Native American Tribes Contribute to State Economies.

• Position: Brief Article

Contrary to popular belief, the economic success of Indian tribes goes far beyond gaming. In recent years, tribes have been setting their sights on other lucrative opportunities from retail to banking to pharmaceuticals. And it's having a positive effect on state economies.

The Citizen Potowatomie Nation in Oklahoma, for example, is building an $8 million discount supermarket "intended to be the anchor store for what will be a shopping center development," according to tribal Chairman John Barrett Jr. And the Hopi Tribe in Arizona has purchased a shopping center in Flagstaff for $3.5 million.

Some tribes seek to capitalize on unique cultural features or natural resources. The Navajo Nation runs a big-game hunting operation, where permits alone can cost thousands of dollars in addition to hiring a Navajo guide. The Navajo reservation is also host to a "bed and breakfast" industry where visitors can either stay with a Navajo family, who provides beds and meals, or in a traditional hogan that has no beds, running water or electricity. These excursions are growing in popularity, particularly with people from foreign countries, and typically cost from $85 to $125 a night.

The Mashantucket Pequots in Connecticut have a pharmaceutical business; the Blackfeet in Montana own a bank in Browning that has aided in the startup of over 200 businesses in the area since 1987. The Standing Rock Sioux's Sioux Manufacturing Corporation celebrated its 25th anniversary last year in North Dakota. The Cabazon Band of Cahuilla Mission Indians in California...