24 minute read
NEWS
Cultural Heritage Board recommends protection for contaminated site
by Kimberly Rivers
kimberly@vcreporter.com Burro Flats Painted Cave. (Photo by D. Gandy)
A2,850-acre site in the Santa Susana Mountains near Simi Valley that is sacred to at least four local Indigenous tribes is being considered for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places. Burro Flats is associated with the Chumash, Fernandeño, Kizh/Gabreileño and Tataviam Tribes. There are rock art sites — the best known being the Burro Flats Painted Cave, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976 — as well as living sites, ceremonial locations and sacred areas.
The land overlies the former site of the Santa Susana Field Lab, a location for rocket, nuclear and metals research starting in 1949 that left the land significantly contaminated. The site’s cleanup (or lack thereof) has been a point of fierce contention among local environmental groups, large corporations and government agencies since the 1970s, and some claim that the bid for cultural protection is an effort to sidestep remediation.
Alan Salazar, a member of the elder’s council of the Fernandeño/ Tataviam Band of Mission Indians, says that when it comes to Indigenous issues, things are rarely “black and white.”
“This was done at our request...that the site be designated as a cultural sacred site,” said Salazar. He was speaking to the VCReporter on the morning of Monday June 29, before the Ventura County Cultural Heritage Board would review and consider staff recommendation to support the nomination of the area to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) as Burro Flats Cultural District (BFCD).
The area is rich in culturally important ele ments, including rocks bearing pictographs, settings for winter and summer solstice celebrations and ceremonial locations where the ancestors of tribal members living here today gathered, sang and prayed. Salazar described “various hunting sites, places where someone was making points or arrowheads . . . called a ‘scatter.’” The 2,850- acre swath borders the territories of three tribes. “You can walk a few miles west to Chumash territory, south to the Tongva lands and east to the Tataviam. We have had a relationship for thou sands of years, traded, we intermarried, my family is Chumash and Tataviam,” Salazar explained. A ccording to Salazar, cultural designation would not affect the required cleanup at all. He has worked as a monitor at the site for over six years, during the collection of soil samples and other activities, and said that most of the contam ination is not in the areas near the most significant sites. “Where the most serious contamination is, is not anywhere close to the rock art site.”
Tribal involvement with cleanup efforts
These Indigenous sites are located on the former site of the Santa Susana Field Lab, which sustained chemical contamination from over 30,000 rocket fuel tests and a partial nuclear meltdown in 1959. Soil and groundwater in the area is contaminated with carcinogenic materials including heavy metals and perchlorates and these toxic compounds have been found to migrate off the site during wind, rain and fire events.
Initially covered up by the government, the contamination was made public by college students in the 1970s. For decades the public has demanded cleanup, but lar ge corporations and government agencies actively evaded agreements that required full cleanup by 2017. Today, Boeing, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) are responsible for cleaning up the site, while the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) is responsible for ensuring the cleanup occurs. The California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA) over sees the DTSC. T o this day, no cleanup has begun. Recently, new agreements with the state set out a plan to begin removing buildings, but the public has little trust in the responsible parties and the plans are contingent on federal funding.
Based on this history, many fear that the cultural district designation is merely one more opportunity for the responsible parties to evade their obligations.
Salazar, however, said that, “This [cultural district] designation really has very little to do with the cleanup. What we will do is called mitigation [through] negotiation with all three [responsible parties]. We will negotiate the best way to clean it up.”
Salazar estimates that only about five to 10 percent of the areas of archeological significance will require some kind of mitigation or cleanup activities. For the other 90 percent of the sites, “We will have monitors because they are close to other [important] sites . . . A majority of that is in the rock shelter on rock. That is not being removed.”
In his opinion, there is no tension between those seeking to protect the archeological sites and those advocating for cleanup, but there are “disagreements on how much to clean up. In my opinion, the complexities of this site are related to [determining] how much you clean up and at what level...The highest level, that’s what the activists pound on their chest... If there is cleanup at the highest level, that 2,800 acre site will look completely different. You’ll remove that much contaminated soil, removing almost all the vege tation, kill or remove dozens of ancient oak trees . . . you have to weigh that.”
