Yesteryears - Oct. 15, 2024

Yesteryears

2019 – Smoke Signals interviewed Tribal officials about how many homes the area could eventually accommodate. With sewer and water capacity still available and several acres of land still in trust, the existing 257 home sites then in place or under construction could eventually expand significantly. However, Housing Department Manager Shonn Leno warned that the limiting factor was the cost of maintenance. Although grants are available for building, Leno noted, there are not grants for long-term maintenance.

2014 – Tribal Historian David Lewis had recently returned from a trip to Washington D.C., to search for the original Executive Order establishing the Grand Ronde Reservation, signed by President James Buchanan in 1857. The elusive document did not turn up, although Lewis found other historical treasures including maps, correspondence and reports about the reservation.

2009 – A $6.4 million project to improve Grand Ronde Road was nearly finished. The project included installation of Tribal telecom, sewer, storm and water lines, a sidewalk, road widening and realignment, and overhead lighting. In addition, the road had to be entirely rebuilt, because the previous road had lacked base rock under it.

2004 – The Tribe became a sponsor of the Portland Winterhawks hockey team. Dean Vrooman, known as the voice of the Winterhawks, said the Tribe would use the opportunity to provide education to the public about the Tribe.

1999 – The Tribe provided a $266,000 grant from the Spirit Mountain Community Fund to the Oregon Garden Foundation for restoration and preservation of a 25-acre stand of Oregon White Oak on the grounds the Oregon Garden in Silverton.

1994 – With major financing completed, construction had begun on what would become Spirit Mountain Casino. The $21 million building was scheduled for a grand opening in 1995. The Tribe secured a loan with future earnings from the casino’s first five years in operation.

1989 – Eleven-year-old Tribal member Felicia (Torres) Lewis won the grand championship in western equestrian with her horse, Shadow, at the Jackson County Fair in Medford.

Yesteryears is a look back at Tribal history in five-year increments through the pages of Smoke Signals.