Editor, the New Herald:

Is a casino in the Nansemonds’ plans? Well, has anyone bothered to ask the Nansemonds that question? I don’t think anyone has. No casino is in any plans!

As for the business plan, why should we share our business plan until we know where the city stands? The joint task force was never officially tasked to review a business plan. They were to review a management plan after the city council got a recommendation from the task force. The management plan and business plan are totally different. The Nansemonds have shared every detail up to the management plan. They have shown that the project will work at no cost to the city or the citizens of Suffolk, unlike the Constants Wharf project.

The city is offering only eight to10 acres of leased land, not 99 acres deeded property for the Nansemonds to build a $6 million project. As for Mr. Sanford’s statement, &uot;when plans are kept secret something is not on the up and up,&uot; there have been no secret plans on the part of the Nansemonds. What about Steve Herbert’s plans of the lease of public land that was once the Nansemond tribe’s homeland and was taken from them. It has been proven through a feasibility study that the Mattanock project has would be a draw for the Suffolk Tourism Division. Stranger things have happened where the amount of money a project like this would attract is taken into account. When would the city revoke the lease and take over the project? The Nansemonds would lose the land and the $6 million in such a case.

Sandy McCready

Suffolk

Tribal Secretary