He’s spoken to radiation experts and said that removing all the top layers of soil, as some are calling for, may not be needed across large areas — and may in fact be harmful to the overall environment.
Salazar supports a “happy medium, not destroying all the plants and native animals, making it safe, but not destroying cultural sites.”
“One thing I’ve come to realize after 40 years of involvement in Native American causes is that issues are very rarely black and white, there are always gray areas,” said Salazar. “In order for issues to be resolved it takes all the groups, that is six distinct groups.” He acknowledges there are disagreements along the way. “Have we asked for things that NASA has said no to? Yes. They had to give a little, we had to give a little. I hope that continues, stakeholders and local people need to sit down and work with all the different groups . . . It’s an extremely complex issue . . . That’s something that sometimes people don’t understand, how the negotiations between tribes and the government work.”
Cultural Heritage Board makes recommendation
The June 29 special meeting lasted over five hours, and resulted in a unanimous decision by the CHB to recognize that some areas inside the new boundaries proposed for the Burro Flats Cultural District (BFCD) meet the criteria for the site to be listed on the National Register of Historical Places (NRHP). During deliberations, however, board members questioned whether the site had integrity as a cultural site due to the con tamination. In addition, many pondered whether a full cleanup needs to occur before nomination to the NRHP.
Fifty-six written public comments were submitted, with over 20 people speaking at the online meeting. The strong majority asked the CHB to either deny the application for a cultural district, or recommend the process be delayed until the site is cleaned up due to a mistrust of NASA’s intentions. Some said it was an attempt to avoid doing proper cleanup.
Salazar called the idea that NASA is trying to evade a proper cleanup “completely false,” and said he has been working with NASA, Boeing and DOE representatives for 10 years, with mem bers of several area tribes taking part in research on the site.
“NASA takes seriously its role as a steward of the cultural resources within NASA-administered areas at SSFL and has been working with the Native American community to protect the irreplaceable cultural resources at SSFL,” said Matthew Rydin, press secretary for NASA, responding via email to the VCReporter on June 25. “The listing of the Burro Flats Cultural District as a Traditional Cultural Property in the National Register of Historic Places will not change or impact NASA’s commitment or responsibility to cleanup.”
The CHB was careful to craft its recommen dation to indicate that sites not yet identified within the district boundaries also be included in the cultural district, and that any protection af forded to the site whic h “impairs or impedes the legally mandated clean up efforts at the proposed district” would “conflict with public health, safety and gener al welfare.” Language was added Alan Salazar (Photo by Mona Lewis) to the recommendation that “legally mandated clean up efforts . . . include a remediation plan to protect the formally recognized resources during clean up activities.”
The recommendations will now go to the Ventura County Board of Supervisors, (expected to be heard on July 28) who may add comments before transmitting the CHB recommendations to the California Office of Historic Preservation, which will review the comments and present rec ommendations to the State Historical Resources Commission on August 14, 2020.
117 sites of cultural significance
NASA applied to have the entire 2,850-acre area of SSFL be included on the national register, expanding the current 25-acre protected site encompassing the Burro Flats Painted Cave. That process compels the State Historical Resources Commission to seek input from local governments and cultural heritage commissions.
Through collaborations with indigenous con
sultants, 117 sites and one object of cultural significance have been identified, including at least 10 rock wall paintings along with various outcrops, stone shelters, trails, creeks, view sheds and living areas. The exact locations of the sites are not made public in order to protect the arche ological sites.
The staf f report presented to the CHB states that the district area is associated with the Chumash, Fernandeño, Kizh/Gabreileño, and Tataviam Tribes. Staff agreed with NASA’s findings that the site is eligible under “Criterion A” which states “Properties can be eligible for the National Register if they are associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history.”
