Vallejo Casino Project in Legal Limbo
February 18, 2026
The Scotts Valley tribe is fighting two legal challenges that could stop its $700M casino project in Vallejo. Both fights are on parallel tracks at the same time and in the same courtroom.
[ No Ads ]Scotts Valley Casino project in Vallejo in legal limbo - Courtesy of CBS News Sacramento, Feb 11, 2026. Available from YouTube
Last March the U.S. Department of Interior (DOI) "temporarily" rescinded its January 2026 approval for gaming eligibility on the tribe's 150 acres of land near I-80 and Highway 37 in Vallejo, CA. The Scotts Valley tribe responded with a lawsuit against the DOI. That case is currently before Judge McFaddenin the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
In the same courtroom, there are cases from three regional tribes that oppose the Vallejo casino project, and claim the Scotts Valley tribe does not qualify for the ancestral requirements to build a casino on that land.
In the meantime, as the cases proceed in court, the Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians have announced plans to open a "preview casino" in Vallejo. This will be a temporary casino housed in modular buildings and operated with Class II slot machines, which are sometimes referred to as bingo-style slots. The opening date has not been announced but is expected very soon.
