Nez Perce Tribe buys property in Kamiah
The 114-acre site along Clearwater River was most recently owned by Idaho Forest Group
The Nez Perce Tribe has acquired the 114-acre site of the former Blue North Mill next to the Clearwater River in Kamiah from Idaho Forest Group.
The transaction closed at the end of December and the tribe's executive committee now must decide what to do with the property, said Kayeloni Scott, spokeswoman for the Nez Perce Tribe. "There are currently no plans for that property other than cleanup and restoration."
The acquisition is the latest chapter for the land that has played an important role in the history of Kamiah and its 1,300 residents. Potlatch Corp. closed the mill in 1983, eliminating 130 jobs. It changed hands a couple of times before being operated by Three Rivers with more than 100 employees. Three Rivers shuttered it in 2008 as housing starts slumped during the Great Recession.
Michael Burns, owner of Blue North Fisheries in Seattle, resuscitated the mill in 2010 after developing an affection for Kamiah and its hard-working people. But when it closed six years later, eliminating 65 jobs because of an inability to buy logs, Burns acknowledged he knew little about the timber industry.
Idaho Forest Group became the owner and auctioned the equipment, which was being removed from the building when it burned about a year ago.
The tribe's purchase comes as it is exploring a variety of new projects after promoting Kermit Mankiller to executive officer of Nez Perce Tribal Enterprises.
The tribe has been talking with the Clarkston Country Club about buying its 18-hole golf course. It's considering adding two casinos in places other than its two gaming operations, just outside of Lewiston and in Kamiah. It's also hoping to attract a boat or metal parts manufacturer as a tenant of a yet-to-be developed industrial park near Spalding. That industrial park might eventually be the home of a variety of ventures, such as a food processor that could convert wheat raised in the region into flour or cake mixes.
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Williams may be contacted at ewilliam@lmtribune.com or (208) 848-2261.
