UMUT Grocery Store & Workforce Innovation Center

FUND DEVELOPMENT PLAN 2023

Building a food oasis in the middle of a food desert.

PROJECT DIRECTOR

Bernadette

Cuthair, UMUT Planning Director

PUBLICATION TEAM

Project Manager – Bev Santicola

Writer – Amanda Shepler

Engineers – Horrocks

Architect – Reinen Consultants, LLC

Photography – Anthony Two Moons

Graphics – Nelson Design

Financial Manager – Marc Santicola

The Need

The entire Ute Mountain Ute Tribe reservation is a USDA-recognized Food Desert Low Income and Low Access region without ready access to fresh and healthy food choices.

The nearest grocery store is over 20 miles away.

Establishing a grocery store on Ute Mountain Ute lands will address root inequities and sustainably enhance the quality of life, health, and wellness of the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe.

The Ute Mountain Ute Tribe is a small, proud Tribe with approximately 2,100 members living on slightly less than 600,000 acres. The Tribal government center is located in Towaoc, Colorado, 25 miles west of Cortez, and nearly 200 miles to the nearest major city.

The Ute were hunters and gatherers before European occupation. Destruction of this lifestyle began with the introduction of salt, flour, and sugar, continued through the massacre of the buffalo, and was solidified as generations of Ute children were forced to attend boarding schools designed to break Indigenous family and community education systems and destroy the Ute language, culture, and spiritual ways. This communal trauma also resulted in the devastating loss of traditional farming, harvesting, and cooking knowledge, building nearly insurmountable barriers on the road to reclaiming food sovereignty and systemically increasing reliance on processed and prepackaged foods. The reverberations of these destructive policies, designed to be a “massive pulverizing engine,” are still felt today. Ute children of the Boarding School Era lost their connection to the Ute community and have raised generations of children who feel completely disengaged and without self-identity, making them vulnerable to drug abuse, domestic violence, diabetes and suicide. A direct result of Indian Boarding School Era policies, in 2022, poverty impacts 42% of UMUT children, more than double the rate in Colorado.

A direct result of Indian Boarding School Era policies, in 2022, poverty impacts 42% of UMUT children, more than double the rate in Colorado.

In 2021, the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe established Kwiyagat Community Academy, the first public school operating within tribal boundaries since the 1940s, reestablishing local sovereignty over the education process and ensuring children will learn the Ute language, traditional skills and Indigenous knowledge in the classroom. Kwiyagat Community Academy offers opportunities for young generations to rediscover and recapture the storied histories of the past, understanding this disappearing cultural knowledge is critical to a prosperous future. Kwiyagat Community Academy is beginning the important work of healing the wounds caused by policies of the Indian Boarding School Era, providing cultural learning opportunities for school children in multigenerational environments.

Alongside efforts to reclaim educational sovereignty, UMUT is working to address the catastrophic impact of the loss of food sovereignty and the forced dependence on highly processed prepackaged foods. Presently, there are no stores that sell groceries on the Ute Mountain Ute lands. The entire reservation, including both Towaoc and White Mesa communities, are USDA-recognized Food Desert Low Income and Low Access regions without ready access to fresh and healthy food choices.1 The nearest grocery store is over 20 miles away. High rates of intergenerational poverty leave many tribal members without reliable transportation in a rural and remote community without public transportation options. Too often, when individuals secure transportation to a store, the nutritional value of selections is sacrificed for the extended shelf life of processed and packaged options.

With at least 11% of UMUT adults diagnosed with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes, and approximately 36% of children under the age of 14 diagnosed with prediabetic conditions, the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe is still experiencing the effects of settler colonization. Although across the United States, life expectancy is reported at 78 years, on the Ute Mountain Ute Reservation, the average life expectancy is reported at just 55 years, more than two decades less than the national average.

The Ute are proud and resilient people. They have an intimate knowledge of the land and a strong connection to their ancestors. An unbridled spirit and optimism drive them to address the challenges they face utilizing the assets, resources and power they have as a community. Societal challenges facing the region are serious and require systems-based responses.

