Revenues from Tribal Lending Enterprise and Investments into Economic Enterprises Lead Lac Vieux Desert to Historic Milestone: Payment in Full of Casino Debt

Recently, the Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians (LVD) announced that the Tribe had paid in full a $30 million loan originally taken out in 1995 to finance the construction of the Lac Vieux Desert Northern Waters Casino Resort, an occasion that was hailed in a press release as “an historic milestone in the Tribe’s history.”

According to the Tribe, the debt was not supposed to mature for another two years, making the final payment well ahead of schedule.

“Being debt free has always been the plan of Tribal leadership and the entire LVD community, so this is an important and historic day for all of us,” Tribal Chairman James Williams, Jr. said. “Paying off this major debt is not only a big step forward for our self-sufficiency, but it also gives us more flexibility in financial decision-making, with principal and interest savings that allow for long-term financial planning and improved services to Tribal members.”

“Paying off this casino debt would not have been possible without our other economic development enterprises, specifically the revenue generated by our Tribal lending businesses and the investments that we have made into them,” Williams continued. “We can now continue to decrease Tribal debt, build a rainy day fund, develop and implement a general welfare program, and focus on community infrastructure development.”