Tribe, town agree to reopen roads
Vehicle access briefly restored to 65 properties
LAC DU FLAMBEAU - Officials with the Lac du Flambeau tribe and the town of Lac du Flambeau have reached a deal to temporarily reopen four barricaded roads on the reservation in northern Wisconsin.
Town officials held a special meeting Saturday and accepted the tribe’s offer to remove the barricades for 90 days in exchange for $60,000 while negotiations for a more permanent solution continue.
Tribal officials had barricaded the four roads on the reservation Jan. 31, stranding non-tribal residents of some 65 properties by cutting off the only access for vehicle traffic to their homes.
Tribal officials said the easement agreement for the roads expired more than 10 years ago and the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs and the title insurance companies that handle the properties had not negotiated in good faith to extend the agreements.
Tribal Chairman John Johnson had previously said residents had been tresdown passing on the illegally built roads on tribal lands and the tribe needs to safeguard what little land it has left.
“The barricades may be coming temporarily, however the real work of developing a longer-term solution is just beginning,” wrote Dave Kievet, one of the affected residents.
Many residents have been using snowmobiles to travel across woods and frozen lakes to leave their properties for supplies, but the ice will start to melt soon.
“It is a short-term fix so we have a way out when the ice is no longer safe to cross, but it does not solve the longterm problem,” said Marti Hunt, another affected resident.
Many residents are hopeful a long
“I’m so happy to have the opportunity to work with the tribe to get them fair compensation for the past use of their land.” Elizabeth Lindquist, affected resident
term deal can be reached.
“I’m so happy to have the opportunity to work with the tribe to get them fair compensation for the past use of their land,” said Elizabeth Lindquist, another affected resident.
The temporary deal comes on the heels of a federal court decision in favor of the tribe last week.
A law firm representing many of the residents had file a lawsuit Feb. 28 against the tribe demanding that the roads be reopened.
“The defendants (Lac du Flambeau Tribe) took the law into their own hands and illegally barricaded public roadways, despite the fact that they must be ‘open and available to public use’ under federal law,” the lawsuit read.
A federal judge disagreed with that assertion and denied the request and questioned whether the federal court has jurisdiction to issue an injunction on tribal land.
“We feel for the impacted property owners and hope this ruling encourages all property owners to press for immediate action by the town of Lac du Flambeau, the involved title insurance companies and the Bureau of Indian Affairs to resolve this matter,” Johnson said in a statement. “As we have said before, this entire situation could have been avoided if the town and the title insurance companies would have negotiated in good faith.”
Last week, Gov. Tony Evers wrote another letter to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, as well as the title insurance companies and tribal and town officials, urging them to come to a resolution.
“While I cannot dictate the terms of settlement of a private dispute, I remain committed to encouraging open and frank communication and negotiations between the parties to find a resolution as quickly as possible,” Evers wrote. “Come to the table. Mediate this dispute. Do so with commitment and haste. Your neighbors are relying on you.”
He said his administration will take all legal steps to ensure the title companies are providing the coverage they committed to homeowners.
Rhetoric toward the tribe and town had been increasing in animosity by some residents and observers.
The issue has been reported in the Washington Post, New York Times and Fox News.
Last month, U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, R-Wausau, wrote a letter to LDF Tribal President Johnson saying the move by the tribe appears to be a shakedown attempt and threatened legislative action.
And last week, U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson wrote a letter asking the federal government to intervene in the private dispute. He requested that the total amount of federal funding administered to the tribe for the four roads be made known and that a legal analysis be conducted to determine the legality of the tribe blocking access to the roads.
The administrators of a Facebook page “Behind the Barricades in Lac du Flambeau” wrote they had to pause public comment on the page because of increasing negative rhetoric.
“This Facebook page was started with the intent of letting everyone know what we were dealing with here in northern Wisconsin,” wrote Dave Kievet, administrator of the page. “The posts and comments indicate that there are strong feelings on both sides of this issue. Rather than deescalating the situation our page appears to be creating a greater divide.”
He wrote that the root of the issue really started in 1887 when Congress passed the Dawes Act, which allowed non-tribal people to purchase land on the reservation in the first place.
Kievet wrote, “The federal government created this issue and the federal government should be responsible for rectifying the situation.”
Frank Vaisvilas is a Report for America corps member who covers Native American issues in Wisconsin based at the Green Bay Press-Gazette. Contact him at fvaisvilas@gannett.com or 815260-2262. Follow him on Twitter at @vaisvilas_frank. You can directly support his work with a tax-deductible donation online at GreenBayPressGazette.com/RFA or by check made out to The GroundTruth Project with subject line Report for America Green Bay Press Gazette Campaign. Address: The GroundTruth Project, Lockbox Services, 9450 SW Gemini Drive, PMB 46837, Beaverton, Oregon 97008-7105.