The saying “what’s old becomes new again” applies perfectly to the renovation of the building at 607 Donna Way in San Jacinto. Originally built as a clinic, the property was purchased by Riverside-San Bernardino County Indian Health Inc. about 30 years ago to house its Soboba clinic. After RSBCIHI expanded and moved its operations into the new building on the Soboba Reservation in March of 2023, Soboba decided to purchase it for the expansion of its Tribal Administration departments.
The interior and exterior were traditionally blessed by Tribal member Wayne Nelson on July 30 to offer a new beginning. This was followed by an open house to share the finished project with the public.
“During COVID, we were fortunate to get some ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) dollars from the federal government and one of the things we could spend that money on was facility related,” Chairman Isaiah Vivanco said.
ARPA made federal funds available to help state, local and Tribal governments recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and enabled the Soboba Band to purchase the then-vacant property.
“We realized that simply remodeling it wouldn’t be sufficient, so we used the grant money to do a total makeover; just gutting it and taking everything out and starting over,” Vivanco said. “We think you will appreciate how the funds were used.”
The space now houses the Soboba TANF program in the front half of the 14,000-sq.ft. building. The Soboba Tribal Environmental Department has moved into a large area in the back and Soboba Housing and Elders also have dedicated spaces for their programs. At the end of the building, with a separate entrance for confidentiality purposes, Soboba Tribal Family Services is also at the Donna Way location. The expanded space and location have allowed them to add an outdoor seating area and play area.
Tribal Executive Officer Steven Estrada said after the property was purchased in September 2023, they walked through the facility and noted everything that needed to be done inside and out. The redesign started in December of that year. By spring of 2024, an RFP went out for contractors to gut and demolish and construct the new space, which began in July of that year. He said it took over a year for all plan checks and reviewing, permitting, conditions of approval and other requirements to be met.
To determine which departments would move from the Tribal Administration building on the reservation to the new location, he said it was decided that those which were social services/community utilization based would be the most logical choice.
“TANF has a large department, and the new space was well suited for them,” Estrada said. “Family Services is a good complementary service to TANF. Elders needed a dedicated space. Environmental has grown and needs its own space as well.”
Open house guests gathered inside the large multipurpose room which could comfortably accommodate 100 people. Panoramic photographs of the reservation were divided into panels that filled the walls in an artistic way. The full kitchen, located off the room, was busy with Tribal Chef Anita Morillo and her team preparing lunch for all the attendees.
Prior to the move, Elders met at the old Tribal Hall. During the open house, Joyce Placencia recalled working in the Medical Records department at the old clinic. Now sitting in the new multipurpose room, she said it was the same spot she was in before retiring from the clinic after 30 years. Marian Chacon, another Soboba Elder, likes the new space for their meetings. She also likes the photos of the canyon and other Soboba landmarks that are hanging throughout the building.
The TANF program has a full year-round calendar of events for the youth and now they have plenty of space to accommodate them all. There is a conference room, computer labs, a file room and six offices for staff which includes Regional TANF Manager Harold Arres, Senior Program Specialist Annalisa Tucker, Transportation Coordinator Nancy Gallegos, and Administrative Assistant Benny Helms IV.
“Before, we just had three office spaces and it was so tight,” Arres said. They also shared a multipurpose room with the preschool. “I would say having our own space that we actually fit in and have room to grow. It’s nice being able to plan activities based on our needs and our schedule.”
He said the new location is convenient for the TANF families that live off the reservation, which makes it much easier for them. Sylvan Learning offers tutoring sessions to TANF members every weekday afternoon. Arres said there can be 30-40 students seeking assistance when grades come out and now they will have plenty of room to accommodate everyone’s schedule.
He said some of the other activities, such as Fancy Shawl and Bird Singing classes, will take place at the Old Tribal Hall because of the connection to the Cultural Resource department which has moved into the old TANF program space next to the preschool.
Housing Specialist Dondi Silvas said the new Soboba Housing Program office is definitely larger, which is great. Being able to share a conference room with Soboba Tribal Environmental Department allows even more access to space she may need as she often has to notarize documents for clients.
Environmental Director Christian Aceves said the move was most welcome as all four staff members now have a dedicated office. Environmental Specialist Jonathan Marquez and Administrative Assistant DeAnn Bejar are fairly new to the department. Once a fourth team member is added, the department will be fully staffed once again.
“We are tremendously thankful to leadership for this huge upgrade, which is a reflection of our growth as we continue to offer more services over the years,” Aceves said.
One of their newer programs is providing red bins for hazardous household waste collection by Tribal Elders that STED will pick up when full so they can properly dispose of it all. This is just one of many services that are available to Elders.
Aceves and others in the new building were grateful for the opportunity to personalize their departments with particular accent wall colors and photos that were reproduced onto acoustic panels that reduce echoes, used throughout the facility.
Soboba Tribal Family Services’ dedicated area on the building’s west side offers an activity room with lots of games for children, a kitchen area where they can also have fun cooking with the kids, a large conference room and several offices for staff to meet with clients. A computer room is available for Tribal members to complete job applications and forms or to use if they simply don’t have access to a computer. Director Alicia Golchuk is joined by Tribal Social Workers Deatra “Dee Dee” Manzanilla and Desiree Salazar and Administrative Assistant Catherine Gonzalez.
The walls are decorated with beautiful paintings created by Salazar’s fiancé Bobby Von Martin, adding a colorful and personal touch to their space. Offering a full gamut of services, the team is happy to be able to offer a comfortable, homey, and inviting place for everyone to meet.
