WEAKNESSES & CHALLENGES
that surfaced throughout the process of developing the “Place-Based Comprehensive Masterplan” was the need to reduce homelessness for single parent families and veterans. ONE OF THE HIGHE S T PRIORITIE S
This challenge stems back to the 1950s, when the Tribal Council passed the 1953 Homesite Land Ordinance, providing affordable leases ($1/acre) to Tribal members building a house. Land leases have since been handed down from generation to generation, limiting these housing resources to families who have continued to live on or near the land where their family homesites were established in the 1950s. The close proximity of development past 1950 has led to issues between families and individuals. Infrastructure needs limit the amount of space between lots and the ability to cluster housing in a traditional orientation. While HUD has steady funding, most of its resources go towards maintenance of existing housing rather than expansion beyond their current 150 units. They are budgeted to build 10 units per year which is helpful but doesn’t come close to meeting the ongoing need for affordable housing, currently totaling 200 new units.
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Most houses are funded through HUD but HUD guidelines are not flexible enough to account for cultural and legal particularities of the reservation. Sovereign land status makes securing non-HUD funding difficult as businesses worry about the legal implications of a ground lease and UMUT is wary of giving up right of immunity. Other funders are hesitant to lease more than 10 years (Ute leases follow a 25/25 year lease cycle.) A housing survey was developed to gain insight into economic, maintenance, and size constraints on existing housing, and understand what changes Tribal members would like to see in their existing housing options. Because only 16 of 110 returned surveys were complete, the data is inconclusive and not necessarily indicative of larger community desires or trends. Further, conditions of HUD housing stock overall are unknown as there is currently no housing inspector (though Housing Authority conducts.) Other significant challenges faced by the Tribe include widespread poverty, abuse, mental and physical health, a deficit in food options, and addiction.
