Contact:
Cean Burgeson
(269) 397-1780 XT 121
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – July 16, 2024
Shelbyville, Mich. July 16, 2024 – On Friday, July 12 the Gun Lake Tribe raised the final major piece of the water tower that can be seen along U.S. 131 and M-179, adjacent to the Tribe’s government campus in Shelbyville. That final piece added to the tower was its one-million-gallon water tank, emblazoned with the logo of the Tribe. Groundbreaking for the Elevated Water Tower took place in June of 2023 in the form of a blessing and water ceremony, with the project scheduled to be complete and operational by the end of this year.
The tower is part of a water infrastructure upgrade that will serve the casino, government buildings and Noonday gas station and convenience store, and will also add additional capacity for the Tribe’s new water treatment plant being constructed next to the tower. All these upgrades will provide for the needs of the Tribe’s future growth, including a proposed U.S. 131 corridor expansion project, a proposal that would turn the land the Tribe owns north of Gun Lake Casino up to the city of Wayland in Allegan County into a development that could include retail, healthcare, housing, manufacturing, entertainment and dining.
“This water infrastructure improvement and the raising of this highly visible landmark near our government campus is the culmination of thousands of hours of work by Gun Lake Tribe’s Land Use, Planning and Development Department,” said Gun Lake Tribal Chairman Bob Peters. “We’re constructing these upgrades to not only meet our needs today, but to benefit future generations as we continue to develop and improve our sovereign land.”
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About Gun Lake Tribe
The Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians (Gun Lake Tribe) has a rich history in West Michigan and close connection to the land. The Bradley Indian Mission, located near Wayland, is the historic residential and cultural center point of the tribal community. The Tribe’s ancestors, and political predecessors, signed treaties with the United States government dating back to 1795. The Tribe was re-affirmed to federal recognition in 1999. For more information about the Tribe, visit https://gunlaketribe-nsn.gov/.
