While reading the latest e-version of the Daily Press a story caught my eye and my attention about Barstow and its incredible run of bad luck. This cannot be just by chance, and it shows how powerful the San Manuel casino and their influence is in the County and with Congressman Lewis. This is an easy connect the dots, and will kill off the Barstow casino plans for good. See if you can make the connections.

Lewis endorses James Ramos for 3rd District supervisor
BY SARA MITCHELL
8-11-2011
   STAFF WRITER Desert Dispatch
  

BARSTOW • James Ramos has picked up the endorsement of Congressman Jerry Lewis in his run for 3rd District supervisor.

   The congressman of the 41st District said he endorsed Ramos because “voters can trust that James Ramos will be a voice for them on the Board of Supervisors,” according to a statement Wednesday from Ramos’ campaign.

   Ramos announced his run for 3rd District supervisor in May and is currently the only challenger to incumbent Neil Derry. The county is in the process of revising district lines to reflect 2010 census data, and Barstow is likely to move from the 1st District to the 3rd.

   Ramos is the chairman of the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians , whose mem bers have contributed a total of $ 10,000 to Lewis ’ campaigns since 2008. Ramos is also on the San Bernardino Community Coll ege Board of Trustees and in that position, Ramos said, he has worked with Lewis to make connections between the business and education communities.

   Sara Mitchell May be reached at
(760) 256-4126 or smitchell@DesertDispatch.com

Barstow casino planners lobby Brown

July 19, 2011

SARA MITCHELL
Staff Writer
BARSTOW • Leaders of the proposed Indian casino in Barstow are appealing to a new governor, president and economic situation in their second attempt at the casino’s approval in a decade.

“The differences are pretty stark,” said casino spokesman, Tom Shields, of the current lobbying efforts in Sacramento compared to the process with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s office.

Los Coyotes representatives have met with Gov. Jerry Brown’s office in recent months to provide information on the casino to the new administration, and Shields said the governor’s staff seemed interested in learning both how the casino would help the tribe as well as the Barstow community.

“It fits exactly into the way we approached it seven years ago,” Shields said.
Gov. Brown’s office did not return phone calls for comment.

Shields presented an update at Monday’s City Council meeting of the recent lobbying efforts by Los Coyotes Band of Cahuilla and Cupeno Indians, who first began plans for a casino near the Barstow Outlets in 2001.

The project must receive a compact from Gov. Jerry Brown, have it approved by the state legislature and then be approved by the Department of Interior.
 

Barstow spends $116k fighting DesertXpress


May 02, 2011 4:39 PM

KAREN JONAS
Staff Writer
BARSTOW • In its efforts to fight a proposed high-speed train which would link Victorville to Las Vegas — bypassing Barstow along the way — the City of Barstow has spent more than $116,000 on economic studies, public relations, and legal fees.

The DesertXpress train recently submitted its final Environmental Impact Statement — one of the last steps it needs to complete before beginning construction — to the Federal Railroad Administration for final approval. The public comment period for the impact statement ended Monday.

The City of Barstow is opposed to the DesertXpress project because an economic study commissioned by the city estimates it will decrease traffic traveling through the city to Las Vegas by up to 33 percent and the project could result in a combined loss of 2,295 jobs within the city. Both the City of Ontario and the Helendale Community Services District have signed resolutions opposing the DesertXpress train.

Along with the economic study that the city commissioned, City Council approved a contract with Public Management Advisors last year and also hired a law firm for consultation — most likely in closed session.

Community and economic development director Ron Rector would not confirm if the city would be suing the DesertXpress and said that the city would wait to find out the results of the last environmental statement.

DesertXpress claims the construction of the train will create 34,000 jobs. The privately owned company has applied for a $4.9 billion federal loan to help pay for the $6 billion project.