Tribes granted $5 million in grant dollars

Some $5 million in grant money will go towards building more affordable housing at the Colville Indian Agency in the Nespelem area next year.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced last week that several Native American communities will receive grant awards with a combined total of nearly $200 million to go towards building approximately 1,200 new housing units.

The Colville Indian Housing Authority will receive $5 million, one of 52 tribes chosen out of over 200 applicants, a HUD press release press release shows.

Executive Director for Colville Indian Housing Douglas Marconi Sr. told The Star that the money will go for preparing approximately 25-30 lots and building 17-20 new three- to four-bedroom homes as a new phase of their White Buffalo Meadows housing development, located near the housing authority’s offices at the Colville Indian Agency near Nespelem.

The new homes will be rentals, with the possibility of some being able to be purchased, Marconi explained.

“We’re really humbled and appreciative for the tribe being afforded the opportunity to submit and be selected,” Marconi said.

Marconi also hopes to leverage the funds to find more grant dollars or to qualify for tax credits from the state, which could create more money for more housing, he explained.

The next step, Marconi said, will be soliciting proposals for architects and engineering.

“That’s a long process,” he said, anticipating that ground breaking on the new homes will take place next year sometime.