October 16 , 2007

SMSC Celebrates 25 Years of Gaming
October 16, 1982, Little Six Bingo Opened

Prior Lake, Minnesota - Before Indian Gaming came to Minnesota the roads leading to the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community were dirt or gravel. There were few houses, few wells for water, and few resources for Community members. Health and dental care were insufficient as were educational and housing opportunities. Like Indians in other parts of the country, tribal members struggled to survive. Opportunities were limited, and SMSC members faced economic hardship. There were virtually no jobs available for SMSC members.

"When my father suggested the Community build a bingo hall, even I scoffed at the idea," recalls current SMSC Chairman Stanley R. Crooks. "Some members doubted that anyone would be willing to financially invest in the idea and, even if we found investors, people wouldn't want to drive to a rural location on dirt roads to play bingo virtually located in the middle of a field."

On October 16, 2007, the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community will celebrate 25 years since Indian gaming began in Minnesota with the opening of Little Six Bingo.

Chairman Crooks remembered opening night, "It was quite a site to see the parking lot full and all those cars lined up. It was amazing to all those doubters, of which I was one, that it was such an overnight success."

"A lot of Community members worked very hard in those early days to set up the Bingo Hall. We did the work ourselves and worked many long hours and late into the night to get everything ready for opening day. Then it was Community members who were the security guards, the maintenance staff, the workers," said SMSC Vice-Chairman Glynn A. Crooks.

With the advent of Indian Gaming, this new source of economic opportunity brought many changes to the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community. Tribal Government services expanded, and opportunities for the tribe and its members increased. Jobs were more available for anyone who wanted a job.

During the 1990s, the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community continued its transformation from an economically distressed reservation to one of the most economically successful Indian tribes in the United States. In this new era of self-sufficiency, the Community was able to use its inherent sovereign rights and growing economy to purchase additional lands and to radically improve its economic base. In 1992 Mystic Lake Casino was unveiled, and the impact was incredible.

In 1993, a new Community Center was dedicated to the children of the Community. The Community began to diversify its economy by opening Dakotah! Sport and Fitness, the Shakopee Dakota Convenience Store, Dakota Mall, Playworks, Dakotah Meadows RV Park, and adding a hotel to the casino complex. All through the 1990s the infrastructure of the Community went through major improvements, with new sewer, water, and roads. New subdivisions offered major changes in housing. The natural surroundings were improved with major tree plantings, controlled burns, and wetland restorations.

In a new century, the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community continues its growth. Since the year 2000, the SMSC has dedicated the Tiowakan Spiritual Center, added second and third hotel towers, opened a storage facility, completed the Playworks LINK Event Center, built parking decks for Mystic Lake Casino Hotel, opened a cultural gallery, built Dakotah Parkway, redesigned the Hotel lobby, opened a Mystic Lake retail store at The Mall of America, completed Phases II and III at Dakotah Meadows RV Park, opened The Buffet at Mystic Lake, and opened The Meadows at Mystic Lake.

A Veterans Monument was dedicated in 2005 on the grounds of Tiowakan Spiritual Center. A Water Reclamation Facility (WRF) utilizing European biologically aerated filter technology to treat water for reuse on the golf course which opened in 2006. Biosolids from that facility will also be used as fertilizer on the golf course and across the reservation. The WRF also has the largest Green Roof in the Midwest, containing more than 45,000 live plants. A 1,000,000-gallon water tower was constructed to better serve the Community and its guests. A second water treatment facility was constructed on the northern portion of the Community, and a water tower was erected. At the Gaming Enterprise, a new Bingo Hall opened to the public on August 15, 2007; construction began on a new Entertainment Center, which opened in September 2007; and a new Little Six Casino, which will open in December 2007. The SMSC also opened a pharmacy and a new Physical Therapy and Chiropractic Care Clinic. A vision clinic is in the early planning stages. A Mobile Incident Command and Mobile Medical Unit went into service in the fall of 2007 to provide services off the reservation in the event of an emergency or to provide health screenings.

The SMSC developed Mdewakanton Emergency Services, a full-time, professional fire department staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The department opened its new fire station in 2002, and now responds to an average of 200 calls a month, providing mutual aid to area departments on request. In October 2004 ambulance service was added.

"The success of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community's enterprises has allowed the Community to create and provide numerous education, health, and social service programs for Community members, staff, and Native Americans in Scott County," said SMSC Secretary/Treasurer Keith Anderson.

Evidence of the huge economic impact of the Community's enterprises can also be seen outside of the Community. The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community is proud to be a leader in sharing its prosperity with other Tribes and Communities by making charitable donations. Over the past several years the SMSC has donated more than $96 million to charitable organizations and Indian Tribes.

The SMSC also provides much needed employment opportunities for more than 4,100 Indian and non-Indian people from the surrounding area. Millions of dollars are pumped into the area's economy each year as a result of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community's successful business enterprises.

Today, Mystic Lake Casino Hotel is known as one of the largest and most successful Indian-owned casinos in the United States and is one of the largest tourist attractions in the Upper Midwest. It is in the forefront of gaming technology and is a leader in the hospitality industry.

"To honor our ancestors and continue our Dakota traditions, the Community engages in a variety of cultural activities in addition to our annual Wacipi," said SMSC Vice-Chairman Glynn Crooks. "The Community works to preserve cultural sites. Children and adults are learning the Dakota Language."

"The Shakopee Mdewakanton Dakota are proud of our accomplishments, and we honor our ancestors, for it is because of their strong sense of survival and pride in being a Dakota, that we have the ability to prosper today," said SMSC Vice-Chairman Glynn Crooks.

"I am extremely proud of our tribe's success," said Chairman Crooks. "While no one could have ever foreseen the types of opportunities that came out of that little Bingo Hall back in 1982, today it can serve as a reminder to tribes across the country of the resiliency and true determination of the Native American spirit. I am proud to carry on the dream of my father for self-sufficiency for our Community members not only for this generation but future generations as well."