The Sun Sentinel reports from southern Florida that a land lease community on tribal land the Seminole Indians forcibly took over in July 2008 has been returned to owner Hollywood Mobile Estates. The tribe had seized the 2,000-resident community alleging lease violations by the owners, and had twice refused the U.S. Interior Department’s Bureau of Indian Affairs ruling to return the property. On July 1, U.S. District Judge William Dimitrouleas ordered the tribe to relinquish control, and they complied. Twenty-five percent of the 130 acres is the Seminoles’ Hollywood Reservation, and the tribe receives 15 percent of the community’s revenues. The owners, who say they lost up to $10 million in revenue and legal fees, say they may be interested in a negotiated buyout.
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