Former Seneca-Cayuga chief paid $8m for Royal Bay, lawsuit says

GROVE, Okla. (AP)– A civil lawsuit filed in Delaware County shows a former Seneca-Cayuga Nation chief paid $8 million for a Grand Lake tourist attraction site and misled tribal officials and members about the purchase price, tribal officials said Wednesday.

The tribe purchased the Cherokee Queen riverboats and Royal Bay Restaurant, Royal Bay Convention Center and Royal Bay Marina for $3.9 million, according to a records filed March 21, 2012 in the Delaware County Clerk’s office.

However, in June 2013 when new tribal and business committee members were elected, they discovered former chief LeRoy Howard paid $8 million, according to a prepared statement released Wednesday by the tribe.

It was also discovered at the time the riverboats, which specialize in scenic cruises, parties and weddings on Grand Lake, sit west of Grove adjacent to Sail Boat Bridge. and it was discovered that the riverboats were inoperable and the buildings were “in significant need of repair inside and out,” the statement said.

Howard, 69, of Wyandotte, does not have a listed telephone number and could not be reached for comment.

Larry Steckline, former owner of the riverboats and restaurant and marina complex, met with Chief William Fisher in Feb. 2015 to discuss the increased purchase price but “refused to discuss the details of the transaction, the condition of the riverboats and restaurants and the mysterious purchase price increase,” the statement says.

Steckline stood firm on the $8 million price tag and filed a civil lawsuit in April after a $200,000 payment was missed. The petition states the tribe executed a promissory note dated March 16, 2012.

The lawsuit names Jerry Crow, Sarah Channing, Sallie White, Lisa Spano, Geneva Fletcher, Calvin Cassidy and Fisher.

James J. Proszek, Steckline’s attorney, said in an email that he and Steckline declined to discuss the lawsuit.

 The petition accuses of tribe of failing to make periodic installment payments on the loan and of failing and refusing to operate the “Lake Businesses” and property in the same or better condition, the petition states.