Council approves professional services agreement for tumwata village

By Danielle Harrison

Smoke Signals editor

Tribal Council approved a professional services agreement with Maul Foster Alongi of Portland for design and engineering services for the next phase of development at the Tribe’s tumwata village project in Oregon City.

The agreement was approved at the Wednesday, July 29, council meeting.

“As a reminder, we came to you all in April in a work session to discuss the IGA (intergovernmental agreement) with Oregon City that described really how our organizations were going to work together to deliver this next phase of the riverwalk,” Tribal Community Development Department Manager Kristen Svicarovich said at a Tuesday, July 28, Legislative Action Committee meeting. “So, we’re really excited about getting this next body of work underway and onboarding a consultant team. This PSA is to start using funding from the $12.5 million allocated by Oregon State Parks and intended for use for the bulk of design and construction of riverwalk block two.”

She explained the riverwalk was situated along the Willamette River at tumwata village and the first block of the project is where a groundbreaking took place earlier this year, and this will be the next block adjacent to that location.

The Tribe purchased the tumwata village property, formerly known as the Blue Heron Paper Mill, in 2019 and has spent several years demolishing unsafe buildings and removing contaminants and items, including buried railway tanker cars and fuel tanks from the site.

In other news, Tribal Council:

• Approved an application to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration for its Preventing Youth Overdose: Treatment, Recovery, Education, Awareness and Training grant for up to $1.35 million. If awarded, these funds would be used to prevent fatal and non-fatal overdoses among Tribal youth and young adults by increasing access to evidence-based prevention, screening, treatment and recovery services;
• Approved an application to the Health Resources and Services Administration for its Transforming Pediatrics for Early Childhood Program grant for up to $950,000. If awarded, the Health & Wellness Department will use these funds to embed three early childhood development specialists (a contracted pediatrician, pediatric dentist and child therapist) into the Tribe’s pediatric practice;
• Approved an application to the Oregon Health Authority Rural Health Transformation Program Tribal Initiative for up to $2.4 million. If approved, the funds would be used to establish a culturally integrated assisted living and memory care facility, establish recruitment and retention mechanisms to sustain long-term care of Tribal members and expand withdrawal management services at Great Circle Recovery;
• Approved a credit card authorization of up to $2,500 for Interim Audit Director Fuseini Alhassan;
• Approved Assistant Controller Julie Lindsey as an authorized signer on the Tribe’s bank, sweep and investment accounts, as well as its line of credit with TriState Capital Bank;
• Approved an application to SAMHSA for its Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Grant for up to $500,000. If awarded, funds would be used for a fully integrated, closed-loop infant and early childhood mental health system across the Behavioral Health Department and Cedar Circle Home Visiting;
• Approved an application to the SAMHSA Circles of Care for American Indians/Alaska Natives grant for up to $350,000. If awarded, these funds would be used for the Tribe’s youth lush lamastin, or “Good Medicine” initiative;
• Approved an application to SAMHSA for its Treatment, Recovery and Workforce Support grant for up to $2.5 million. If approved, funds would be used for launching the Substance Treatment and Employment Pathways Project. This project’s overall goal would be to increase recovery stability, workforce readiness and employment participation among individuals with substance use disorders and co‑occurring disorders served through Great Circle Recovery and Main Street Recovery;
• Approved an application to the Willamette Health Council’s Oregon Health Authority Rural Health Transformation Program for up to $585,000. If awarded, funds would support a partnership between the Tribe’s Emergency Services Department and Polk County Fire District No. 1, co-leading the Polk County Community Paramedicine Consortium;
• And approved enrolling three infants, 16 non-infants and one emergency non-infant into the Tribe because they meet the enrollment requirements in the Tribal Constitution and Enrollment Ordinance. Total enrollment counts in 2026 include 75 infants, 10 non-infant emergency enrollments and 111 non-infants.

To watch the entire meeting, visit www.grandronde.org and click on the Videos tab.