possibility of a gambling resort being built near their city, but the specific results won't be made public.

Terry Casey, a Columbus lobbyist working with the Eastern Shawnee, called the survey "market research" as the tribe continues to try to open several gaming resorts in Ohio.

The results show there is some interest, but residents also lack knowledge about the project, he said.

"We need to do more to lay out to people what would be involved, where would it be located, what would it look like," Casey said. "Nobody really knows the full story because it hasn't been laid out," he added.

The tribe has proposed building a gaming resort with shopping and restaurants at a site at Arcadia Street Northwest and state Route 21 in Lawrence Township, but it has provided few other details such as specific site plans or building designs. The Eastern Shawnee have a deal to buy nearly 50 acres and are looking to acquire additional property.

The tribe surveyed 250 registered voters in Canal Fulton between Aug. 9 and 16. The questions included whether they favor the project and asked them to identify the main issues for the city.

City manager Mark Cozy said the survey probably showed opposition, and that's why the tribe isn't releasing the specific results.

The Eastern Shawnee released preliminary results of a similar survey in Lima when it showed 56.9 percent of respondents favored such development in their community.

Gaming opponent and Canal Fulton resident Paul Bagocius also questioned why the results aren't being released, saying the tribe would have trumpeted positive feedback. He called the survey questions biased and "leading, subtle propaganda."

Deborah Owens, an assistant professor of marketing and international business at the University of Akron, examined several questions at the request of opponents. She concluded that some were leading and biased.

"I do think that it was intended to help position a political campaign, which I think is fine, but you need to be honest about that," she said.

City manager Cozy said he's not surprised to hear that people aren't clear about the proposal. "I could have told them that," he said. "We already all knew that."

The casino issue has been a contentious one in Canal Fulton and Lawrence Township, sparking protests at both City Council and township trustee meetings. Some city leaders have insisted there is support for the project, and the council has received a petition signed by 350 people asking the city to learn more about the proposal.

Cozy said he worries that the issue is harming relations between the city and township.

"I wouldn't mind it a bit if they just walked away," he said of the tribe. But he added that city leaders are obligated to examine a potential multimillion-dollar project in their backyard.

Ohio is one of 20 states that does not have Indian gaming facilities. Indian gaming experts have said they doubt the Eastern Shawnee can clear the political and regulatory hurdles the tribe faces before it could open sites in the state.

Success would mark the first time in U.S. history that an out-of-state tribe had opened a casino in a state where it had no reservation, experts have said.