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by Chelsea DuncanTRI CITY -- Without their own reservation, members of the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians have been dispersed around the Northwest.
So, the tribe is trying to bring at least some members together with the help of a recent federal grant that allowed construction to begin Monday on a community housing project in Tri City for low-income families.
"It's the first step in getting people affordable housing," said Sue Shaffer, the tribe's chairwoman.The Housing and Urban Development department issued the $879,638 grant -- funding entitled to all federally recognized tribes -- that will fund about 16 single-family homes, landscaping and sidewalks. Plans also include space for a potential community center on the 4 1/2-acre piece of the tribe's trust property it bought about seven years ago near Tri City Elementary school.
Construction is expected to take about 150 days. Carol Ferguson, the tribe's housing director and facilities director, said the tribe hasn't even announced that it is accepting applications for the new rental homes, but about 19 members are already on a waiting list.
"Eligibility will be based on income," Ferguson said. "They will give preference to elders, Cow Creek members and Native Americans."The ability to provide homes to low-income tribal members is especially important since the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs cut funding to its Housing Improvement Project due to budget shortcomings two years ago. The grants had been supplied to members of the tribe whose houses needed rehabilitation to be brought up to standard building codes.
Ferguson said she's not sure what the demand will be for the new houses once the application process begins, but if the 16 homes are not enough to fill the need, the tribe may plan more projects.
"We're going to see how it goes," she said. "If there is need, we will do more."She expects applications for the new homes to come primarily from tribal members in this area.
Michael Rondeau, the tribe's operations officer, said because the tribe has never had a reservation, members are now spread from Washington to Northern California to Eastern Oregon, although a core of members have remained within the tribe's seven-county service area.
"A lot of our populations have kind of scattered," he said.The Department of Housing and Urban Development program was created in 1996 when Congress passed the Native American Housing Assistance and Self Determination Act that gave tribes authority over how funds should be used in their communities.
This project is the first time the tribe has used the funds to build a housing development that will provide a new community for its members.
The tribe has been working on the plans for the past five years, with infrastructure laid down last year. The community will be suited for tribal elders and will include six elder-accessible homes compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
With elders living in the same community, the tribe can better care for them by providing more convenient social services such as wellness visits and home visits from doctors and nurses.
"It's nice to bring the tribal members together," Ferguson said.She said she's glad to be through all of the red tape and regulatory processes that came with the federally regulated project and that the community is finally on its way.
"We're real excited to see it going," Ferguson said. "It's finally a reality."
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