Leaders of the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi, owners of the Fire Hub and FireKeepers Casino Hotel, recently announced construction will begin on a greenhouse that will grow vegetables to create a free salad bar for area school students. The greenhouse will be built on tribal lands at the Pine Creek Indian Reservation.
Tribal Council Chairperson Jamie Stuck said, “The Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi is honored to lead this amazing community initiative. Supporting the local community has always been a priority for us. Utilizing the Pine Creek Reservation to share in our culture and provide nutritious food for those in need makes it more meaningful to the tribe.”
The 5,000 square foot greenhouse will blend seamlessly with its surroundings with minimal impact to the landscape. Produce will include micro-greens, lettuce, tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers, irrigated by hydro and aquaponics. The project will create 10 construction and six full-time jobs.
The tribe also operates the Fire Hub restaurant, which opened in April 2017. The historical building also houses the Kendall Street Pantry, an agency of the Food Bank of South Central Michigan, which provides food for those in need every week. Eighty percent of The Fire Hub’s proceeds are pooled into a Community Fund and distributed annually to local charities. The fund raised more than $15,000 for the food bank in the past year.
FireKeepers Chief Executive Officer said, “The tribe and the casino continue to set the tone for the entire gaming industry with the investment in the Fire Hub and its adjoining Kendall Street Pantry. The restaurant has brought a vital new eatery to the city while the pantry has served more than 3,500 people more than 80,000 pounds of food. Our team members regularly support food drives to contribute to the pantry and take great pride in it.”
The new greenhouse will add to FireKeepers highly acclaimed food reclamation program, which has provided more than 10 tons of food rescued from the casino’s food outlets since the program began in 2016. Unserved, prepared food is repackaged, frozen and distributed to the food bank.
FireKeepers Vice President of Food and Beverage Michale McFarlen said, “We are all really excited about this new endeavor and eagerly anticipate the start of construction in the coming weeks. This is the culmination of our plan to simultaneously create a successful restaurant product and help the community in an impactful way. We look forward to watching the project grow.”
