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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (July 1, 2022)
sNok signflz JULY 1, 2022 5 Drop box installed The Grand Ronde Tribal Police Department, 9655 Grand Ronde Road, now has a medication drop box located in the front lobby. Lobby hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The drop box is for any prescribed or over-the-counter medication. If the containers are too large to fit in the drop box, please repackage them in a zip-lock plastic bag. Tribal Police employees cannot handle the medications so the person dropping them off must repackage them. Needles and liquids are not allowed in the drop box. Tribal Police suggest mixing liquid medications with cat litter or coffee grounds and then throwing them away with the household trash. For more information, call 503-879-1821. CTGR 2022 Annual Fish Distribution Contributed photo Work has already started on what will become a new RV park at Spirit Mountain Casino. Tribal Council approved a maximum $4.5 million loan to Spirit Mountain Gaming Inc. during its Wednesday, June 15, meeting to complete the project, which hopes to capitalize on the growing popularity of recreational vehicles. Tribal Council OKs $4.5 million loan for casino to build RV park By Dean Rhodes Smoke Signals editor Tribal Council approved a max- imum $4.5 million loan to Spirit Mountain Gaming Inc. to finish constructing a 74-space, full-ser- vice recreational vehicle park at Spirit Mountain Casino during its Wednesday, June 15, meeting. The new lodging option at the casino is hoping to capitalize on an increasingly more popular RV trend in the United States. “This aligns well with who our primary customers are,” said Tribal Council member Kathleen George, who also sits on the SMGI Board of Directors, during the Tuesday, June 14, Legislative Action Com- mittee meeting. According to an analysis pre- pared by the RV Industry Associ- ation, wholesale shipments of RVs in North America are expected to hit a record 602,200 units this year — a 40 percent increase over 2020 and 19 percent higher than the last record high set in 2017. In addition, a 2018 study con- ducted by CBRE Hotels Advisory Group compared the cost of eight of the most popular vacation types using a hypothetical family of four, consisting of two adults and two children. The study determined that RV vacations are the most eco- nomical – on average 27 percent to 62 percent less expensive on a daily basis compared to other vacation options analyzed. Spirit Mountain Casino Public Relations Administrator Jocelyn Huffman said the RV park will use a portion of the Playworld build- ing that will be converted into a clubhouse with showers, Internet stations, laundry facilities, vending machines and other amenities. Dalke Construction of Salem is expected to complete the park by the end of October. “Spaces will remain in the ex- isting RV lot for short-term stays and guests who prefer the current arrangement,” Huffman said. Tribal Council member Jack Giff- en Jr. asked during the Legislative Action Committee meeting if the new RV park is going to be a loss leader for the casino. George said it is expected to bring in additional customers who stay longer at the casino. “We’ve moved away from the concept of a loss leader,” she said. “A loss is still a loss.” The funding for the loan will come from the Tribe’s TriState Capital Bank line of credit. In other action, Tribal Council: • Adopted a restatement of the Tribe’s retirement plan with Mil- liman to maintain it as a qualified plan for employees; • Approved the enrollment of two infants into the Tribe because they meet the requirements out- lined in the Tribal Constitution and Enrollment Ordinance; • Approved the Tribal Education De- partment applying for a $120,000 Oregon Department of Education Youth Development Division grant that would be used to address the waiting list needs of students re- garding academic advising; • And approved the Tribe’s Health & Wellness Department applying for a two-year, $500,000 grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Adminis- tration’s Tribal Opioid Response Program that would support, among other things, training peer recovery specialists, purchasing and distributing naloxone to Trib- al first responders, and purchas- ing equipment and supporting the mobile medication unit. Also included in the June 15 Trib- al Council packet was an approved authorization to proceed adopting the CCRs for the new home own- ership development off McPherson Road. After being advertised twice in Smoke Signals, the Tribe did not receive any comments on them. To watch the entire meeting, visit the Tribal government’s website at www.grandronde.org and click on the Government icon and then Videos. Natural Resources Department Fish Lab 47010 SW HEBO ROAD Grand Ronde, Oregon 97347 (503) 879-2424 When: Thursday, August 18, 2022 9:00am – 5:00pm Friday, August 19, 2022 9:00am – 5:00pm Saturday, August 20, 2022 9:00 am – 1:00 pm GRAND RONDE LIVING and ENROLLED TRIBAL MEMBERS Must show current photo I.D. This year, fish will be handed out in a drive through system. Please follow the signage up the hill to the fish lab, receive your fish and then follow the new exit loop road out. If picking up for others: A Signed release and copy of Tribal ID or CIB is required! No Early or late Pickups and fish will not be mailed.
