Big Valley Rancheria Community Needs Assessment
Project Profile
Client:
Big Valley Rancheria
Project Location:
Lake County, California
Project Time Frame:
April 2021 - October 2022
Services:
Housing Unit Mapping
Household Survey
Analysis of Newly Collected Data
Needs Assessment
Areas of Focus:
Demographics
Economic Development
Education
Employment
Services Needs of Off-Reservation Tribal Members
Health
Housing
Income
Land Use Planning
Culturally-Informed Design
Project Description
Big Valley Rancheria (BVR) is home to the Big Valley Band of Pomo Indians, descendants of the Xa-Ben-Na-Po Band of Pomo Indians who have inhabited the Clear Lake Area of California for over 11,800 years.
The Big Valley Rancheria Community Needs Assessment project seeks to get input from Rancheria residents and Tribal members to better understand the housing and other needs of the community. The community needs assessment, which is partially funded by Enterprise Community Partners, is being conducted in tandem with the ongoing work of Sustainable Native Communities Design Lab at Mass Design to develop the Ba-go Ga elders complex as well as to inspect BVR-owned rental units, funded by MHP. The project is also supported by capacity-building work being conducted with Seven Sisters Community Development Group.
In 1851, Tribal leaders signed a treaty with the U.S. government establishing a reservation, but the U.S. Senate never ratified the treaty and the Tribe was left landless. Big Vallery Rancheria was not federally recognized until 1983, leaving the Tribe with no land base as promised by the treaty. BVR has since established a small land base and is working to buy back more of its traditional lands. The Rancheria is currently home to around 225 members and has a casino and resort, smoke shop, and cannabis enterprise. Specific concerns related to the Rancheria and Clear Lake area more generally include effects of climate change, flooding, and Cyanobacteria. The tule reeds from the lake are used in many Pomo traditions and are honored annually at the Tule Boat Festival.
