PORT ANGELES — Tensions over the state Department of Transportation’s canceled graving yard project resurfaced Tuesday when the mayor accused the Lower Elwha Klallam tribe of not being trustworthy in dealings with the city.
Mayor Richard Headrick, joined by acting City Economic Development Director Tim Smith, blasted the tribe for casting a cloud over future development of the city’s waterfront.
They addressed the Port Angeles Business Association’s weekly breakfast meeting at Joshua’s Restaurant and Lounge.
Headrick said the Red Lion Hotel has talked about expanding, but what happens if crews start digging and find something similar to the Klallam remains at the graving yard site?
“What happens at other locations?” he asked.
Tribal chairwoman Frances Charles responded by saying a public presentation is scheduled in May to educate Port Angeles residents about the tribe.
She invited anyone interested to learn about the tribe, its history and the federal laws that affect it.
But Headrick continued strong criticism of the tribe in the wake of December’s shutdown of the Hood Canal Bridge graving yard site on Marine Drive because of Klallam remains and artifacts found on the 22.5-acre site.
“That reflects how investors look at our waterfront,” Headrick told the business group.
“We need to clear up this cloud before people will invest in our waterfront.
“It is difficult because you are never quite sure where these [Native] sites might be. There were no restrictions on where people could live back then.”
Maps show villages
Government maps show Klallam villages at the Red Lion site, Rayonier Inc. mill site and abandoned graving yard site, where the former village of Tse-whit-zen was located, Headrick said.
The graving yard was intended for construction of anchors and pontoons for the Hood Canal Bridge repair and rehabilitation project.
The project was forecast to provide more than 100 industrial-wage jobs in the Port Angeles area as well as a significant construction site that could be used for numerous projects.
Its abandonment has cost DOT an estimated $58.8 million so far.
Several state legislators, including those from the North Olympic Peninsula’s 24th District, have called for an investigation into events leading up to Transportation Secretary Doug MacDonald’s decision.
Knowledge of site
The tribe knew when the graving yard project started — and during subsequent negotiations over the project’s future — that an ancient Klallam village existed on the project site, Headrick said, citing a letter from Charles.
“They went into the [March 2004] agreement with their eyes open, knowing there was a big village and big cemetery there on the site,” he said.
But the tribe spent from August 2003 to March 2004 negotiating an agreement with Transportation and other state and federal agencies about how excavation at the project site would be handled, Headrick said.
The tribe wanted its members to work on excavating the Tse-whit-zen site because they knew it wouldn’t be the only excavation site on the city’s waterfront, Headrick said.
The mayor said state officials said the project was abandoned not for legal reasons but as a matter of public policy, to avoid bad national publicity from the television newsmagazine “60 Minutes.”
Ediz Hook marina project
Headrick also accused the tribe of stopping a proposed marina project on Ediz Hook so the tribe could develop its own marina, and of seeking 29 percent of the city’s surface water rights as part of the Elwha River dams removal agreement.
The tribe demanded the concrete floor be removed from the Lincoln Park longhouse for its ceremonies, making it unappealing for other groups to rent the building, Headrick said.
The tribe also will be hooking up to the city’s sewage treatment plant since removing the dams will raise the reservation water table and make septic systems unusable, he said.
Now the tribe wants ownership of the former graving yard site for reburying tribal remains and artifacts, when four acres of adjacent property was offered, Headrick said.
“As a result of its actions, the tribe also has cast the future of the city’s entire waterfront into doubt,” he said.
“Trust and respect must be earned. It is not Frances Charles’ for the asking.
“But then she takes the city’s land and money and cannot be trusted to honor any agreements,” Headrick said.
Tribal chair responds
Charles said the public presentation is planned in May to educate people because there are many laws, regulations and history — and she’s not a lawyer.
“Lots of facts need to come out, not just parts of them,” she said.
Charles credited U.S. Rep. Norm Dicks, D-Belfair, for negotiating the Elwha dams removal agreement.
The feasibility study for the proposed Ediz Hook marina project was being redone because it was not accurate, she said.
The tribe wants to keep working with the community, she said, but seeks to keep the graving yard issue separate.
Charles said the tribe will sit with anyone and explain its positions, she said.
“I know the fear of the unknown is out there,” she said.
Risky business climate
Smith, the city economic development director, said the climate is “far too risky” for developers until the city of Port Angeles and the tribe can agree on how the community will develop, given the “shadow” of future archaeological discoveries.
The Tse-whit-zen discovery has drawn state and national attention, which is good for cultural awareness, Smith said.
But otherwise, it is not good news, he said.
“Investors will not come here, it’s too risky,” Smith said.
He thought the city had a good working relationship with the tribe until Charles replaced Dennis “Sully” Sullivan as tribal chair, Smith said.
