Maricopa’s neighbors: the Ak-Chin Indian Community

This month the Ak-Chin Community celebrated its Him-Dak or “way of life.” Although the community was officially created in 1912 by an executive order from President William Howard Taft, modern archaeological reports indicate that ancestors of the Ak-Chin have farmed tribal lands for several thousand years.

Taft originally set the community’s size at almost 50,000 acres; however, the next year he rescinded the order, reducing the land size to 22,000 acres.

The Ak-Chin are both Tohono O’odham (Papago) and Pima people. Today the self-sufficient community has a population of approximately 762 members; half of them are under the age of 24.

The word “Ak-Chin” is O’odham, meaning “place where the wash loses itself to the ground.”
The Community Council of five members, serving staggered terms, is the governing body of the Ak-Chin Community. Standing and special committees assist the council in making policy and procedural decisions in various matters concerning the community.

Delia Carlyle, an eight-year former Maricopa Unified School District governing board member, is the present chairwoman of the Ak-Chin Community.

Nearly 100 percent of the community’s working adults are employed in various tribal enterprises, including Harrah’s Ak-Chin Resort and Casino, which opened in December 1994. It employs about 800 people and is one of the largest employers in Pinal County.

Other community members farm nearly 15,000 acres; major crops are cotton and alfalfa. The farms are part of a co-op, the brainchild of Richard Carlyle, which was formed in 1962.

Carlyle’s younger sister, Leona Kakar, took over the chairmanship of the farm board shortly after his death.

An industrial park, located adjacent to the Maricopa-Casa Grande Highway was constructed in 1971. It is suitable for light and agricultural-related industries as well as commercial and retail businesses. Currently undergoing reconstruction, the 109-acre park will be getting streets, water, wastewater and utilities.

In 1997 the community purchased its own electrical utility, which provides all electricity to the tribe. The community also operates its own water and sewer systems.

In addition the Ak-Chin have a community center, a facility for the elderly and handicapped, a tribal-owned store (Vekol Commissary), a lumber store, the Him-Dak Museum, which displays tribal crafts, photos and artifacts of the Ak-Chin people, and the Ak-Chin O’odham Runner newspaper.

The Ak-Chin, enterprising and self-sufficient, have been welcoming to the influx of new residents in Maricopa. As Chairwoman Carlyle often says publicly, “We are all one; we all have the same zip code – 85239.”