The staff report also agreed with NASA that an underlying consequence of the site being fenced off from the public for so long actually protected it from artifact hunters and those who would take artifacts from the sites, resulting in cultural sites that are extremely intact. Santa Susana Field Lab
Public comments reveal diverse viewpoints
During the June 29 meeting, over 20 speakers and 56 written comments were entered into the record. Most public comments focused on the previous listing of the Burro Flats rock painting site on the national registry, and that NASA’s attempt to expand the special district is actually an attempt to sidestep the required cleanup of the site.
“My dad worked for NASA...NASA is near and dear to us,” said Cindy Gortner of Oak Park. But she felt NASA was a “bad actor” in this instance. She said the nomination application submitted was incomplete. “The 70-page nomination, they didn’t include anything about the toxic mess.” Gortner asked the CHB to postpone the district designation: “Public health and safety . . . come first.”
“I’m one of many parents who believe contamination at SSFL caused our children’s cancers,” said Melissa Baumstead, a resident of West Hills for 10 years. Her daughter has survived cancer twice. She called herself an accidental activist who was compelled to form Parents Against SSFL, and who started a petition demanding the full cleanup that has over 700,000 signatures.
Calling it “one of the most contaminated places in the nation,” Dr. David Hirsch discussed the history that led to the contamination at the site, noting that cleanup orders in effect required the site to be “fully cleaned up by 2017...All three parties have taken actions to break out of agreements.” He said the Indigenous sites on the land are already protected, calling the appli cation “another excuse to breach it’s cleanup agreements.”
“We are truly conflicted about this Santa Susana Site,” said Sam Cohen, responsible for government affairs for the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians. “We are thankful the site has been secured . . . We are saddened that [our] Chu mash church has been contaminated . . . We need your help to clean up our church. We ask you to support the nomination.”
Cohen described the work he’s done with NASA consulting on the cultural sites at SSFL beginning in 2010. They resurveyed the entire site and completed an ethnographic study, and are applying to list the entire Burro Flats area on the national registry. He said the expansion of the boundaries was done at the tribe’s request. “Everyone agrees this is a historical place.” He asked the CHB to approve the special district “so long as it doesn’t negatively affect the cleanup.”
Charmaine Buehner, attorney with Ventura County Counsel, clarified the role of the CHB, stating. “The question before the Cultural Heri tage Board is a fairly narrow one . . . does the site
meet the criteria of the national register?”
The call to postpone the nomination to the national registry was echoed by many of those who spoke during public comment. But Buehner explained that neither “this board, nor the Board of Supervisors, has any authority to postpone this nomination . . . This is your opportunity to have input in that process. You have the choice to make a report or not to make a report.”
“Extreme and unnecessary cleaning up can cause exposure to more danger than it relieves,” said Bruce Rowe, professor emeritus of anthropology at Pierce College. He pointed out the “known potential for undiscovered cultural resources . . . that need to be preserved,” and that “in reality, the sacred lands area should be increased beyond the Santa Susana site.”
CHB member Stephen Schafer relayed an experience trying to save a structure in the Matil ija Canyon area. According to Schafer, the contractor intended to use a bulldozer to “take off the first two feet of soil. It’s all or nothing . . . That’s what I’m worried about . . . After the clean up [the sites will be] wiped off the face of the Earth from the standpoint of the Indigneous people.”
• To email county supervisors visit: https://www.ventura.org/board-ofsupervisors/ • The item will be heard by the California
Office of State Historic Preservation is scheduled to meet on August 14 in Sacramento. • The documents and public comments associated with the June 29 meeting are online at: https://vcrma.org/culturalheritage-board-meetings-and-agendas
COVID update
by Kimberly Rivers
kimberly@vcreporter.com
Ventura County beaches to close July 3-6
Dr. Robert Levin, health officer with Ventura County Public Health, confirmed on Tuesday, June 30, that Ventura County beaches and parking areas will be closed for the Fourth of July holiday weekend. He said the closure will begin at 5 a.m. on Friday, July 3, and be in effect until 5 a.m. on Monday, July 6. Levin said the beaches are being closed because, “I feel it promotes disease transmission to allow larger gatherings of people than are desirable.”
