Tribal Council approves contract amendment for resident and recreation center

By Danielle Harrison

Smoke Signals editor

Tribal Council approved an amendment to its design contract for a new resident and recreation center during its Wednesday, Sept. 25, meeting.

The design contract with MCA Architects of Portland will allow for up to $1.16 million to be spent due to the planned center size expansion from 20,000 to 35,000 square feet.

“I’m seeking approval for this amendment because the project has grown significantly from the original scope…after various work sessions with council and meetings with staff that building has grown, plus there are a lot of additional outdoor facilities,” Engineering and Community Development Department Manager Ryan Webb said. “With all that additional work, there is additional time involved for the architect to design those facilities.”  

Tribal Council member Matthew Haller thanked Webb during a Tuesday, Sept. 24, Legislative Action Committee meeting for the work that had gone into the center design thus far.

“I just want to publicly thank you,” he said. “It’s been a long process and a lot of you going and doing work and coming up with amazing, in-depth options that have expanded our thoughts and conversations. I appreciate your versatility and continuing to come forward and change different scopes. I appreciate you.”

Webb responded that he had the grants team to thank for securing a “tremendous” amount of funding.

“The grants team has made these conversations possible,” he said.

In other action, Tribal Council:

• Approved annual agriculture permits for the 2024-25 season that are expected to generate $37,372 in revenue. Since the program began in 2009, it has resulted in more than $644,000 for the Tribe;
• Approved use of a Tribal credit card in an amount not to exceed $5,000 for Tribal Economic Development Director Michael Cully;
• Approved removing past Tribal Council Secretary Michael Cherry and adding newly elected Tribal Council member Tonya Gleason-Shepek on the Tribe’s bank and investment accounts;
• Approved reappointing Martha Schrader and Victoria Ernst as non-Tribal members on the Spirit Mountain Community Fund Board of Trustees with terms ending on Sept. 30, 2026;
• Approved reappointing Tribal Council member Kathleen George and appointing Tribal Council member Tonya Gleason-Shepek to the Spirit Mountain Gaming Inc. Board of Directors with terms ending Sept. 30, 2027;
• Approved appointing Marianne Blanchard to the Culture Committee with a term ending March 31, 2026;
• Approved payment of $7,500 in annual membership dues for the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians, and approved Tribal Council Secretary Jon A. George as the delegate and all other Tribal Council members as alternates;
• Approved $30,000 in annual membership dues for the National Congress of American Indians, and approved Tribal Council member Lisa Leno as a delegate and all other Tribal Council members as alternates;
• Approved a $160,000 grant application to the Bureau of Indian Education for the hiring of a consultant;
• Approved a $1 million application to the Arbor Day Foundation for the Community Roots Program to fund the landscaping, tree planting and maintenance at the Tribe’s tumwata village project in Oregon City;
• Approved a $750,000 grant application to the Oregon Department of Forestry Urban & Community Forestry for wages for two current Natural Resources Department employees and to hire another full-time employee. Additionally, the funds would be used in a major cultural burning project;
• Approved three applications totaling $4.7 million to the Bureau of Indian Affairs Tribal Climate Resilience categories one through three, which cover planning, implementation and staffing;
• And approved enrolling 10 infants into the Tribe because they meet the enrollment requirements outlined in the Tribal Constitution and Enrollment Ordinance.

To watch the entire meeting, visit the Tribal government’s website at www.grandronde.org and click on the Videos tab.