Winnebago Nebraska

[edsas]

Happy Holidays, everybody. My mother gave me a subscription to Nebraska Life Magazine as one of my Christmas gifts and I got my first issue a couple of days ago. In addition to a great cover shot of Lincoln's urban canyon: looking south down 13th St., the issue has a fascinating article on the success of the Winnebago Indian Reservation spurred by gambling revenue. The tribe's goal is to diversify and eventually leave the casino business behind and so far they're suceeding. But their success has created an interesting dilemma. As more and more tribe members transcend poverty, they no longer qualify for government housing. Which has caused a housing shortage on the reservation. Many of the tribe members have left the reservation in search of housing and education. So, now they've got their own little brain drain goining on. Their answer to plugging the drain is Ho-Chunk Village:


http://www.hochunkcdc.org/hochunkvillage.html

It's a completely new town (now under construction) and it's developed with pedestrian friendly, new urbanism ideals. Thought you guys might find it interesting.

[TitosBuritoBarn]

Wow, that is impressive. How far along is it?

[Coyote]

Construction of Ho-Chunk Village continues

Date posted online: Tuesday, December 21, 2004

WINNEBAGO, Neb. - It started with ambition and planning. Eight years later a ceremonial dirt-turning for Ho-Chunk Village was held in Winnebago.

It's a project the Winnebago Tribe thinks will become a model for tribal economic development across the country.

"This is an attempt to tackle a lot of problems at once," Lance Morgan, CEO of Ho-Chunk Inc., the tribe's economic development arm, told Gov. Mike Johanns, state Sen. Matt Connealy and community members at a June groundbreaking ceremony. "We thought if we could design something right, in the end we would have a town we could be proud of and it would be inspiring."
The result will be a $20 million, 40-acre mixed-use community set on land fronting U.S. Highway 77 at the northern end of Winnebago. It is designed around a central outdoor community space and will integrate commercial/industrial space with retail, civic offices and housing, entities now in short supply on the reservation.

The layout encourages walking and bicycling in an effort to promote healthy lifestyles. Overall, it will give the community a focal point and image it now lacks, Morgan said. "What it shows is the new mentality. It's reflective of the new confidence we have."

Ho-Chunk Village is the result of a partnership between Ho-Chunk Inc. and the nonprofit Ho-Chunk Community Development Corp., HCI created for the purpose.

"What I like about the project is, we are doing it all," Morgan said.

HCI-owned construction and manufactured housing companies and the new Liberty National Bank in which HCI has a share will be instrumental in building Ho-Chunk Village, along with gas-tax generated revenue.

Ho-Chunk Village is being developed with a blend of federal, local and private monies. Funding for the infrastructure is from the U.S. Department of Commerce and Department of Housing and Urban Development. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation funded the design. The Shakopee Tribe (Minn.) donated $200,000 for house down payments to which HCI is contributing some of its gas-tax funds; and a "wealthy Native American," Joe Anderson, is giving $30,000 a year to the down payment program, Morgan said.

Several commercial projects began in the fall: warehouses for HCI's distribution and AllNative.com businesses, restaurant, bank and a small retail store. Another project that began in the fall, construction of a Dollar General Store, is complete and recently opened for business. The tribe is also building a new space for lease to the local Bureau of Indian Affairs office.

One house has already been sold and six to 10 houses are predicted to be available for purchase by June. The 45 homes planned will cost between $100,000 and $140,000 - less than the same home in Sioux City because the lots will be free to the homebuyers. Assistance with a down payment will be available to both low- and middle-income families, at $20,000 and $15,000, respectively.

Townhomes and apartments will contribute another 75 housing units to the Village.

Annette Hamilton, HCI vice president, said the affordable housing targets the disincentive people have to increase their earnings, a success that often means they no longer qualify for on-reservation housing and forces them to move away. It should also provide housing stock for workers at the new hospital at Winnebago, which is still under construction.

Judi Meyer, executive director of the Ho-Chunk Community Development Corp., said she is already working at finding grants and raising funds so the tribal government can build offices in the development in three or four years. Money for civic projects is the hardest to find, she said.

Good news was received in September when U.S. Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., announced Nebraska will receive $400,000 from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for the Ho-Chunk Community Development Corp.

The funding will be used for construction of new mixed-use buildings as part of the Ho-Chunk community's on-going development plan.

"This grant is an important investment that will generate positive economic and social benefits for the Winnebago Tribe," Hagel said.



Nebraska state Sen. Matt Conneally, left, and Gov. Mike Johanns listen as Winnebago Tribal Chairman John Blackhawk speaks June 20, 2003, during a groundbreaking ceremony for the tribe's Ho-Chunk Village, located at the north end of Winnebago. (Staff photo by Tim Hynds)

[edsas]

Thanks for posting that article, coyote.

Titos, the last thing I read was that they've graited the entire road pattern and laid it with chalk (pavement will come later). And they've built four houses so far.

[StreetsOfOmaha]

Yes, the plan was an HDR project headed by Doug Bisson. I was able to see some neat things during my stint as an intern there. I'm glad to see they're going ahead with the plans because when I left HDR it didn't seem to be certain.

[Coyote]

Travels in the Heartland: Exploring Native American heritage at Winnebago’s Angel De Cora Museum

WINNEBAGO, Neb. (KMTV) — It’s easy to assume a museum’s goal is to share stories and exhibits about ancient items or contemporary pieces. But, when the story is about your people, your culture and your history, it becomes more personal and much more relevant. That’s the goal of the Angel De Cora Museum and Research Center in Winnebago. The museum shares the story of the Ho Chunk people and their life in both the upper Midwest and in Nebraska. It offers an educational opportunity for people to learn more about Nebraska’s Indigenous citizens during Native American Heritage Month. The museum is dedicated to welcoming and helping to educate Ho Chunk Nation citizens first and foremost, said Sunshine Thomas Bear, the tribal Cultural Preservation Director and curator of the museum.