A spokesperson for the City of Ventura said they will “support the [county] public health order for its beaches.”
A public health order has not yet been issued.
“Please only gather with the people that you live with. Your actions can help save lives,” said Rigo Vargas, director of Ventu ra County Public Health. “Visiting family and friends still presents a risk of spreading COVID-19. We know people are eager to go out, but we need to remind you on the impor tance of being safe and protecting yourself and others.”
Los Angeles County has closed beaches for the weekend.
This story will be updated on www.vcreporter.com as information becomes available.
No live music while dining
Ventura County Public Health has clarified that no live music performances are allowed at restaurants.
The guidance issued June 29 states, “Establishments that serve full meals must discontinue this type of entertainment until these types of activities are allowed to resume modified or full operation.” It further clarifies that concert, performance and dedicated entertainment venues, “should remain closed until they are allowed to resume modified or full operation through a specific reopening order or guidance.”
No new closures in county
On Sunday, June 28, Gov. Gavin Newsom included Ventura County on the list of county’s that should close bars to help stem the increase in cases those areas are seeing. But county officials say the county hasn’t opened those types of businesses.
“We never opened the type of bars that the state just asked to be closed. We weren’t ready to take that risk yet. So when the state asked that counties close a certain type of bar, we didn’t need to because, out of caution and a reluctance to open businesses too rapidly, we never had,” said Dr. Robert Levin, health officer with Ventura County Public Health (VCPH), responding to the VCReporter via email on June 30. “We have done our best to balance the opening of our businesses with the maintenance of social distancing.”
On June 29, VCPH issued guidance and clarification for “all dine-in” businesses, including “brewpubs, breweries, bars, pubs, wineries and distilleries that serve food.” Similar establishments that do not serve food may not be open at this time although outside vendors like food trucks can serve food at these locations provided “both businesses follow state guidance and alcohol is only sold in the same transaction as a meal.”
The county guidelines asks businesses “to encourage takeout and delivery service whenever possible.”
Effective July 1, all businesses serving food must close dine-in services by 10 p.m. and limit each customer group to one and a half hours of dining time. Only household groups are allowed to sit together while dining. Live music is not permitted at any business.
View all public health orders online at: https://www.venturacountyrecovers.org/public-health-orders/
No dining with non-household members
County officials reiterated existing social distancing orders requiring members of the public to only “gather with members of their household, remain socially distanced and wear masks in public spaces,” said Rigoberto Vargas, director of VCPH. “Community spread of infection is of increasing concern across the state and in Ventura County.”
That includes when dining at restaurants.
“Please use extreme caution as COVID-19 is still prevalent in our county. You are much more likely to run into someone who has no symptoms but is positive if you gather with others,” said Levin. “It’s important that we collectively work together to stop the spread so that lives can be saved, and businesses can remain open.”
Orders and other information is online at: www.venturacountyrecovers.org.
County numbers increasing
Over the weekend, 404 new cases were reported, with 70 people currently in local hospitals being treated for symptoms from COVID-19. But the county emphasized that of those new cases, 175 were tested on or before June 22. 1,042 people are under quarantine in the county due to exposure to a person who tested positive; 45 people who tested positive for coronavirus have died.
With 2,740 total positive cases from the 58,845 people tested, the county has a rate of 4.7 percent.
Residents are still encouraged to stay home when possible, wear face coverings in compliance with the statewide mandate, wash hands regularly and when they must go out to practice social distancing. Gatherings with people not in the same household are still not allowed.
176 people in farmworker housing test positive
The Ventura County Public Health department has reported an “outbreak” of 176 people testing positive in one farmworker housing complex in Oxnard. All 216 residents in the complex have been tested. 11 test results are pending.
Those who have tested positive are in their 20s and 30s, experiencing mild symptoms and under quarantine.
VCPH with the Ventura County Health Care Agency’s Backpack Medicine Team are providing assistance and guidance for residents of the housing complex. “Our team responded immediately once we learned of this outbreak. We will continue to assist those who have tested positive and those who have been exposed. We urge everyone in Ventura County, ranging from individuals and families to business operators and community leaders to help us stop the increasing trend of community transmission of COVID-19,” said Vargas.
