Community Impact

ILCC provided financing to the Bois Forte Band of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe to recover more than 28,000 acres of land within the Nett Lake and Deer Creek sectors of its reservation. The land was lost to timber interests during the allotment period more than 100 years ago. Working in partnership with The Conservation Fund, the Indian Land Tenure Foundation and ILCC, the Band was able to preserve the land for future generations and generate ongoing revenue to cover land acquisition costs and cultural resource protection. 

Nearly 150 years after being forcibly removed from their ancestral homelands on the Pacific Coast to an inland reservation, the Kashia Band of Pomo Indians in Sonoma County, Calif., once again have access to the ocean. On June 15, 2016 the Tribe celebrated the recovery of nearly 700 acres, a milestone made possible with financing provided by the Indian Land Capital Company (ILCC) and others.

ILCC provided an $895,000 loan to the Mesa Grande Band of Mission Indians to help finance the purchase of a 40-acre parcel adjacent to the Tribe’s Golden Eagle Farm. Located about 90 minutes northeast of San Diego, the farm is situated 12 miles east of the community of Ramona. The area is a popular tourist destination with a variety of outdoor recreation opportunities, wineries and other agritourism attractions. The centerpiece of the property is a 5-bedroom, 4-bath home that is being converted into two vacation rental units by the Mesa Grande Business Development Corporation (BDC), the Tribe’s economic development arm which is focused on developing agritourism enterprises.

Located 120 miles north of San Francisco in Lake County, the Big Valley Rancheria is in the heart of a popular recreation area surrounding Clear Lake, the largest natural lake located wholly within the state of California. ILCC provided $2.6 million in financing for initial site preparation on a $28 million retail development. The commercial center will include a 4,500 square foot convenience store and a 20-pump gas station with four-pump island for recreational vehicles. Plans include a washing station for boats and automobiles, a drive-through smoke shop and a Class II gaming facility. The development plan features 168,000 square feet of retail space, a laundromat, coffee shop, and space suitable for a quick-service restaurant.

With $2 million in financing from ILCC, the Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians in Northern California made a large investment in the Red Hills Bioenergy Project near Kelseyville construted on 36 acres of tribally owned land about 120 miles north of San Francisco. The plant, which produces no emissions or odors, uses burned timber from California wildfires to produce electricity and organic byproducts, which is then be sold to generate valuable revenue for the tribe. The plant features a clean energy system that converts chipped wood and other biomass into synthesized gas to produce carbon-neutral electrical power and biochar, a byproduct of burned wood that sequesters carbon, cost-effectively converting waste into green energy.

Located in Mendocino County California, the Pinoleville Pomo Nation is a federally recognized tribe whose status was restored in the 1980s. In 2017, ILCC provided financing that enabled the Tribe to reacquire 3.5 acres of historically important ancestral land in Ukiah, Calif., along with valuable commercial property located within the boundaries of the original 1911 Rancheria.