Shakopee mdewakanton sioux community

As part of an agreement with the City of Prior Lake, the SMSC continues to fund a City of Prior Lake police officer position housed on the SMSC reservation. This officer is detailed to serve for two years and works out of an office at the Mdewakanton Emergency Services Fire Station. Since 1997 this police liaison officer has served residents of the SMSC as well as City residents. The SMSC makes a contribution of $360,000 each year to the City of Prior Lake for this and other services.

The SMSC and the City of Prior Lake have worked together on numerous projects over the years including a mutual aid agreement for the two fire departments and ambulance service and the sharing of asphalt maintenance equipment and sewer equipment. Other projects include the installation of warning sirens; $450,000 for lighting at Ryan Park; $25,000 for a permanent skate park; funding for SWAT team ballistic vests and helmets; and more.

The SMSC also provides an Employee Assistance Program, called Networks Employee Services, for employees of the City of Prior Lake. Networks provides free short-term counseling, information, and referral services in chemical dependency, alcoholism, compulsive gambling, family crisis, codependency, and other issues. Networks staff are licensed mental health therapists and counselors.

The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community and the Scott County Board of Commissioners in 2008 approved a four-year intergovernmental agreement in which the SMSC makes annual contributions of $280,000 per year to Scott County. The funds are allocated towards road maintenance, county administration, the Sheriff’s Office, and County Attorney’s Office.

While the SMSC is not legally required to pay for improvements to the system of roads and highways that lead to its reservation, it has a history and practice of supporting projects which are mutually beneficial. The county in which a reservation lies is legally responsible for these projects. However, to be a good neighbor and to better meet the needs of members and guests, the SMSC has paid more than $6.6 million for shared road construction projects since 1996 and millions more on Community roads, including $5 million for Dakotah Parkway. In 2008 the SMSC also paid to put in two stoplights on county roads which pass through the Community. The SMSC has also granted more than 50 acres of right of way to other governments for construction of county roads flowing through the area.

An upgrade of County Road 83 was completed in 2010 to increase vehicle capacity as well as pedestrian and vehicle safety. The road was reconstructed to a four-way divided roadway with bituminous trail from County Road 42 to County Road 16. The SMSC paid $4.5 million of the $7 million reconstruction project cost. The remainder of the cost of the project was shared between Scott County and the City of Prior Lake and Shakopee. Including this project, the SMSC has paid more than $11 million for construction of county roads that flow through the reservation in recent years.

In a related project, Scott County and the SMSC reached an agreement on County Road 21 which will extend from County Road 18 to County Road 42. The four-lane divided highway will provide a direct link with Highway 169. The SMSC provided easements on approximately 24 acres for roadway and utility purposes for this project.

In addition, the SMSC leased 12 acres to Scott County for 25 years with an option for an additional 25 years for a 545-space Eagle Creek Transit Station or “Park and Ride.” The site is located near Highway 169 and the future County Road 21 extension.

Mdewakanton Emergency Services is a full-time, professional fire and ambulance department staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week. As an exercise of governmental authority Mdewakanton Emergency Services serves Community members, guests and patrons of the Community, and residents of nearby communities by request through mutual aid agreements. Each month the department responds to an average of 140 calls with 60 medical transports.

Several times a year Mdewakanton Emergency Services conducts trainings to enhance readiness. During several mock crashes over the years, staff from Mdewakanton Emergency Services participated along with the Minnesota State Patrol, Shakopee Police and Fire Departments, Allina, and North Memorial Medical Center’s Air Care helicopter.

Mdewakanton Emergency Services also provides emergency medical training including Emergency Medical Technician (EMT), First Responder, and American Heart Association CPR (Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation) and AED (Automated External Defibrillator) classes.

The SMSC Mobile Unit can also serve as an Emergency Command Center under the direction of SMSC Emergency Services personnel.

