A proposed American Indian Cultural Embassy could be coming to the Mile High City as part of the 2025 Vibrant Denver Bond.

The embassy would be a homecoming for many tribal nations who called the lands of metro Denver home more than 100 years ago before being forcibly relocated or killed in events such as the Sand Creek Massacre in 1864.

The center aims to serve as a cultural hub, focusing on language preservation, art, food and more — as well as an economic and governmental uses.

Rick Williams, president of People of the Sacred land, sees the embassy as a space for local native communities to begin developing relationships with the city and state legislature. The group is a nonprofit that does research and advocacy surrounding native peoples history in Colorado.

“It’s coming back to their homeland to begin a process of having a voice, developing a relationship with the governing entities, from a nation-to-nation, government to government relationship, and having those kinds of conversations that will benefit everybody,” said Williams.

Williams said the idea for the embassy came in part due to the reaction he received after publishing a report titled The Truth restoration Education Commission, which detailed what lead to the genocide of native residents in Colorado.

“And people would ask, well, what can we do? And they said is there a way that we can bring the people home? Shouldn’t they have a voice in their homeland?” he said.

The embassy is looking to establish itself in Denver’s District 11 near 56th Avenue and Peña Boulevard.

Community members hope the proximity to Denver International Airport could make the embassy a place to welcome out of town tribes and even tourists who want to learn more about Colorado’s history.

The site itself is right next to the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge, where a herd of Buffalo roam.

District 11 Councilmember Stacie Gilmore said the proximity to the refuge was important in the planning process.

“Many American Indian people consider buffaloes to be a relative, because they provided them with everything for self-sufficiency,” Gilmore said.

Colorado Buffalos were dramatically overhunted in the 1860s and 70s leaving just a few hundred bison south of the Platte River by 1876.

“When we were removed from Colorado so was the Buffalo,” said Williams.

The proposal has received an increase in support from Mayor Mike Johnston’s office in the past week.

Originally, the embassy was set to receive $5 million in bond funding per the executive committee’s recommendation.

However, on Monday the city released an updated project list, including a $15 million dollar increase for the project — bringing the total funding up to $20 million.

“In addition to fixing our most urgent infrastructure needs, we are thrilled this bond invests in community through projects like La Plazita de Montbello, a new recreation center in Southeast Denver and an American Indian Cultural Embassy — a first, and long over-due resource, for Denver,” Johnston said in a statement.

 The proposal means a lot for Native communities in light of Colorado’s 150th anniversary and the United States 250th anniversary in 2026.

“We’re really careful about saying it’s a commemoration, because the 150th anniversary of the state and 250th anniversary of the United States is really also the commemoration of the forced removal and genocide of American Indian people, and so it’s also an opportunity for us to educate people,” Gilmore said.

Williams said he gets emotional when thinking about how long it’s taken for an effort as significant as the proposed embassy to take shape.

“I’ve learned about the struggles of my ancestors, and it’s been terrible, and we’re now starting to change history,” he said. “One of the challenges we have is this 150, 250 celebration. We don’t have anything to celebrate.”