Minnesota's most popular casino may soon have approval to sell alcohol. The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community awaits approval from the Bureau of Indian Affairs on the request. The tribal council says opening alcohol sales will increase their revenue and help the casino gain more popularity as a tourist attraction.

Canterbury Park offered its richest purse ever for a single race at the track on Saturday. The $161,000 Mystic Lake Derby was the first significant event since the horse track partnered with the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community. Last month, the owners of Mystic Lake Casino agreed to pay $75 million over the next decade to boost racing purses at Canterbury Park. In exchange, the racetrack will drop its longstanding push to add slot machines. Hammers Terror won the inaugural race, with jockey Lori Keith in the saddle.

The Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians will officially break ground on a new Seven Clans Casino Hotel and Restaurant in Warroad on Oct. 25. The Bemidji Pioneer reports pre-construction on the 165-acre site is already underway and full construction is expected to begin in March. The new complex will include 600 slot machines, a 100-seat restaurant and a 60-room hotel.

The largest casinos in the state are operating with little to no government oversight. The Star Tribune reports it has been at least four years since slot machines were inspected at Mystic Lake Casino in Shakopee, Grand Casino Hinckley and Grand Casino Mille Lacs. The Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement division of the DPS told the paper budget constraints have reduced the number of inspections by its three full-time agents. The executive director of the Minnesota Indian Gaming Association says all casinos in the state are also regulated by the tribal governments.