On Friday, July 18th, Waséyabek Development Company, LLC (WDC) moved their corporate office to 16 Monroe Center St. NE, Ste. 200 in Grand Rapids.  From this location, the staff will continue to seek opportunities within the Southwest Michigan region, including Fulton and Battle Creek.

WDC is growing its acquisition base and pursuing Federal contracting and as a result, new staff members will be added in the near future.  In addition, we have developed an extensive network of business support partners in Grand Rapids and WDC will benefit by being able to foster and nurture those relationships on a daily basis.

WDC will miss the people, sense of community, support, and beautiful facility at the reservation; but as with all things, growing and maturing means standing on our own.  We look forward to carrying forward the WDC and Tribe’s brand into the Grand Rapids business district and to getting to know more of our Tribal Members and NHBP Health Services personnel in that area.”

We wish to extend a heartfelt Chi Migwéch (thank you) to Tribal Council for graciously hosting WDC during its fledgling years.  As we all look to the future and the mission of WDC, it is with a grateful heart that we acknowledge those people and NHBP departments that have helped us along the way.

Sincerely,

Deidra Mitchell

WDC President & CEO

Waséyabek Development Company, LLC (WDC) completed a second commercial property acquisition on June 9. The building is an 187,000 square foot warehouse facility located at 4140 East Paris Avenue SE, near the Grand Rapids airport. Veritiv Corporation, a Fortune 500 company, is the 10-year tenant and supports its logistics and packaging divisions, in part, from this location.
This acquisition adds significantly to WDC’s revenue stream and adds another long-term, stable investment to the Tribe’s economic diversification portfolio.

“The purchase of the East Paris property is an important step in strengthening the financial foundation of WDC,” former WDC Board Treasurer Chris Day said. “It provides a solid base upon which to build future diversification initiatives.”

WDC was organized by the NHBP Tribal Council to pursue non-gaming economic diversification opportunities. An additional acquisition is scheduled to close this month. More details will be provided via the NHBP and WDC website regarding the third acquisition which manufactures products for the commercial and federal marketplace.

Terrapin Properties of Michigan, LLC., a newly formed subsidiary of Waséyabek Development Company, LLC (WDC), purchased the building and property located at 3270 29th Street in Kentwood, Michigan near the Woodland Mall in November 2016.

This was an ideal investment for WDC as it provides an asset that will continue to build value and provide stable revenue over time. With Goodwill Industries of Greater Grand Rapids as a 10 year tenant, WDC can continue to build a solid base and look towards the next acquisition with an economically stable, long-term leaseholder as part of the WDC portfolio.

WDC was organized by the NHBP Tribal Council to pursue non-gaming economic diversification opportunities. As part of a broader economic development commitment by the Tribe, WDC’s growth strategy involves acquiring or investing in profitable companies and income properties within Michigan and the Midwest. In keeping with the philosophy of the Tribe, WDC evaluates their investments, acquisitions and partnerships with an eye towards supporting future generations. Thank you to Tribal Council, Membership and the WDC Board of Directors for empowering the WDC staff to pursue economic development opportunities in service to the Tribe.

Waséyebek Development Company, LLC (WDC) and Skasgé Power (a subsidiary of WDC) are pleased to announce that the Pine Creek Reservation and FireKeepers Casino Hotel solar arrays are installed and fully functional! The installations are evidence of NHBP’s and WDC’s strategic initiative to participate in the renewable energy industry in a way that benefits the environment and the Tribe.

Skasgé Power, LLC, was originally formed by NHBP Tribal Council in 2011 and partnered with a company that held patents to a new, innovative solar/thermal panel design. The design ultimately proved to be non-viable, but Tribal Council held true to their word and moved Skasgé forward with their commitment to provide solar power to the Tribe and explore potential business opportunities in renewable energy. In 2014, ownership and management of Skasgé was transferred to the Tribe’s newly formed economic development company, WDC, for evaluation. The primary mission was to finish the panel installations that had been started and determine the potential profitability of a solar company.

The Pine Creek array was completed in April 2015, and consists of 48 panels, which convert energy from the sun into electricity that is stored for use by the Pine Creek Community Center. In addition, the panels have a thermal component that also pre-heats water used in the Community Center and saves on energy bills. Since WDC began tracking the output of the system in April 2015, the array system has produced 175.5 Mega Watt Hours (MWh) of electrical energy, which is the equivalent of 665 trees planted!  A total of 570 units of thermal energy (therms) has been produced in that same time period.

The FireKeepers (FKC) project, which is much larger and more complex, and consists of 10 arrays with approximately 48 panels each, was completed in April 2016. The FKC system also produces electricity and thermal energy. The electricity is used by the FireKeepers Casino Hotel and the thermal component preheats water used in housekeeping at the same location. Since April 2016, the system has produced 86.99 MWh of electrical energy, which is equivalent to 3393 trees planted and a reduction in carbon dioxide gas of 59.98 tons! Another way to look at the power produced is that it could power 263,620 light bulbs for 24 hours. A total of 500 therms have been produced at FKC.

Both locations are exceeding predictions for electrical output. The thermal components of both arrays have not operated long enough to accurately measure performance against estimates at this time. Outputs are being tracked electronically and WDC plans to keep everyone apprised of the ongoing energy savings via the WDC & Skasgé websites (coming soon).

Due to pending U.S. and state political changes in the coming election year, and uncertainties surrounding the predictable positive economics of alternative energy, WDC has scaled back the operations of Skasgé. The plan forward is to explore niche markets requiring solar and to pause and evaluate a new direction that may involve other sources of renewable energy.

Congratulations to Tribal Council, Tribal Membership, WDC staff, Skasgé employees, contractors and suppliers for the successful completion of our renewable energy projects!