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KANSAS CITY, KAN. — The Wyandotte Tribe of Oklahoma can't run its downtown Kansas City, Kan., casino, the National Indian Gaming Commission has determined.

Kansas Atty. Gen. Phill Kline, Carol Marinovich, mayor of the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kan., and Matt All, the governor's chief counsel, announced the commission's decision at a news conference Thursday. Word came in a letter to the government agencies and the tribe dated Wednesday.

"This is a tremendous victory as it relates to the enforcement of the rule of law in gaming activities in the state of Kansas," Kline said. "The position of my office throughout all of this is that the rule of law be enforced."

Kline said the Wyandottes had until Wednesday to close the casino at a former Masonic building next to a tribal cemetery and across the street from City Hall. He said the state was considering what to do if the casino remained open.

The commission gave the tribe a week to respond the letter, and said it would tell the tribe if any information the Wyandottes give the agency "causes us to reconsider our opinion."

The tribe declined to comment on the letter Thursday, but the casino remained open. Jason Hodges, the government relations officer for the tribe, said the tribe planned to comment later, possibly this morning.

Kline sued the National Indian Gaming Commission and the U.S. Department of the Interior last fall after the Wyandotte Tribe of Oklahoma opened the casino.

Kline accused the federal agencies of allowing the casino to open without adhering to federal environmental and historic preservation review guidelines. He also complained that state officials had not been consulted beforehand.

For nearly eight years, the tribe has been seeking legitimacy through the courts for a casino in Wyandotte County. It has sued local landowners, including General Motors, claiming historic land rights to nearly 2,000 acres of mostly developed and privately owned land. Tribal officials have characterized the land claim as a bargaining chip they were willing to trade for the right to operate a casino in the city.

The Gaming Commission's decision was not directly in response to the litigation and does not directly affect pending litigation in the case, though Hal Walker, chief council for the Unified Government, said the decision "definitely didn't hurt our side."

Though the land is tribal land, the Gaming Commission found it did not qualify as a site for a casino because -- among other factors -- the tribe resides in Oklahoma and does not have a strong historical connection to the site.

Affie Ellis, a commission spokeswoman, said the evaluation of the casino that led to the letter was part of a normal review.

"We were interested in this issue once the tribe began gaming on that tract and we had an interest in making sure that activity complied with the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act."

But Walker said the political pressure placed on the agency most likely accelerated the decision.

Marinovich and others have been vocal opponents of the casino for months.

"What they have done across the street I believe is just terrible. ... Converting a couple trailers into a casino isn't quality gaming in our opinion," Marinovich said Thursday.

Although the Unified Government has opposed the downtown casino, it has sought one near Kansas Speedway in western Wyandotte County. Gov. Kathleen Sebelius has proposed a constitutional amendment allowing up to five, state-owned casinos, including one large one in Wyandotte County.