The Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe broke ground for the first set of family homes to be built on reclaimed treaty land (front row, from left) former-Tribal Chief Eric Thompson, Tribal Chief Michael Conners, Sub-Chief Benjamin Herne, Tribal Chief Beverly Cook, Sub-Chief Derrick King, Tribal Chief Ron LaFrance, Sub-Chief Agnes "Sweets" Jacobs, Assistant Executive Director Starr Thomas, and Executive Director Tsiorasa Barreiro; (back row) Home Improvement Program Foreman Lawrence Thomas, Calvin Leaf, Home Improvement Division Director Jamie Bay.
AKWESASNE-The Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe announced that construction has started on the first tribal housing units on reacquired treaty lands-a major step forward in providing affordable housing for Mohawk families.
"It has been our community's longstanding desire and Tribal Council's ongoing goal to reacquire lands within Akwesasne's land claim area for family housing," shared Tribal Chief Michael Conners at the groundbreaking. "I am filled with an immense sense of pride in what our team has accomplished today-to provide homes for our families."
The Tribe's effort to provide homes was bolstered in 2018 with the purchase of 240 acres of land set aside for the Akwesasne community in the 1796 Seven Nations of Canada Treaty. Located in an area commonly known as the Hogansburg Triangle, the land is centrally positioned within Akwesasne and provided an ideal location for community housing to be developed.
"I am proud that we have been able to reacquire our lands to provide homes under our own jurisdiction for community members," said Tribal Chief Beverly Cook.
Beginning in the Summer of 2022, the Tribe's Planning and Infrastructure Department began the work of clearing and constructing the main roadway leading into the site. Work was accompanied in early-2023 with placement of the Tribe's water and sewer lines, which included their extension from the main roadway along the first cul-de-sac known as Wáhta Street (Maple).
Along Wahta Street, two homes are being initially built, with a total of six to eight to be constructed along each cul-de-sac that are planned for the housing development. As many as 48 family homes are envisioned for the entire site when it is fully completed, with each cul-de-sac containing a combination of 2, 3, and 4-bedroom homes for Mohawk families.
"Our efforts to reclaim and use our lands for the benefit of community members and families have never stopped," shared Tribal Chief Ron LaFrance at the ground-breaking. Chief LaFrance noted, "What today represents is not the end of a process, but a beginning. It is a start for two families who do not have a home right now, and as we reacquire more land we will be able to provide more homes."
At the groundbreaking held on Monday, October 16, Tribal Council, tribal division leaders and contractors involved in the housing division project turned over soil to start foundation work for the first two homes.
Following the foundation work, the exterior home shells are scheduled to be completed by December 31. The initial two homes are projected to be ready for the Summer of 2024.
Over the winter and into Spring of 2024, an educational phase on home financing will be developed and shared with interested community members. The Section 184 Indian Home Loan Guarantee Program provided by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development will be used to help Mohawk families realize their dream of being homeowners.
Next summer, the field crew for the Tribe's Home Improvement Division will begin construction for another four family homes along Wáhta Street. The cost for their construction, and for future homes along other cul-de-sacs planned for the housing subdivision, will be supported by revenue generated as homes are purchased by Mohawk families.
