Lakota housing director on leave

By Jomay Steen Journal Staff Writer

PINE RIDGE — The Oglala Sioux Lakota Housing executive director has been put on administrative leave with pay while housing officials and the Oglala Sioux Tribe Council battle over who has the right to hire and fire housing employees on Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.Oglala Sioux Lakota Housing Commission chairwoman Donna Salomon said that President Cecelia Fire Thunder sent mediators to work with the housing authority and the tribe after an Aug. 18 meeting in tribal chambers resulted in the executive director for housing, James Berg, tendering his resignation. "I think the whole purpose of that meeting was to force James Berg's resignation," Salomon said.

Calls to Oglala Sioux Tribe and Kathy Janis of the OST House and Human Services Committee were not returned.

At that Aug. 18 meeting, tenants and former employees brought forward grievances and complaints about housing to the OST council, Salomon said.

When council members questioned Berg about the grievances, expenditures and evictions, Berg offered his resignation, which the tribal council accepted.

The next day, the tribe's housing commission met and weighed the written complaints from the tenants. Based on that information, the housing commission decided not to accept Berg's resignation. In addition, housing commissioners informed the tribal council that the tribal council didn't have the authority to hire or fire housing employees.

"By ordinance, the housing authority is chartered and created to hire and fire our own employees," Salomon said.

Because of the dispute, the housing commission put Berg on administrative leave with pay, a situation that is expected to continue until the mediators finish their work.

Because of the continually changing nature of the tribal council, the OSLH was chartered to be independent of political influence. It was needed because of the high number of applicants vying for the limited number of housing within the reservation.

It also was needed to execute evictions for lease violations without reprisals from the tribal council or its executive committee, she said.

But reality hasn't always measured up to the charter, Salomon said. "On paper, we're supposed to be independent of the council. But in reality, we're blown out of the water."

Because of the internal turmoil caused by the council's action, OSLH missed a Housing and Urban Development grant deadline for remediation of houses with mold. "This action has put programs into jeopardy," Salomon said.

She said Berg, a tribal member, had an advanced degree and was employed by the U.S. Treasury Department in Washington, D.C., before returning to Pine Ridge. He had a wide range of experience working for the federal government, was highly qualified for his position and executed good leadership.

"We finally had a person with the experience to help us with our housing needs," she said.