By Corvo Rohwer, Puyallup Tribal News
Up on the fourth floor of the new Tribal administration building, the Puyallup Tribal salmon logo is prominently displayed on the carpet in Tribal Council chambers with views of the Emerald Queen Casino and Interstate 5.
The modern Puyallup Tribal administration building has grown to occupy a space that houses more than 200 employees along with multiple other spaces that together foster a wealth of membership services, a vast difference from the early days of how Tribal Administration had to operate.
With little more than the Tribal Cemetery in the beginning, Tribal Administration had been operating out of a single two-story building. Before that, Tribal Council would meet in members’ homes.
“At the very beginning we didn’t have anything but that cemetery,” Puyallup Tribal Council Vice Chairwoman Sylvia Miller said. “Our families met in people’s homes. I remember Bob Satiacum’s was one, Jackie Stiltner was one. Gaming meetings were done in individual people’s homes trying to get gaming going.”
Cushman
The vision in the 1970s was to reclaim the Cushman building (also known as Cascadia Juvenile Diagnostic and Treatment Center) in order to expand membership services. Previously a boarding school and hospital, the site closed in 1959 and was turned over to the state. Getting Cushman back from the state would provide a notable improvement to the Tribe’s capabilities to serve members and expand.
In the wake of lengthy legal processes and roadblocks without much forward progress, the juvenile jail was taken over and occupied by members of the Puyallup Tribe in 1976 led by then-Tribal Chairwoman Ramona Bennett, followed by an additional occupation in 1979 led by current Chairman Bill Sterud.
“The Tribe tried to lobby the congressional delegation, the state folks, as well, to return that property,” Puyallup Staff Attorney John Bell said. “But no one really paid much of any attention to the Tribe until the occupations took place. That suddenly got everyone’s attention.”
Following a ruling in 1980 declaring Washington state no longer had any legal rights to the building, the Tribe moved in fully and began the installation of Tribal Administration at the Cushman site.
“I can remember when we got that, just the excitement from everybody on how we won it,” Councilwoman Monica Miller said. “We got it back — it was a victory day for us all.”
Each level of the building housed various departments as Tribal Administration grew, providing more and more services to members. This included Chief Leschi Schools, Law Enforcement, Legal, Gaming Licensing, Housing Authority and many more. The site also became a confluence of cultural and community activities, from powwows to communal dinners.
“That’s where I ended up going to school, was Cascadia,” Councilman James Rideout said. “The old building in Cascadia was a place of origin. It was a beginning point. It was a central base.”
While the Tribe wasn’t flush with cash at the time, Tribal Members were used to making do with what they had. Rideout recalled members painting “Tribal Police” on the sides of vehicles to establish their police force and the school using Xerox copiers to staple yearbooks together.
“Even that probably exceeded the budget,” Bell joked.
What really mattered at the time, though, was the progress the Tribe made in terms of membership and maintaining its rights.
“These were hard times, but I remember them being the best times even though we didn’t have much money,” Set-Aside Program Director and former councilwoman Lorelei Evans said. “I discovered how we were part of one big huge family. I reunited with some of my cousins and made a lot of new friends.”
The Tribe continued to gradually staff the building and move in departments throughout the years with Bell referring to it as the “nerve center of the reservation.” Over time, however, the condition of the aging structure began to show its wear.
Warnings of instability were reported from inspectors, along with the presence of asbestos in the walls and ceilings. With repairs drastically out of budget for the Tribe, lobbying began for funding to tear down the Cushman building. This was a big moment of change, and for some, there was relief to move out of a crumbling building and to see the bad memories associated with its past finally gone.
“There wasn’t anybody crying when they tore that place down,” Puyallup Tribal Veteran Michael Sisson said.
For others, it was a more complicated matter.
“My aunt worked in that hospital, so my uncle thought good things of it. It had its good vibes and it had its scary vibes,” Vice Chairwoman Miller said. “It was an amazing building. I remember the day when we tore it down I cried my eyes out. … It was sad to see that building go.”
“There was a bittersweet feeling for our membership — happy for a newer administration, but sadness to be leaving a part of us for so many years,” Puyallup Tribal Veteran Teddy Simchen said.
Modulars on Alexander Avenue
By 2004, the Tribe transitioned out of Cushman into an array of rented modular buildings on Alexander Avenue. Intended to be a temporary solution to house administration as the Tribe decided where it would go next, they were a noticeable downsize from the offices the departments were once in.
“None of us liked that move,” Councilwoman Monica Miller said, recalling the sentiment of employees at the time.
“It wasn’t bad, but it was chaotic because we’re all jammed into these modulars and there wasn’t a whole lot of space,” Evans said.
Portland Avenue
Employees wouldn’t have to bear it forever as Tribal Council moved out of the modular buildings in 2006 into the former state-operated Employment Security office building on Portland Avenue. Despite the increase in space from the modulars, the property was still much smaller than the former Cushman building. However, having a more permanent home base for the administration allowed the Tribe to return to a more organized structure as the years continued.
