Administration Building No. 1 finally reopens after $5.5 million renovation

Posted by Alastair Lee Bitsóí | Jan 15, 2015 | News |

Navajo President Ben Shelly is followed by an entourage of visitors who got a tour of the newly renovated Administrative Building 1 on Monday in Window Rock. (Times photo – Donovan Quintero)

WINDOW ROCK

Visitors of the newly renovated Administrative Building 1 take a tour of the new building’s design on Monday in Window Rock. (Times photo – Donovan Quintero)

Not a trace of mold that closed Administration Building No. 1 exists. Neither do the dim lighting, dusty feelings and any indication that this was built 30 years ago.

Now, the building, which houses various tribal departments and divisions, including the Office of the Controller and Office of Management and Budget, illuminates with natural lighting from the clear windows, colorful carpet and white walls that offer a welcoming atmosphere.

It also has glass-window conference rooms, which are modeled after a Navajo bracelet’s rectangular design, open office space with low-lying partitioned desks, new office furniture, glass-window offices for the tribe’s top bureaucrats, and a central wooden-varnished stairwell case.

Or, as Navajo Nation President Ben Shelly, described the modern face-lift, “You almost need to wear your sunglasses in there!”

In his statement to the public, at a dedication ceremony of the renovated building Monday, Shelly thanked members of the Navajo Nation Council for working cooperatively with him to pay for the $5.5 million project.