Establishing a grocery store on Ute Mountain Ute lands will address root inequities and sustainably enhance the quality of life, health, and wellness of the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe.

1 https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/food-access-research-atlas/go-to-the-atlas/

On the Ute Mountain Ute Reservation, the average life expectancy is reported at just 55 years, more than two decades less than the national average.

Food Scarcity

The USDA defines “Food Desert” as a tract in which at least 100 households are located more than one-half mile from the nearest supermarket and have no vehicle access, or where at least 500 people or 33% of the population live more than 20 miles from the nearest supermarket, regardless of vehicle availability. The Ute Mountain Ute Reservation, spanning Tract 08083941100 in Montezuma County, Colorado, is both a Low Income and a Low Access tract, meeting all requirements for designation as a Food Desert.

One of the nearest grocery stores, a Walmart in Cortez, is more than 20 miles away, requiring over an hour of invested time for the trip there and back. This distance is difficult for all Tribal members, but particularly devastating for the 32% of residents who utilize SNAP benefits to purchase groceries. The only option for food in Towaoc is the Travel Center, which sells food typical of an interstate truck stop, or at the Casino Hotel.

Brief market studies were conducted in 2012 and in 2017 leading to a comprehensive market study in 2019. The study found an annual market retail gap on the Reservation of $1.5M for groceries and an additional $1.1M on prepared foods. This data shows that UMUT members living in Towaoc are spending over $2.6M on food annually, but they are not spending it within Towaoc because there are no places to shop or eat.

Nearly 3/4 of a million tourists and visitors pass through the region annually, providing a significant market opportunity for the proposed UMUT establish a produce market, deli, a butcher shop, a coffee shop, and a commercial kitchen as there are few competitors in the vicinity, and none that would offer the cultural experience of the proposed UMUT businesses. Capturing a portion of this market would provide a financial cushion for the UMUT food-based businesses to serve the Tribal members of Towaoc.

UMUT members living in Towaoc are spending over $2.6M on food annually, but they are not spending it within Towaoc because there are no places to shop or eat.

One of the nearest grocery stores, a Walmart in Cortez, is more than 20 miles away, requiring over an hour of invested time for the trip there and back.

Income and Wealth Disparity

Even prior to COVID-19, the health and economic disparity between the UMUT and other populations in Colorado was growing considerably. According to the UMUT Economic Development Report, 40% of UMUT residents live below the poverty line. Per capita income is $12,228 compared with $34,103 for the state of Colorado. In Towaoc, the median household income was around $28,800 in 2019. By comparison, the medians in Colorado and the United States are approximately $69,100 and $60,000, respectively. The Reservation unemployment rate is nearly double the State of Colorado’s.

UMUT is one of Montezuma County’s largest employers, employing more than 1,500 individuals, approximately 46% of whom are Tribal members. Employment opportunities on the reservation and in the region are limited. The primary onreservation jobs come from the Tribal Government, the Bureau of Indian Affairs or Indian Health Services, or one the Tribal Enterprises: Weeminuche Construction Authority, Ute Mountain Casino & Hotel, Travel Center, Farm & Ranch, and Ute Mountain Pottery. The lack of small businesses and employment opportunities can be addressed with appropriate supports.

When completed, the UMUT grocery store will also house a workforce development accelerator program to support small food start-up businesses with mentoring, customer accessibility, and wrap-around support services.

40% of UMUT residents live below the poverty line.

Health Inequity

The Center for Disease Control reports Native Americans have a greater chance of having diabetes than any other US racial group.2 The Ute Mountain Ute Tribe serves a Native American population battling obesity, prediabetic conditions, and Type II diabetes at rates far greater than any other subpopulation in the nation. Across the Ute Mountain Ute Reservation, obesity impacts entire families and burdens children with unhealthy lifestyle habits before they reach their 10th birthday. Young adults are diagnosed with preventable Type II diabetes before they reach middle age, and Elders struggle to self-monitor and maintain healthy A1C levels. Without access to fresh foods and healthy ingredients needed to prevent and address diabetes among the older generations, younger generations do not build the knowledge, skills, and habits they need to prevent diabetes, creating an intergenerational quagmire that continues to intensify.

