Development main focus for Native American communities in Pinal County
Left to right: Governor Lewis, Vice Chairwoman Carlyle, Alia Hauter, Letha Lamb/Rose Law Group Reporter
If you ask any of the Native American communities in Pinal County what is important to them, the answers, in short, will be development; agriculture, economic growth, business and entrepreneurship.
In a gathering Friday held by Pinal Partnership, Gila River Indian Community (GRIC) Governor Stephen Roe Lewis attributes the community’s successes to solid leadership and deliberate planning for water, economic and agricultural development as well as public-private partnerships. Lewis says GRIC is working on tackling its biggest challenge, the untrained workforce.
Ak-Chin Indian Community Vice Chairwoman Delia Carlyle says members are tackling the same issues on a smaller scale. Ak-Chin, as well as GRIC, want to foster entrepreneurship and find ways to support and invest in small businesses.
