Page 10
Spilyay Tymoo, Warm Springs, Oregon
January 7, 2015
Around Indian Country
At the Pageant
Cowlitz win in land-to-trust casino case
Jayson Smith/Spilyay
Miss Warm Springs 2015 Suzanne McConville
Telecom
(Continued from page 1)
In 2014 the Telecom com-
pleted the proposed purposes
of the American Reinvest-
ment and Recovery Act
(ARRA), which provided $5.4
in start-up money, as a grant
and a loan, for the enterprise.
The Telecom has diverse
paths and full redundancy
built in its network, meaning
there are back-up connec-
tions in case one system goes
down.
Home security
An exciting project at the
Telecom for 2015 will be the
launching of a home-security
and monitoring piece.
Gabe Walker, Telecom
sales and marketing coordi-
nator, is working on this
project.
The security system has
many applications, beyond
just burglary prevention,
Walker said.
The home detection device
is linked to the homeowner’s
smart phone. If a door, win-
dow or gate opens at the
house, the system contacts
the cell phone and authorities.
The device can be con-
nected to the air condition-
ing, so you could set the ther-
mostat from the phone.
If the front door opens,
the system can take a picture
of the person entering, and
send the picture to the phone.
This item will be marketed
on the reservation and the
rest of Jefferson County,
Walker said.
“We look forward to an-
other successful year in which
we address the communica-
tion needs through-out the
reservation to further en-
hance public safety, preserve
and promote cultural heritage
and to encourage economic
development both in new rev-
enue and in job creation,”
Matanane said.
“I would like to Thank ev-
eryone for their continued
support.”
By the Warm Springs Market - ph 553-1041
The Cowlitz Indian
Tribe is planning to de-
velop a resort and
casinbo on 152 acres at
the La Center I-5 inter-
change in Clark County,
Washington.
The tribe won an im-
portant court decision in
December, when the U.S.
District Judge in the case
dismissed a lawsuit filed
by opponents of the
project.
The Confederated
Tribes of Grand Ronde,
owners of the Spirit
Mountain Casino, are one
of the main opponents.
Grand Ronde also op-
posed the Confederated
Tribes of Warm Springs’
decade-long effort to de-
velop a casino resort at
Cascade Locks.
Conceptual rendering of proposed development.
The Cascade Locks pro-
posal had the support of the
the local community of Cas-
cade Locks; while the Cowlitz
proposal is opposed by the
city of Vancouver, Wash.,
and Clark County.
The Cowlitz casino would
be closer to Portland than
Grand Ronde’s Spirit Moun-
tain.
In the most recent lawsuit
against the Cowlitz, the dis-
missal of the opponents’ law-
suit will likely be appealed,
possibly to the U.S. Supreme
Court.
The court decision allows
the property to be taken in
to trust for the tribe, which
would allow the development
to go forward.
The Cowlitz tribe of
southwest Washington were
federally recognized in 2000.
The tribe has about 3,500
members, but no reserva-
tion land. The Cowlitz has
been trying to get the La
Center site into trust for
about a decade, but the
plan has been delayed by
lawsuits.
The Cowlitz plan to de-
velop the property into
tribal offices, housing, a
tribal center, and casino-
resort complex with a
roughly 134,000-square-
foot casino. There would
be a 250-room hotel and
a 5,000-seat entertain-
ment center.
The Grand Ronde and
other opponents challenge
the Cowlitz’ historical ties
to the area west of I-5,
arguing that the federal
government violated the
law in issuing its decision
to put the land into trust.
Around Indian Country
Umatilla tribe gets 4,000
acres in buy-back program
The Umatilla tribal gov-
ernment has already pur-
chased more than 4,000 acres
of fractionated land as part
of the federal government’s
efforts to buy back and con-
solidate Native American land
holdings.
The Confederated Tribes
of Umatilla has spent $4.16
million buying up fraction-
ated tracts.
The tracts were fraction-
ated after being allotted to
individual tribal members.
Legislation required own-
ership to be divided equally
among heirs, meaning ever
larger numbers of people
owned ever smaller shares of
the property as generations
passed.
Land bought back by the
tribes can be used for hous-
ing, cemeteries, farming, wild-
life areas or other benefits
across the reservation.
The second wave of ap-
praisals is expected to be ap-
proved next year.
2321
Ollallie
Lane
Warm
Springs
Jan. focus on stalking awareness
January is National Stalking Awareness Month, a
time to focus on a crime that affected 7.5 million vic-
tims in one year.
The theme this year is, Stalking: Know It. Name It.
Stop It.
Stalking is a crime on the reservation, in all 50 states,
the U.S. Territories and the District of Columbia, yet
many victims and criminal justice professionals un-
derestimate its seriousness and impact. In one of five
cases, stalkers use weapons to harm or threaten vic-
tims, and stalking is one of the significant risk factors
for homicide of women in abusive relationships.
Victims suffer anxiety, social dysfunction, and se-
vere depression at much higher rates than the general
population, and many lose time from work or have to
move as a result of their victimization. If you would
like more information about this, call Victims of Crime
at 541-553-2293.
Call 541-
553-1182
Warm Springs
Seekseequa
4202
Holliday St.
Simnasho
Schoolie Flat
Call 541-
615-0555