February 23, 2001
Source: The Arizona Republic
On February 23, 2001, The Arizona Republic reported that the Arizona American Indian Tourism Association plans to convert the old dining hall of the Phoenix Indian Boarding School into the state's first Native American Cultural Center. The school closed in 1990. "The center's primary purpose will be to help Native American communities in Arizona promote tourism and assist tourists interested in visiting tribal lands." It will expose tourists to the Native American experience and show them that Native Americans are "maintaining thriving, living cultures today."