Tribe takes more than 97 acres of forestland into trust

The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde took 97.38 acres of forestland into trust near Fort Yamhill State Park in February, said Tribal member and Tribal Lands Manager Jan Michael Looking Wolf Reibach.

The Nicoll property is immediately east of the Tribal plankhouse and north of Fort Yamhill State Park.

"There is a possibility that the Tribe set a record with the transfer taking only four months and eight days from the time that our application was submitted," Reibach said.

"Our success in Tribal Realty is due to having such a great team here, including a Tribal Council that is very astute on Indian land issues, an excellent working relationship with the state and county agencies, and some hard-working folks at the BIA and BLM."

In December, Reibach briefed the Tribal membership on Tribal lands, stating that the Tribe owned 12,513 acres at the time. With the taking of the Nicoll property into trust, the Tribe's Trust and Reservation lands now exceed 11,022 acres.

Reibach said in December that the Tribe will continue to purchase land locally that "makes sense." With the Nicoll property adjacent to other Tribal Trust lands, the policy continues.

The Tribe purchased the property on Jan. 22, 2010, for $275,000 from the Nicoll family.