One of the most important elements of a successful space is the landscape. Plants, flowers and well-designed pathways have continuously been used to improve the environment and lives of visitors to the Southern Ute Indian Tribe for many years.
For the past six months, the Southern Ute Grounds Maintenance team has been working on cleaning up and remediating the landscape that surrounds tribal offices and buildings.
“The Leonard C. Burch Building (LCB) entrance, the north side of the Muache-Capote Building (MCB) and the Justice and Regulatory cleanup have been the biggest clean-up sites,” said Tyson Thompson, Southern Ute Property and Facilities Director. The grounds clean up team has been working to simplify and showcase the buildings for the public.
“People are seeing change,” Thompson said. The remediation began as a long-term plan to show the best landscapes that the campus has to offer.
Thompson entered the director position at the beginning of August this year and has been working with many of the division heads and tribal staff to get input and prioritize the work around certain areas.
“We are moving things forward we are not leaving things where they are at,” Southern Ute Grounds Division Head, David Lathom reassures. As projects begin, there are some emergencies that pull the team’s attention away. “There were a lot of things that needed to be done,” said Thompson. “A lot of projects still need to be planned out, but we’re hitting them.”
One of the major cleanup sites has been the Muache-Capote Building. “All the way around, the MCB has been cleaned up, there was even a tree taken out,” Thompson stated. “It’s been looking a little rough for the past couple of years, but we are working hard to clean up.”
“There is still going to be work done around the LCB and the MCB next year,” Latham stated. “Almost everything is going to be redesigned, we’re working on a huge rehabilitation plan”
“I plan on seeing it [the project] through to completion,” Thompson stated.
“The Southern Ute Indian Montessori Academy has been through a lot of work so far,” Thompson explained. The grounds clean up team has removed muddy areas and replaced sod in play areas and even installed paving blocks where a watershed was in the academy area.
“This is all their work [grounds clean up team] and I’m just proud of them,” Latham said. “They have been awesome!”
The entire grounds clean up team has dedicated hours, labor and ideas to the beautification of the Southern Ute Tribal Campus.