The Ute Mountain Ute Tribe reports a life expectancy of 55 years – more than 20 years fewer than the average American. The 2016 UMUT Community Health Assessment states one in four tribal members have Type II Diabetes. Over 70% of adults and 50% of youth are struggling with obesity.

n The best practice to prevent and manage Type II diabetes is to maintain a healthy diet.

n Research shows that grocery stores with abundant fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean meats, and low-fat dairy products result in healthier choices for consumers.

n Adults with no supermarkets within a mile of their homes are 25 to 46 percent less likely to have a healthy diet than those with the most supermarkets near their homes.

Diabetes Journal reports that a person diagnosed with diabetes at age 40 will have $211,400 additional lifetime medical expenses. The estimated lifetime cost of treating and living with diabetes for an individual who has diabetes for 50 years is $395,000. In 50 years, 500 Tribal members with diabetes will spend a collective $240M on treatment alone. This robs the Tribe of collective resources which could be better spent on healthy food, education, and higher quality of life.

The root causes of health disparities related to diabetes among the Ute Mountain Ute are complex and intrinsically linked to the history of Native Americans in modern America. Solutions must be equally comprehensive and culturally specific. Devastating health challenges related to widespread obesity, prediabetic conditions, and diabetes can be overcome.

Establishing a grocery store on UMUT lands will allow residents to access fresh fruits, vegetables, dairy, meat, and breads that support a healthy lifestyle, filling a gap that dramatically reduces the quality of life in the Ute community.

2 https://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/aian-diabetes/index.html

One in four Tribal Members have Type II diabetes

People with diabetes have 2.3X higher annual medical costs than people without diabetes, with an average of $9,601 in diabetes-related expenses per year.

With 500 Tribal members with Type II (diet-related) diabetes:

$9,601 per person, per year

x 500 Tribal Members with diabetes

= $4.8M per year x 50 years (avg. lifetime with diabetes)

= $240M total in diabetes-related medical care over 50 years

The Plan

The Ute Mountain Ute community must establish a grocery store on Tribal lands.

Initial funds from Colorado Fresh Food Financing Fund and Region 9 Economic Development were secured in 2019 to conduct a comprehensive Feasibility Study to document the financial, social, and cultural implications of various food access solutions, informed by market data, ESRI Business Analyst data, community outreach, and best practice research.

As a community-led response to community-level needs, feedback from Tribal members and community partners was essential in the Feasibility Study process. Online surveys, paper surveys, and community focus group meetings gathered data and input from all relevant stakeholder groups.

Key Findings of the Feasibility Study

n Within a three-mile radius of Towaoc, there is a $2.6M retail gap for groceries, prepared food, and specialty food items.

n Within a ten-mile radius of Towaoc, there is a $6M retail gap.

n Most Tribal members (76%) travel outside the community between one and three times a week to buy food.

n Distance to the nearest grocery was the biggest barrier for 44% of Tribal members.

n Over 65% of responding households have $300 per month or less for groceries.

UMUT members living in Towaoc are spending over $2.6M on food annually, but without places to shop or eat on UMUT lands, they are leaving the reservation to spend their money in border towns. In addition to this documentation of residential need, nearly ¾ of a million tourists and visitors pass through the region annually, representing a significant market opportunity. With a full-service grocery store selling locally and regionally sourced foods, a community meeting room, a stand-alone coffee shop, a commercial kitchen supporting a food business incubator program, and a Native Food Hall showcasing local entrepreneurs selling prepared food items, UMUT will be positioned to capture a portion of this market. The UMUT Grocery Store will be advertised as a cultural experience, drawing tourists and creating a financial cushion for the UMUT food-based businesses to serve the Tribal members of Towaoc.

