The Omaha District spans over all or part of 10 states, covering 700,000 square miles. Project offices outside of the District office in Omaha, Neb. help to support this large area of responsibility.
Omaha District’s Real Estate division has a dedicated team placed at the Garrison Project Office in Riverdale, N.D. This Riverdale Real Estate Office also works with additional staff members at its two satellite offices in Fort Peck, Mont. and Bismarck, N.D.
The Riverdale Real Estate Team completes civil real estate actions for projects at Fort Peck Dam and Lake, Garrison Dam and Lake Sakakawea, Oahe Dam and Lake, Big Bend Dam and Lake Sharpe, Bowman-Haley Dam and Lake, Pipestem Dam and Lake, Cold Brook Dam and Lake, as well as Cottonwood Creek.
Amanda Young, a senior realty specialist, said, “the involvement of the Riverdale Real Estate Team is an integral part to the success of each project.”
This office is responsible for management of the legal instruments for recreation, cabin sites, fish and wildlife areas, agricultural cropping and grazing, hay disposal, oil and gas pipelines, utility and road right-of-way easements, as well as archeological permits.
Recently, the team provided authorization to the State of North Dakota to complete its Northwest Area Water Supply Project on June 1, 2023. The project involves the installation of a municipal water intake in Lake Sakakawea which will provide drinking water for one in ten North Dakota residents.
The Riverdale Real Estate Team also works to partner and communicate with Tribal Nations on projects involving Tribal-managed USACE lands.
“Since joining the team in early 2022 I have worked a myriad of realty actions. One of the most important is reestablishing communication at the local level with our Tribal partners,” said Luke Couchey, a realty specialist assigned to the Riverdale office who works out of the Bismarck field office.
The Riverdale Real Estate Team and natural resources office at Oahe Project in South Dakota and North Dakota successfully formed a local working group that has collaborative efforts from both USACE and the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. “This has allowed us to start conversations regarding shared topics of interest on the Oahe Project lands,” Couchey added.
The team is currently working with the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara (MHA) Nation, also known as the Three Affiliated Tribes, on their proposal for a jurisdictional land transfer of over 900 acres of USACE-managed recreational property at the Garrison Project. The proposal would transfer the land from the Department of the Army to the Department of the Interior to be held in trust for the MHA Nation.
Riverdale’s Real Estate Team also works alongside the Fort Peck Project in assisting the Little Shell Chippewa Tribe of Montana, the new manager of Hell Creek Recreation Area at Fort Peck Lake. The Tribe recently began leasing the property from USACE and manage its large and popular recreation area.
“Our involvement allows for positive relationships with state and Tribal entities and a smooth completion of high priority projects,” Young said.
Interested in a USACE real estate or appraisal career? Submit your resume here:
USACE Talent Acquisition Team | Event pre-registration (yellogov.com)