A popular Post Falls summer event has become a casualty of the ongoing debate over the legality of historical horse racing in Idaho.

Helo Hancock, the Coeur d'Alene Tribe's legislative director, told The Press Friday that the 2015 Julyamsh powwow will not take place.

The powwow - billed as the largest outdoor powwow in the Northwest and among the largest in the nation - has been hosted by the Coeur d'Alene Tribe at the Greyhound Park and Event Center for the past 17 years.

"The decision was made to move Julyamsh away from Greyhound Park because the tribe cannot condone the illegal activity taking place there, nor can the tribe condone the hostile and belligerent statements made recently by the Greyhound Park manager about the tribe and Indian gaming," Hancock stated, in a message to The Press.

An alternate location could not be found in time to hold the powwow this year, Hancock said.

The Coeur d'Alene Tribe and Greyhound Park officials have been at odds since state legislation passed in 2013 authorized pari-mutuel wagering on previously run horse races. The games, also known as instant racing, are offered on slot-like machines that can be installed, under the law, at locations authorized to offer simulcast betting.

Last year, 35 of the machines were installed at the Greyhound Park in Post Falls. There are roughly 250 of the machines in use in Idaho. The other machines are operating at Les Bois Park, a race track in Garden City, and an off-track sports bar in Idaho Falls.

After the Coeur d'Alene Tribe spoke out opposing instant gaming in December, Douglas Okuniewicz, general manager of the Greyhound Park in Post Falls, was publicly critical of the Tribe's position.

In a story published in The Press on Jan. 7, Okuniewicz said: "The entity that says it is not subject to any state regulation now wants to ask that same state to use its regulatory authority to put the regulated entity out of business so the unregulated entity can have a monopoly...

"I would say that is the worst case ever of the pot calling the kettle black except, in this case, we are not even a kettle."

Four Idaho tribes have called for Gov. Butch Otter and the state attorney general to end instant racing in Idaho because they say it is illegal. The tribes say machines that are currently installed were never seen by legislators during consideration of the bill. They also claim it appears the state is imposing restrictions on tribal gaming operations that it is not imposing on the private businesses offering instant gaming.

Post Falls police are investigating the machines at the Greyhound Park to determine if they are slot machines, which cannot be legally installed at the park.