The economic impact of this initiative will be staggering.

The UMUT Grocery Store will be advertised as a cultural experience, drawing tourists and creating a financial cushion for the UMUT food-based businesses to serve the Tribal members of Towaoc.

Community Guidance

A Steering Committee of 20 youth, elders, and Tribal program leaders met monthly from 2019 through 2022 to refine the plans for the Grocery Store. In the end, the community’s vision to step toward greater health and economic equity includes a 30,000 SF fullservice grocery store selling locally and regionally sourced foods. The concept hosts 16,500 SF of retail, a community meeting room, a stand-alone coffee shop, a commercial kitchen supporting a food business incubator program, and a Native Food Hall showcasing local entrepreneurs selling prepared food items. This aligns with community priorities identified during Focus Group meetings.

HEALTH Access to fresh foods and ingredients with high nutritional density can improve health outcomes, supporting diabetes prevention and enabling WIC nutrition programs in the community.

CONVENIENCE

The Grocery Store will stock baby supplies, household goods, over-the-counter medications, and prepared meals in single servings for Elders living alone, that are not currently sold on Tribal lands. The Coffee Shop will offer Wi-Fi, which is not currently available on Tribal lands.

TRADITION

The Ute community lost gathering space with the closure of the Trading Post. While the Travel Center opened in 2000, it does not meet the food needs of Tribal members. The community meeting room will create space for communing around food, which is key to Ute survival. Classes about growing and cooking vegetables, traditional cooking, and knowledge of herbs for healing can be held in the space. Commercial kitchen space can support the re-introduction of preparing deer meat.

WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

The Grocery Store will create jobs for young people. It will also offer opportunities for artisans to sell beadwork and other crafts, and prepared food items. The workforce development accelerator program will serve as the anchor for additional small business growth in Towaoc. Once constructed, the multi-spaced facility will support small food start-up businesses by providing access to a produce market, deli, a butcher shop, a coffee shop, and a commercial kitchen, along with programming, mentoring and other wrap-around support services.

SYNERGY Increasing the livability of Towaoc will increase revenue for all UMUT businesses. Visitors at the RV Park will shop at the store and be able to extend their stay. The UMUT Casino could buy freshly baked bread and other supplies at the Grocery Store. Promotion efforts can take advantage of existing outreach and marketing for the Casino, RV Park, and Travel Center.

The project will address food insecurity, increasing access to fresh and healthy foods on the UMUT Reservation. Addressing food scarcity will improve community health. The project will create jobs, addressing workforce development and unemployment challenges. Importantly, the initiative will strengthen efforts to achieve food sovereignty, representing a comprehensive response to local food, farm, and nutrition issues.

Project Design

PHASE I

To date, the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe successfully secured over $4.9 million to quickly assemble a food access point and pilot aspects of the future full-service grocery store. With funding secured, UMUT finalized the construction design and hired a contractor. Ground-breaking is scheduled to begin next month. Phase I includes utilizing retrofitted and fabricated shipping containers, and initial services will begin by early summer 2024. Funding for Phase I was secured through: US Economic Development Agency, Colorado Health Foundation, US Department of Agriculture, the Reinvestment Fund, Gates Family Foundation, First Nation’s Development Institute, Harris Block Foundation, and Blueprint to End Hunger. An additional $1.5–2M will be needed to complete construction.

The Grocery Store project will increase the selfreliance of UMUT in providing for local food needs, and represents the first step in building a holistic, resilient, and vibrant food system and food economy on the Ute Mountain Ute reservation.

Phase I includes utilizing retrofitted and fabricated shipping containers, and initial services will begin by early summer 2024.