Golden State Killer pleads guilty
Will be sentenced to life in prison
by Kimberly Rivers
kimberly@vcreporter.com
On Monday, June 29, Joseph James DeAngelo Jr., 74, known as the Golden State Killer, pleaded guilty to over a dozen murders, kidnappings and several other uncharged crimes.
His guilty plea means he will serve the rest of his life in prison, without parole.
“Today’s hearing marks a tremendous moment in the lives of dozens, if not hundreds, of California citizens who were direct or collateral victims of this defendant’s crimes,” said Greg Totten, Ventura County District Attorney. “We left no lead uninvestigated, and we left no victim forgotten.” He said the county was “rocked by the brutal murders” of the Smiths in 1980. “Initially, evidence was thin and leads proved fruitless. However, for over 40 years, law enforcement never gave up. Using the best technology and legal tools available, teams of investigators linked the Smiths’ murders to other murders and rapes around the state, and we put together a rock-solid case against this defendant.”
DeAngelo was arrested in 2018, three decades after the crimes were committed, after DNA evidence was used along with online genealogy information to link him to the long unsolved murders. Two Ventura County residents, Lyman and Charlene Smith, were killed by DeAngelo in 1980.
DeAngelo’s crimes began in 1975 when he was a police officer with the Exeter Police Department. His crimes continued after he was fired from the Auburn Police Department in 1979 and escalated from window peeping to stalking to rape and serial murder. His crimes were described in excruciating Joseph James DeAngelo Jr. in 2018 booking photo. and exacting detail on Monday during the hearing in Sacramento.
The court accepted the guilty plea to 13 felony counts of first-degree murder and 13 felony counts of kidnapping to commit robbery, which occured over a 13-year, multi-county crime spree across California. The final mur
Charlene & Lyman Smith. Photo courtesy of Jennifer Carole der occured in 1986. His crimes earned him the nicknames the Visalia Ransacker, the East Area Rapist, the Original Night Stalker and the Golden State Killer.
DeAngelo also admitted to 161 uncharged crimes related to an additional 61 victims.
The prosecution was handled jointly by district attorneys of the counties (Contra Costa, Orange, Sacramento, Santa Barbara, Tulare and Ventura) where the charged crimes took place. Uncharged crimes also occurred in Alameda, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Santa Clara, Stanislaus, Tulare and Yolo counties.
Prosecutors consulted with the victims’ families in the decision to accept the guilty plea, taking into consideration the ages of the victims, witnesses and defendant.
In a statement released on June 29, DA Totten said, “The plea provided the victims and their families who were terrorized by DeAngelo the opportunity to hear him admit his crimes.”
A hearing is set in Sacramento on August 17, 2020, where victims will have the opportunity to provide impact statements.
Additional background information about People v. Joseph James DeAngelo, including the factual basis for each plea, can be found at www.peopleversusjosephdeangelopressmaterials.com
July 4 fireworks canceled
Illegal fireworks use increasing around the county
by Kimberly Rivers
kimberly@vcreporter.com
As the Fourth of July approaches, residents across Ventura County will have to celebrate without any fireworks display .
Last week, Fillmore and Santa Paula — the only Ventura County cities still planning to host a show — announced that they were canceling fireworks out of concerns related to mass gatherings and preventing the spread of the coronavirus.
Even though Santa Paula had been working to promote a view-from-home show, local offi cials were grappling with potential crowds that would buck the ban on mass gatherings and show up in city parks and other public spaces to get a good view .
Unauthorized fireworks, however, are being set off across the county, with nightly rounds being reported from Ojai, Ventura, Oxnard, Santa Paula and Fillmore.
Possession and deployment of fireworks, other than the small popping and squealing type sold in grocery stores, is illegal in every part of Ventura County except within the city limits of Fillmore, which every year allows the sale of larger types of fireworks in a week-long fundraising event for nonprofit organizations based in the city. Those products sold in
Fillmore are illegal to possess outside of city limits.