“We were happy because it wasn’t like the modulars,” Councilwoman Miller said. “But there wasn’t enough room … We have a couple other buildings all over that we have departments in because we grew so much.”
Some departments followed Tribal Council over, but others were placed throughout Tacoma in smaller spaces like the former Sound Credit Union building down the road as the Tribe began buying more property and growing in scale. Tribal Administration stayed there until 2024 as it worked to further expand membership services and broaden the scope of its economic development.
“Just a generation or maybe two generations ago, we were reliant on government funding, grant funding and all this stuff,” Councilman Fred Dillon said. “We’re able to tell our membership today that it’s flipped. We’re so self-sufficient now. To me, that’s true sovereignty.”
Present Day
As part of the Tribe’s continued economic initiatives, plans to develop the site where the Emerald Queen Casino tents once sat began to take shape. A new administration building was part of these plans.
“I know when I first started on Tribal Council and we were in that old building (on Portland Avenue), I really thought to myself, the members deserve a new administration building,” Councilwoman Annette Bryan said. “All these other casino Tribes in the Pacific Northwest are building Tribal administration buildings that are up to date, and that members come for one-stop-shopping; all the services are in one place for the membership.”
Construction on the new administration building wrapped up in late 2024 with employees making the move over shortly after. The 95,000-square-feet, four-story building with an adjacent parking garage was designed with expansion in mind, and will be able to house growing departments for years to come.
“This is a symbol of our perseverance of still being here. Everybody that drives on I-5 here – this is our village,” Chairman Bill Sterud said. “We have this beautiful building, we have casinos, there’s going to be powwows here. It’s us showing off who we are to the 85,000 cars that go by here every day. It’s really a prideful thing. We’ll treat it well and do some good work out of it.”
With a centralized location near other Tribal services and entities like the House of Respect Wellness Center, Puyallup Tribal Health Authority and Emerald Queen Casino, Councilman Rideout said the new building isn’t just another property, but rather a stable foundation to serve the growing membership.
“It’s our responsibility to maintain the Tribe, all of its services and programs, which is a huge responsibility,” Rideout said. “My first impression was this is the most valuable piece of property that we own.”
Employees began moving into the new building in November 2024 over the course of a few weeks, bringing a large number of Tribal departments together in a collaborative space reminiscent of how the administration used to operate.
“Watching the services expand has been amazing; watching the healing and wellness of our people expand with our growth,” Councilwoman Anna Bean said. “It’s just been amazing to be a part of, to watch it grow from when I was young to now. … I just feel fortunate to be able to witness it.”
As the Tribe grows and economic development continues, Vice Chairwoman Miller emphasized the true north star of the new building: the people.
“One of the most important things is that we’re taking care of the needs of the people,” she said. “That’s most important, and we couldn’t always do that. … We’ve grown to be a very big Tribe, and very successful thanks to all of our ancestors who guide us each and every day.”
Photos by Hillary Cagey and Hailey Palmer with courtesy photos from JoAnne Webb, the Puyallup Tribe Historic Preservation Department, the Tacoma Public Library and Doug Scott
A BRIEF GLIMPSE INTO EARLY SITE HISTORY
Following the Treaty of Medicine Creek of 1854, the Bureau of Indian Affairs identified the Cushman site (previously a trade school) near Duct Cho street to be suitable for a boarding school in 1871. This site administered health care to the Tribal population in the early years of its operation and was renamed Cushman Indian School in 1910. The school transitioned into a WWI veterans’ hospital in 1920 as the location expanded to include more buildings. The Cushman hospital closed in 1928 before the BIA executed a formal lease from the Tribe in 1929 to operate the facility as a tuberculosis sanatorium alongside general hospital services. Part of the following Federal Government sale negotiations in 1940 was the continued employment and health care of Puyallup Tribal Members, stating specifically the acquisition of the facility would be for Indian health purposes.
In 1954, however, Congress shifted the responsibility of Indian health care to the Department of Health, Education and Welfare, leading to the rapid termination of Federal/Tribal trust relationships. With the Cushman Indian Hospital now subject to the new policies of the HEW, the site was deemed as “surplus” to the needs of Indian health and was subsequently closed in 1959. Rather than turning the facility back over to the Puyallup Tribe, the HEW turned to the State of Washington. The State proposed to use the site as a juvenile diagnostic center, as well as dividing a portion of the acreage to the State Highway Department. The deed was executed in 1961, subverting the restrictions of the 1940 Puyallup Tribe deed by stating the transfer was for ‘public health purposes.’ Now under the name of Cascadia Juvenile Diagnostic and Treatment Center, the Cushman site was considered to be an investment by the State of Washington. It would be willing to return the property to the Tribe, but only if it could recover its investment: $1.719 million. Years of legal process followed as the Tribe made efforts to reclaim the property, which ultimately led to Federal Judge Jack Tanner’s ruling in 1980, turning the property back over to the Tribe.
Source for A brief glimpse into the early site history: Puyallup Tribe Historic Preservation