PHASE II

The Ute Mountain Ute Tribe is now seeking funds to support the $12M needed to complete the Grocery Store project. The Phase I facility will be re purposed into local food/craft vending stores to develop a small business incubator system. Phase II will incorporate the commercial kitchen facilities from Phase I into the 6,000SF design. The Phase II grocery store will sell locally and regionally sourced foods. The concept hosts 4,000SF of retail, a commercial kitchen supporting th Phase I food business incubator program, and will support the Ute Mountain Ute Outdoor Welcome Center that will be focused on the Tribe’s history and culture. Importantly, the project will bring new opportunities to Tribal members to achieve economic, educational, social, and health equity.

▶ Fresh healthy ingredients and local foods will be available for sale within the community.

▶ Tribal members will no longer have to travel over 20 miles to purchase food, cleaning supplies, over-the-counter medications, household goods, or baby supplies.

▶ Reclaimed community gathering space will strengthen social connections.

▶ Traditional food businesses will have a platform and support.

▶ UMUT will move towards achieving regional food sovereignty.

▶ Full-time, living wage jobs will be created.

▶ The Grocery Store will generate approximately $5M in annual revenue by Year Two, achieving full sustainability.

▶ Business incubation will establish a value-chain of regional and Native food businesses.

▶ Healthy Native-led businesses serving the needs of Tribal members will begin building personal and community wealth.

Generous Project Donors To Date

Support the UMUT Food Sovereignty: Grocery Store, Native Food Incubator, and Indigenous Agriculture project.

Predevelopment planning support for the UMUT grocery store.

Towaoc food and economic incubator hub support.

Funding will support two major business development goals including 1) complete a business plan for grocery store, 2) support organizational development in the form of technical assistance in marketing, store layout and design, and supply chain development, 3) conduct site planning and design for grocery store, and 4) conduct site engineering and environmental review for grocery store.

Develop grocery store, launch FEED Business Accelerator and Incubator Program, and strengthen community food system in Towaoc, surrounding region, and native country.

Support the development of a regional and native food supply chain through a feasibility study, implementation plan, and pilot project. It will also support the UMUT’s collaboration with producers and food system organizations in the Four Corners Region to source local healthy food for its members.

Support for a food and economic incubator hub located on the reservation in Towaoc. The hub will be a source of healthy food, workforce training and entrepreneurship development, serving as a pathway to building a full-service grocery store. The hub will start and grow Native-run businesses, including a produce stand/grocery, market provision, commercial kitchen, coffee shop, butcher/deli, classroom space, and a fabrication lab featuring light manufacturing equipment.

Establish operations team for the Food and Economic Incubator Hub, hire Food System Coordinator and Program Manager, establish partnerships with food and farm businesses, begin Hub construction and design.

Develop a shipping container food and economic incubator hub to launch and grow many of the businesses that could later become pillars of the future grocery store.

Pre-development for the grocery store, including community engagement, store design and layout, grocery store workforce development program design, and architectural designs.

Potential Funding Opportunities

FEDERAL

PUBLIC WORKS AND ECONOMIC ADJUSTMENT ASSISTANCE

EDA | Project-based funding

The Public Works program provides resources to meet the construction and/ or infrastructure design needs of communities to enable them to become more economically competitive. Supported activities under EDA’s EAA program include construction and non-construction such as construction or upgrading of public infrastructure, sectoral partnerships for workforce training, design and engineering, technical assistance, economic recovery strategies, and capitalization or re-capitalization of Revolving Loan Funds.

• There are no application deadlines, applications are accepted on a rolling basis.

• Applicable to the EDA priority of workforce development.

• Could make the argument that this the grocery store is a form of public service construction (the Public Works portion of the NOFO) or that this is the development of commercialization (the Economic Adjustment Assistance portion of the NOFO).

• Can ask for up to $30,000,000 in funding.

COMMUNITY FACILITIES DIRECT LOAN & GRANT PROGRAM

USDA | Project-based funding

This program provides affordable funding to develop essential community facilities in rural areas. An essential community facility is defined as a facility that provides an essential service to the local community for the orderly development of the community in a primarily rural area, and does not include private, commercial, or business undertakings.