Oxnard levies fines of $1,000 for possession of illegal fireworks.
The Santa Paula Police Department reported an increase in illegal firework activity within city limits and has responded by increasing patrols. On June 27, the unit focused on fire works seized a cache of “Dangerous” brand fireworks and an active investigation is looking into the sale of these items in city limits. The SPPD emphasized that all fireworks, including “safe and sane” fireworks, are illegal in the city.
The public is encouraged to call the none mergency number of their local police department to provide information on fireworks being set of f.
Santa Paula Police Fireworks report line: 805-525-4477 or email policedispatchers@ spcity.org.
Oxnard Fireworks hotline: 805-394-5884 or Fireworks Tips email at fireworks@ oxnardpd.org.
Serra statue still stands
Meeting set for July 7
by Kimberly Rivers
kimberly@vcreporter.com
As of press deadline, the bronze statue of St. Junipero Serra still stands in front of Ventura City Hall amidst demands for it to be removed or taken down.
“In recent weeks, the City of Ventura has received a groundswell of feedback from the public on the Father Junipero Serra statue. We want the community to know that we are receptive to their concerns and seek to provide a peaceful environment where all voices are heard and respected,” said Alex D. McIntyre, city manager of Ventura. “This is an historic decision and must involve the voices of the Chumash tribe, the Mission San Buenaventura, residents of Ventura and the city council.”
The city has begun the formal process it says must take place to make a decision about the statue’s fate. First, on July 1, at 6 p.m., the city’s Historic Preservation Committee will review the landmark status of the statue. A statement released by the city clarifies that the committee “will not discuss if the statue should be retained or removed.”
Then on July 7 the Ventura City Council will receive public input and is expected to make a decision about whether the statue should be removed.
Ben Leaños, one of the local organizers of a June 20 protest demanding the statue be removed, said he’s not confident the city will decide to remove the statue. “They are dragging their feet.”
The July 7 meeting comes after the July 4 deadline set by some protestors for removal of the statue. “I’m worried about the people who wanted to tear it down, they asked for a deadline,” Leaños said, adding that the group of organizers he was with did not demand the deadline. “This is a worldwide uprising, time for Ventura to jump on it.”
He expressed concern that elected officials would make a decision with an eye toward reelection. “Politicians’ goal is to secure their vote and secure power,” Leaños said. He thinks voting to remove the statue will be “an unpopular move” for city council members “given the city’s racist history.” He sees moving it to the San Buenaventura Mission as problematic also. “I don’t want the mission to have it . . . They are not going to give it the full context of what he did, the crimes he committed. The Catholic Church is not the place to learn about colonialism, slavery or rape or genocide.”
Statues of Serra are being torn down by public groups or taken down by churches and municipalities due to community outcry over the role of the missions in the decimation of Indigenous peo ple and their culture. Statues were felled last week in Los Angeles, Carmel and San Luis Obispo.
To watch or participate in the July 7 Ventura City Council online meeting, visit https://bit.ly/2NvYlRX or by phone: 1 (408) 418-9388 and use access code: 126 228 9208.
To submit written comments, visit: www.CityofVentura. ca.gov/FatherSerra
(805) 648-2244
Please check this proof over carefully and indicate all corrections clearly. You will have a “1st Proof”, “2nd Proof”, and “Final Proof”. If we receive no proof after the 1st or 2nd Proofs, AD WILL RUN AS IS. If this proof meets your approval on the 1st proof, check off “FINAL PROOF (APPROVED)” box, date and sign at the bottom.
Deadline for Ad Changes is 12:00 Noon the Tuesday prior to that issues release. ISSUE: 7/2/20
COMMENTS: Write the number on the ad that corresponds to your comments/corrections
1. ____________________________________________
2. ____________________________________________
3. ____________________________________________
4. ____________________________________________
5. ____________________________________________
NOTICE: PLEASE FAX THIS PROOF TO (805) 648-2245 ASAP