The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community is proud to be an active member of the Scott County Association for Leadership and Efficiency (SCALE). Representatives from 28 local governments including the SMSC, Scott County, local townships, school districts, and cities in Scott County make up SCALE, which meets monthly to discuss ways to collaborate. The primary purpose of SCALE is to encourage greater efficiencies and leadership in public service through enhanced communication, collaboration of services, and sharing of resources. The SCALE Joint Training Facility for police and fire departments opened in 2008 in Jordan, Minnesota.

In a unique collaboration, the SMSC’s compost site is open the second and fourth Saturdays from May through October for joint use with residents of the City of Prior Lake. Each month an average of 80 City of Prior Lake residents visit the site. In exchange the SMSC is granted use of Prior Lake’s tree range to grow saplings for planting on the reservation.

In late 2008 the SMSC opened Dakotah! Ice Center, a 72,000 square feet facility which contains a second sheet of ice. Dakotah! Ice Center is home ice for the Prior Lake High School girls’ and boys’ hockey teams, as well as the Prior Lake Savage Hockey Association. During the spring and summer seasons, the Ice Center hosts youth and adult tournaments, several Junior ‘A’ tryout camps, and youth camps.

At a ribbon cutting and open house on December 19, 2008, local dignitaries and residents gathered along with SMSC Vice-Chairman Glynn A. Crooks, and SMSC Secretary/Treasurer Keith B. Anderson to dedicate the facility.

City of Prior Lake Mayor Jack Haugen spoke at the event, talking about the way the facility benefits the local area and promotes good will and understanding between the SMSC and Prior Lake residents. “The SMSC truly understands the nature of partnerships. This is a tremendous gift to our community, and it represents the strength of the relationship between the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community and the City of Prior Lake. I appreciate all you’ve done for the community and for the City of Prior Lake,” he said.

The Dakotah! Ice Center contains a number of innovative, environmentally friendly features including a 32,648 square foot green roof; a compressor system and heat exchanger to take the waste heat from the ice-resurfacing equipment and redirect it through the concrete in the floor to heat the bleachers; eight skylights coupled with daylight harvesting sensors to reduce energy usage; and 16 solar panels atop the roof to heat water for use in the ice-resurfacing equipment.

The sixth Dakotah! Sport and Fitness Lakefront Days Triathlon was a great success. Held on Saturday, August 6, 2011, at Cleary Lake Regional Park, Prior Lake, Minnesota, the event was part of the city’s annual Lakefront Days celebration. The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community co-sponsored the event along with the City of Prior Lake, the Three Rivers Park District, and Cleary Lake Regional Park. The triathlon drew 300 participants from surrounding areas.

The SMSC’s library has over 9,470 items in its collection and is mostly dedicated to Native American materials. The collection includes books on the Dakota, history, biography, geography, government, sociology, anthropology, religion, science, health, literature (fiction, poetry, drama, and journals), art, music, dance, arts and crafts, and education (including curricula). There is also a juvenile section and an extensive audio/video section. Indian newspapers and magazines are also available. Gardening and children’s materials have recently been increased, and adult fiction has also recently been added. Oicimani Media Center is open to researchers, students, and educators by appointment only.

Millions of dollars are pumped into the area’s economy each year as a result of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community’s successful business enterprises. The SMSC provides much needed employment opportunities for Indian people and thousands of non-Indian people from the surrounding area.

As the largest employer in the county, the SMSC employs more than 4,119 people and is a powerful economic force. The SMSC payroll annually is over $143.7 million. Federal taxes paid by employees of the SMSC are more than $14.2 million; state taxes are more than $6.1 million; FICA taxes are more than $10.8 million. Total payments to all vendors was $232,520,087 in fiscal year 2009. Payments totaling $15,237,345 were paid to Scott County vendors in 2009.

The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community owns and operates enterprises which provide services both to its members and to the larger community as well as jobs for local residents.