• There are no application deadlines, applications are accepted on a rolling basis.

• Funding examples do not specifically list grocery stores, but it could be applicable. There is a stipulation that it cannot be used for businesses, so that would depend on how the Tribe intends to set-up and run the grocery store.

• Loan and grant opportunities.

• Regional contact Duane Dale, Community Programs Director, (970) 529-8375, duane.dale@usda.gov. Duane may know of other relevant funding opportunities.

STATE

COLORADO FRESH FOOD FINANCING

Colorado Housing & Finance Authority

FUND

Project and capital based funding. A statewide loan and grant fund created to support businesses and other community initiatives that improve convenient access to affordable, healthy, and culturally relevant food.

• A loan and grant program.

HEALTHY FOODS INITIATIVE

Colorado Enterprise Fund | State | Project-based funding

Offer specific funding plus tools specific for healthy food businesses such as: retail grocery providers, carts, co-ops, farmer markets, trucks, delivery services, food production companies & distributors, urban & rural agricultural projects, and more.

• Loan program.

• Emphasis on addressing food insecurity and food deserts.

FOUNDATIONS

THE COLORADO HEALTH FOUNDATION

Project and general based funding

The foundation focuses on health and health equity. Support work in four key areas maintaining health bodies, nurturing healthy minds, strengthening community health, and championing health equity. The foundation encourages people to reach out and discuss their funding needs.

• Potential funding fit within the Community Initiated Solutions grant. Foundation contacts may be able to connect you with other potential funders.

• Contact funding@coloradohealth.org, (303) 953-3600.

THE COLORADO TRUST

Project and general based funding

The foundation focuses on health equity stating that health equity is achieved when every person living in Colorado has the opportunity to attain their full health potential, and no one is disadvantaged from achieving this potential because of any socially determined circumstances. Place an emphasis on funding under-resourced people living in Colorado who are historically and/or systemically disadvantaged.

• Contact Morris Price, Vice President of Grants & Impact, (303) 837-1200.

CAPITAL GRANTS

Gates Family Foundation

Capital and construction funding for community development. Generally limited to comprehensive capital campaigns, which are typically for building purchases, construction, expansion, renovation, and/or land acquisition. Only nonprofit organizations with capital projects that benefit Colorado and its residents are qualified to apply.

• Next deadline September 1.

• Not sure they fund Tribes.

• Contact Lisa Rucker, Senior Program Office & Grants Manager, lrucker@gatesfamilyfoundation.org, (303) 722-1881.

REINVESTMENT FUND

America’s Healthy Food Financing Initiative. Project-based funding.

Aims to improve access to healthy food and expand economic opportunity in underserved areas.

• Grant program.

• Currently not accepting applications. Still worth reaching out to.

• Maximum award of $200,000.

• Contact help@investinginfood.com, (215) 74-5862. If calling, you will be prompted to leave a voicemail. They will respond to your inquiry within one week.

Can You Help?

UMUT has been preparing for the launch of a full-service Grocery Store since the Trading Post was closed nearly ten years ago. The community-demanded, community-designed, community-led initiative will improve the quality of life on the Ute Mountain Ute reservation, bringing entirely new services to the region, supporting small business incubation, and rewriting the regional food system.

Initial funding enabled the Feasibility Study and Design phase and allowed UMUT to offer a “soft opening” of consumer food services on Tribal lands. An additional $12M is now needed to finish the proposed work and revolutionize the producer-to-consumer food market in this overlooked and underfunded region.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Bernadette Cuthair, Planning Director

Ute Mountain Ute Tribe

125 Mike Wash Road, Towaoc, CO 81334 970.238.0129

bcuthair@utemountain.org

Beverly Santicola, Grant Writer

Center for Rural Outreach & Public Services, Inc. (CROPS) 281.224.1443

bevsanticola@outlook.com www.cropsorg.com