MARCH 1, 1998
TV7TNn
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New building will bring tribal programs together
The building will not only be convenient for clients, but beautiful to look at
The infrequent visitor to Grand Ronde may
be surprised, and rightly so, to see another
large facility already under construction.
The Grand Ronde Tribe is indeed constructing new
facilities at a remarkable rate. The newest addi
tion to our increasing demand for additional build
ings is the construction of the Tribal Governance
and Cultural Resource Center. The Tribal Council
and Staff refer to the building as the new Adminis
tration Building.
The Administration Building project started about
two years ago. During the early stages of the
project, Tribal Council designated a Project Team
to plan, design, and construct the Administration
Building. The Project Team sought out a profes
sional architectural firm to assist with building de
sign. After reviewing many architectural propos
als, the Project Team engaged HGE Architects, Inc.
to provide the building design services. After
completion of architectural design, HGE and the
Project Team advertised the project to solicit con
struction bids from interested construction com
panies. The advertisement for bids went out dur
ing the Summer of 1997. The Tribe received three
bids from companies that were interested in con
structing the Administration Building. The lowest
of the three bids came from Elliot-Sheets Construc
tion, Inc. The Tribe awarded the construction con
tract to Elliot-Sheets. The Project Team, HGE, and
Elliot-Sheets began construction on the facility in
late August of 1997.
Construction on the Administration Building
project is proceeding well. The project is sched
uled for completion in early September of 1998.
Currently, the building resembles a plywood for
tress. Hopefully, by Pow-wow time, our visitors
will see a nearly complete building that provides
an accurate portrayal of what the building will look
like when it's finished. We hope our visitors will
be pleased by seeing a beautiful building from the
exterior, and we will strive to complete a building
that boasts a beautiful interior.
Appearance is only part of the overall func
tion that the Tribe intends for the building.
The Tribe is striving to create quality ser
vices within the building. The Administration
Building will centralize many programs that are
currently widespread throughout many buildings.
These widespread programs often confuse our visi
tors, and create an environment where staff must
travel great distances to access other staff, Tribal
Council, or even various types of equipment.
The Administration Building is a 40,000 square
foot building and is two stories high with a partial
third story. The building has approximate dimen
sions of 370 feet wide by 102 feet deep by 40 feet
high. The building and parking will take up about
4 acres of area. The building area situates approxi
mately 380 feet to the northwest of the Community
' v
This architect's model of the new Tribal Administration Building shows what the completed
building is expected to look like. It is scheduled to be finished in the fall.
Center and will allow a nice view of Spirit Moun
tain. The Administration Building will become the new
offices for Tribal Council, and will provide new
offices for the departments inside the undersized
modular office buildings. The Administration
Building will function in a manner similar to a State
Capitol building. Our infrequent visitor, or any
visitor for that matter, enters the facility through
main entrances near the center of the building. The
entrances lead to a Ceremony Lobby area. The
CeremonyLobby area is an open, high ceiling
area. This assembly area is similar in function to
the rotunda in the Oregon State Capitol, and simi
lar in form to the waiting area in the new Grand
Ronde Health and Wellness Center. The Cer
emonyLobby area accesses any department within
the building. An elevator that goes up to the sec
ond floor, or two sets of stairwells will allow our
visitors to access the second floor departments.
Part of the CeremonyLobby area will contain
the new Tribal Council Chambers. The Tribal
Council will sit in a partial circle formation on one
end of the Tribal Council Chambers. The Tribal
Council will face a seating area with seating for
approximately 56 people. As an added bonus, the
Tribal Council Chambers have a movable wall simi
lar to the movable wall in the Tribal Community
Center, but on a much grander scale. Once this
wall is moved out of the way, the Tribal Council
Chambers will combine with the CeremonyLobby
area to create a very large Public Assembly area
for large ceremonies and gatherings.
As visitors move past the CeremonyLobby area
on the first floor, they will venture upon the of
fices of Tribal Council. Each of the nine Tribal
Council will have an office. The Tribal Council
offices are situated in the center of the building.
Toward the left of the Tribal Council offices visi
tors will see the office of the Executive Officer and
supporting staff offices. The west side of the build
ing will also house the Legal Department and the
Grand Ronde Tribal Court. To the east of the Tribal
Council offices on the first floor, we have the Fi
nance Office with supporting areas. Supporting
areas include the Risk Management Department
and the Administrative Services Department. As
part of the Administrative Services Department,
we have the Office of Information Services, Prop
erty Management and Mailroom, Shipping, Re
ceiving and Purchasing. The first floor includes
supplementary facilities such as waiting and recep
tion areas, storage and mechanical rooms, confer
ence rooms, and a special storage vault.
On the second floor of the Administration Build-
continued on page 2