MILLSBORO, Del. - Construction continues on the expansion of the Nanticoke Indian Cultural Community Center in Millsboro, but utility work is expected to push completion into 2027.
The nearly $2.9 million project has been in the works for years, with the tribe's capital campaign beginning before the COVID-19 pandemic.
The center has deep ties to the Nanticoke community. Stigall said the building originally served as a one-room school, and some tribal elders who attended the school are still alive.
Once the expansion is complete, the building is expected to serve as a cultural hub where tribal members can practice traditional dances and participate in classes and programs for children and elders.
Plans also include a kitchen, and the building can serve as a food pantry, providing another resource for people in the surrounding community.
Assistant Chief of the Nanticoke Indian Tribe Farrah Stigall says the project has encountered several delays along the way.
“We have a Verizon pole that needs to be removed because it's going to be in our entrance,” Stigall tells CoastTV.
Additional utility work is also needed before construction can move forward as planned.
“Delmarva Power needs to install a transformer as well,” Stigall says. “So we're looking at, like, that's probably going to stall us between two and maybe three months.”
“We're hoping that we can have more programs like that open to the community,” says Stigall.
Neighbors like Fran Seaver say they believe the project can help preserve Indigenous history while giving community members additional resources and a place to belong.
“I mean, if we don't learn from history, where are we going?” Seaver says. “I think it's good that they're doing projects like this.”
Despite the setbacks, work on the Nanticoke Indian Center continues. Stigall said the tribe is now hoping to complete the project by January 2027.
