On Thursday, January 11th, a Blessing-of-the-Land Ceremony was held for 3050 International at the project site in East Oakland. Nonprofit developer Satellite Affordable Housing Associates (SAHA) and co-owner/services provider Native American Health Center (NAHC) were joined by project partners PYATOK, SmithGroup, and Nibbi, retired NAHC CEO of 40 years Martin Waukazoo, Oakland Councilmember Noel Gallo, and members of the Confederated Villages of Lisjan. Attendees gathered in a circle and coffee and handwarmers were passed around to combat the brisk weather.

NAHC CEO (and longtime PYATOK collaborator) Natalie Aguilera and Lisjan member Corrina Gould shared on the project’s significance, from its representation of taking back land to provide a resource for their community and turning back assimilation efforts of the federal government, to meeting very functional needs with the project’s 13,000-square-foot dental clinic and community space, to acknowledging the complex history of the project site, long before it was ever a car dealership and the streams all undergrounded. An ancestral acknowledgement included a prayer that no ancestral remains are discovered on the site - a burden uniquely carried by Native Americans. Ground-up acorn was distributed to attendees for placement around the site, and a procession carried burnt sage along its perimeter.

"The new building will be a symbol of hope and health, allowing us to expand our medical and dental services to make sure everyone in our community has access to the care they need," NAHC noted on Instagram. The ground floor space includes a large cultural community center intended for ceremonies, gatherings, and health workshops. Seventy-six affordable housing units and a resident courtyard will occupy the upper floors.

"Health care and housing are interconnected." Aguilera recently told the Choctaw publication Biskinik - and a sentiment she echoed at the ceremony. "We know our community can’t focus on their health care if they’re worried about having somewhere to live."

As part of the project’s design, PYATOK had many conversations with NAHC to properly incorporate cultural elements and symbolism to the project, including exterior tile work and metal screen/sunshades modeling woven basket patterns. The project’s visual centerpiece will be a flicker feather entry canopy for the clinic. 

Founded in 1972, NAHC was one of the first Urban Indian Health Centers in North America; today it is one of the largest, delivering health care and social services through a lens of Native culture and traditions. 3050 International will coalesce NAHC’s urban campus that includes the mixed-use Seven Directions, completed in 2008, and an adjacent building supporting offices and a small dental clinic. The full ownership of Seven Directions recently passed to NAHC, and they are pursuing a similar transition model with SAHA for 3050 International. 

Construction for 3050 is imminent, with site mobilization beginning in the coming weeks. A larger groundbreaking ceremony is also planned a little later in the year.