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Casino Opponents Appeal Environmental Permits

April 25, 2011 - Oxford - Opponents of Black Bear Entertainment's Oxford County casino have filed a formal appeal seeking to stop site work and construction at the Pigeon Hill location.


The appeal to the state Board of Environmental Protection was filed Wednesday by the Androscoggin River Alliance and 18 other Oxford County property owners. It alleges that the environmental and water quality permits were issued prematurely and incorrectly.


"These are gross and blatant violations of state site law," attorney Stephen Hinchman of Bath said. "Things like financial capacity, this is no-brainer stuff. These are egregious violations of the basic pieces of the site law."


Black Bear has received approval from the town of Oxford and from the Maine Department of Environmental Protection.


The Androscoggin River Alliance has complained to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency about a potential conflict of interest with the DEP permit, as DEP Commissioner Darryl Brown owns Main-Land Development, the company Black Bear hired for site planning.


The petition claims that Black Bear's application failed to prove it has adequate water supplies and wastewater disposal, that it omitted costs for stabilizing the site and never proved that it had adequate financial capacity to do the work. It also claims it didn't consider air quality matters and violates both the Natural Resources Protection Act and the Clean Water Act.


Scott Smith, community development director for Black Bear Entertainment, said the company does not plan to stop work. They've already begun forestry work, logging the 100-acre property beside Route 26.


"We have crossed all of our T's and dotted all of our I's with the DEP process, we believe in good environmental citizenship and we are marching on here," he said. "We are focused on job creation and doing the right thing by all of our abutters."


Black Bear plans to complete the first phase of the project over the next year. That would include a 65,000-square-foot building with slot machines, gaming tables and a restaurant. The goal is to open the resort casino by the first quarter of 2012.


Scott Taylor, Sun Journal, April 2011


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