Smoke Signals 7
MAY 15, 2008
Commmniuimiifty mroeeftiiirags ftacG&De ecomioinniiic
deveDopmnieinriS:, Unban secrvkes ocdeas
By Dean Rhodes and
Ron Karten
Smoke Signals staff writers
Build a water park at Spirit Moun
tain Casino?
Invest in urban real estate?
Hire a Tribal economic develop
ment director?
Construct storage units in Grand
Ronde?
Those ideas and more were sug
gested during the five Community
Membership meetings held in Grand
Ronde; Tacoma, Wash.; Clackamas,
a suburb of Portland; Eugene and
Bend between May 4 and 9 when
Tribal members were asked for their
ideas on ways the Tribe could develop
economically.
Planning and Grants Development
Manager Kim Rogers said sugges
tions from the five Community Mem
bership meetings will help identify
needs and priorities for use in com
munity planning, budgeting, program
design and grant proposals.
At the Community Meeting held
May 6 in Clackamas, suggestions for
future Tribal economic development
ranged from building a water park
near Spirit Mountain Casino and
adding a golf course, getting involved
in renewable energy, promoting
cultural tourism, real estate invest
ments in Portland and funding small
business incubators in Portland, Eu
gene, Grand Ronde and Salem.
Tribal member Eric Bernando said
he would eventually like to see the
Tribe earning about 30 percent of its
revenue from non-casino businesses.
Tribal Elder Bernadine Shriver
supported projects that would make
the casino more family friendly.
Another Tribal member suggested
Tribal representatives contact the
state and University of Oregon Busi
ness School as a way to find economic
development resources.
In Tacoma on May 5, Eugene Tribal
member Andy Jenness said that be
fore discussing specific ventures, the
Tribe ought to "develop a systematic
process for looking at ventures."
"We kind of have the cart before the
horse," Jenness said in Eugene. "The
Tribe needs to develop a process for
looking at economic development."
"We need an economic development
director and the Tribe doesn't have
one," said Tribal Council member
Wink Sodcrberg. who also supports
Tribally owned storage spaces in
Photo by Ron Karten
In Bend, Tribal Elder Clyde Stryker and friend, Joan McKenzie, look at the
many ideas for the Tribe before selecting the ones that interest them most.
Photo by Ron Karten
Chairwoman Cheryle A. Kennedy
at the Community Membership
meeting in Tacoma.
Grand Ronde as a way to start.
"We need something simple so we
can get our feet on the ground," So
derberg said about the storage unit
proposal in Clackamas.
In Eugene on May 8, Tribal mem
ber Monty Para zoo backed buying
buildings for Tribal offices in Eugene
and Portland, and renting out the
buildings' other offices as a way to
make money.
At almost every meeting. Tribal
members suggested hiring a Tribal
economic development director, but
when it came time to voteon ideas, the
economic development direct or did not
receive n single vote, Rogers said.
1 giay
Others suggested establishing a
small business development office
to help Tribal members start their
own small businesses with Tribal
seed money.
Regarding Tribal member services,
Clackamas meeting participants
suggested bringing the Lifeways
program back, more educational
services, such as a Tribal library, in
the Portland office and sending out
health representatives to home visit
Elders and pregnant women, among
other suggestions.
In Tacoma and Eugene, Tribal
members supported podcasting or
webcasting Tribal Council meetings
so Tribal members unable to attend
meetings in Grand Ronde can stay
informed about Tribal business.
"It's an odd feeling being outside,"
said Tribal Elder Rebecca Crocker,
who is now living and working in
Washington state.
Along those same lines in Bend,
Tribal member Christie Ioomis sug
gested, and many Bend Tribal mem
bers voted for, opening a satellite office
in the booming central Oregon city.
Looking in the opposite direction,
Redmond Tribal Elder Estelle Mc
Cafferty wondered if a Tribal effort
to "spiff up Grand Ronde" would be
beneficial for the Tribe.
In Eugene, Tribal mem
bers suggested creation of
a Tribal member services
handbook that would ex
plain all of the possible services and
benefits, from rental assistance to
educational scholarships, that are
available.
Other Tribal members in Eugene
suggested the creation of gas vouch
ers for Tribal Elders to combat the es
calating cost of filling up the tank.
The Community Membership meet
ings received varying degrees of in
terest from Tribal members. There
were about 100 in Grand Ronde, 38 in
Tacoma, 42 in Portland, 50 in Eugene
and 45 in Bend, including Tribal staff
and Tribal Council members.
Attendance was down from the 2007
meetings, but Rogers said that the
enrollment issue last year may have
been a draw for more members.
Rogers said that all of the 2008 sug
gestions for economic development and
Tribal services will be given to Tribal
Council, even those that didn't receive
any votes in the "dot voting" exercise.
Top items from the 2008 meetings in
cluded building a water park at Spirit
Mountain Casino, diversifying the
Tribal economy, providing members
assistance with small business devel
opment and legal services, expanding
the Kifeways progrnm, finding a solu
tion to enrollment issues and providing
a Tribal office in Iiend.
The dot vol ing totals from the vari
ous meetings will be combined anil
an overall summary prepared that
will be nvailable to the membership,
Rogers said.
V
Photo by Dean Rhode
Tribal Elder Marta Clifford talkt with Cultural Resources Director David Lewis and his
staff before the start of the Eugene Community Membership meeting held May 8 at
the Valley River Inn.
Photo by Dean Rhodpt
Tribal Director of Development Pete Wakeland writes down
economic development suggestions from Tribal members during
the May 4 Community Membership meeting held in Grand Ronde.