{"id":269220,"date":"2026-04-15T15:38:10","date_gmt":"2026-04-15T15:38:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/269220\/"},"modified":"2026-04-15T15:38:10","modified_gmt":"2026-04-15T15:38:10","slug":"construction-of-huge-madera-casino-continues-amid-legal-fight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/269220\/","title":{"rendered":"Construction of huge Madera casino continues amid legal fight"},"content":{"rendered":"

The North Fork Rancheria of Mono Indians of California says it will continue construction of its massive casino off Highway 99 in Madera County even as a state supreme court ruling has cast further uncertainty over the casino\u2019s opening.<\/p>\n

The Supreme Court of California earlier this month declined to review<\/a> a lower court\u2019s ruling against the construction and operation of the sprawling North Fork Mono Casino and Resort<\/a> in Madera County.<\/p>\n

The state Supreme Court\u2019s decision means the December ruling by a panel<\/a> of Fresno appellate judges stands: The casino is not authorized by the state of California. However, it\u2019s unclear whether that decision will actually stop the casino from opening.<\/p>\n

In a statement, the North Fork Rancheria of Mono Indians of California said its plans have federal approval and signaled that construction will not stop on its 100,000-square-foot casino complex off Highway 99. The land the casino is located on has been held in a federal trust for North Fork\u2019s<\/a> planned gaming operation since 2012.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe North Fork Rancheria\u2019s right to game on its federal trust land near Madera, CA is governed exclusively by federal law. Federal approvals of the North Fork project occurred in 2012 and 2016 and the federal courts have since upheld each approval in final, non-appealable decisions,\u201d the tribe said in a statement.<\/p>\n

\u201cNorth Fork will continue to comply with all applicable law as it proceeds with construction of its project to benefit the regional economy and the lives of its more than 3000 tribal citizens.\u201d<\/p>\n

The North Fork casino has received multiple approvals that have been repeatedly challenged since the tribe began planning the game house in 2003. One of the new casino\u2019s main opponents has been the Picayune Rancheria of the Chukchansi Indians, which operates the Chukchansi Gold Resort and Casino off Highway 41.<\/p>\n

Picayune Chukchansi has argued in court that the North Fork casino\u2019s original state approval was voided in 2014 as California voters rejected the Madera casino in a statewide election. A Madera County trial court in 2024 agreed, as did the state\u2019s appellate court in Fresno last December.<\/p>\n

Despite the recent rulings, North Fork has said it still plans to open the casino this year. Since it broke ground in 2024, Madera County leaders have touted the casino as an engine for economic growth, hopeful it will generate new jobs and spending in the county.<\/p>\n

The tribe\u2019s leadership has said the casino has the potential to add 1,000 jobs to Madera County. The casino will feature more than 2,400 slot machines, 40 table games and eight dining options.<\/p>\n

\"Construction Construction on the North Fork Mono Casino and Resort, which sits right off Highway 99 between the Avenue 17 and Avenue 18-1\/2 exits, nears completion on Tuesday, April 14, 2026. CRAIG KOHLRUSS ckohlruss@fresnobee.com Fresno judges rule against Madera casino, tribe points out federal authorization<\/p>\n

Gov. Jerry Brown\u2019s approval of the North Fork casino in 2012 came after the U.S. Department of Interior determined<\/a> in 2011 it was OK for the tribe to build the game house on 305 acres just north of the city of Madera.<\/p>\n

Though it\u2019s more than 30 miles from the tribe\u2019s 80-acre rancheria in the Madera County mountains, the federal government determined the tribe has ancestral ties to its casino site off Highway 99. Lawsuits followed as anti-gaming groups<\/a> launched accusations of \u201creservation shopping,\u201d but Gov. Brown agreed with the federal government and signed a tribal-state deal allowing the casino.<\/p>\n

California residents in 2014 voted<\/a> in opposition of the Madera casino in a state proposition. Two years later, Picayune Chukchansi sued Brown in Madera County, arguing his \u201cconcurrence\u201d with the federal decision to allow the North Fork casino was void from the beginning.<\/p>\n

A trial court and the appellate court in Fresno sided with Picayune Chukchansi in subsequent years. The North Fork tribe notes that its federal approvals have been upheld in federal court multiple times.<\/p>\n

A federal court in 2016<\/a> ruled against the casino\u2019s opponents as they challenged its authorization by the Department of Interior. U.S. District Beryl Howell said then that, though the casino opponents had valid concerns, \u201cthe law is not on their side.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2024, federal government also approved the casino\u2019s management agreement<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Even since the December ruling against the casino by the state, North Fork has continued to state it plans to open this year on social media.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis with someone who you\u2019re bringing when we open our doors this year!\u201d the casino wrote last week in an Instagram post<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Construction Construction on the North Fork Mono Casino and Resort, which sits right off Highway 99 between the Avenue 17 and Avenue 18-1\/2 exits, nears completion on Tuesday, April 14, 2026. CRAIG KOHLRUSS ckohlruss@fresnobee.com
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Erik Galicia<\/a><\/p>\n

The Fresno Bee<\/p>\n

Erik is a graduate of the Missouri School of Journalism, where he helped launch an effort to better meet the news needs of Spanish-speaking immigrants. Before that, he served as editor-in-chief of his community college student newspaper, Riverside City College Viewpoints, where he covered the impacts of the Salton Sea\u2019s decline on its adjacent farm worker communities in the Southern California desert. Erik\u2019s work is supported through the California Local News Fellowship program.\n <\/p>\n