The SMSC Gaming Enterprise provides jobs with good benefits for over 3,000 employees at its Mystic Lake Casino Hotel, Little Six Casino, The Buffet, Mystic Steakhouse, Minnehaha Café, Mystic Express, The Coffee Bar, Meadows Grille, Fusion Noodle Bar, Sweet Temptations, Gambler’s Grille, Mystic Deli, Tipi Restaurant, and the Little Six Restaurant.

Dakotah! Sport and Fitness is the area’s premier family fitness center. Thousands of local residents enjoy increased good health by training at Dakotah!’s facilities which include a double gymnasium, two sheets of ice, an indoor pool, an indoor track, rock climbing wall, fitness floor, group fitness facilities, more than 10,000 pounds in free weights, and a bowling alley. Dakotah! also sponsors a 5K Turkey Trot, an indoor triathlon, and the DSF Lakefront Days Triathlon.

Dakotah Meadows RV Park has 122 paved, back-in, pull-through RV sites with electric, water, and sewer hook ups. Dakotah Meadows also has six tipis painted with Dakota designs available for overnight rental during the warmer months. The RV Park features showers, laundry facilities, a pavilion for group gatherings, picnic tables, barbeque grills, a fuel center, and a Self-Serve RV Wash.

Dakotah Meadows Mini Storage features ground level, indoor storage units, both heated and unheated, 24-hour access, and security surveillance. Open air vehicle storage is also available.

Playworks is a one-of-a-kind, world-class facility for children, open to the general public for Summer Camp, birthday parties, PW’s Playtime (drop-off hourly care), Family Play, and group trips. Playworks offers contracted child care to SMSC employees and a Before and After school program that is open to the public.

Playworks LINK Event Center is a 9,000 square foot, full-service banquet facility designed with flexible space to accommodate small and large events, banquets, receptions, meetings, and all manner of group gatherings. South Metro Federal Credit Union is a community-chartered, federal credit union, providing a wide range of financial products and services for everyone living, working, or worshipping in Scott County, Minnesota.

The Meadows at Mystic Lake is an 18-hole championship golf course located next to Mystic Lake Casino Hotel. The award winning course was named one of the Best New Courses in the country in 2006 by Golf Digest; then in 2009 it was named the #10 Best Casino Course by Golf Week Magazine.

Two Shakopee Dakota Convenience Stores provide fuel, car washes, fresh and frozen foods, beverages, and household and automotive items.

Mazopiya, a natural food market focuses on selling clean, organic foods, leaving the chemicals and preservatives out and concentrating on the goodness of locally grown, healthy foods and safe, natural wellness products.

To honor our ancestors and continue our Dakota traditions, the SMSC engages in a variety of cultural activities which also serve as educational activities for the general public. Thousands of visitors are introduced to the Dakota culture at these events each year.

Each August the SMSC holds a three-day Wacipi (Pow Wow) which celebrates Native American culture with song and dance. Dancers of all ages from tribes around the country come to compete for prize money. The day before the Wacipi, the SMSC holds a dance exhibition in the Rotunda at the Mall of America with dancers, drum groups, and a Master of Ceremony who educates the crowd about the dance styles.

Each year Community youth celebrate Dakota heritage with Young Native Pride, a free event open to the public, which celebrates Native American culture, traditions, and spirituality through song and dance. Students and their family members and staff work toward the performance for months making outfits, doing beadwork, sewing designs, cutting ribbon, making moccasins, and practicing dance styles.

Each summer, youth spend several days at Culture Camp where they learn traditional Dakota lifeways, crafts, songs, and values. A drum group, comprised primarily of Community youth, sings at Community events. Children and adults continue to study Dakota lifeways, including language, customs, song, and dance.

In addition, cultural galleries which display Dakota artifacts in the lobbies of the SMSC Community Center, Mystic Lake Casino Hotel, and the Mystic Lake Store at the Mall of America, rotate periodically. The Community works to preserve cultural sites, including Shakopee Memorial Park, which contains Mdewakanton burial mounds and Maka Yusota (Boiling Springs) the first Dakota Traditional Cultural Property in the state of Minnesota.