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State agrees to move project to preserve Indian grave site
By WILLIAM KATES
Associated Press Writer
May 1, 2002, 12:50 PM EDT
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- The state Department of Transportation has agreed to
build a new $25 million bridge over the Seneca River at an alternative
location to protect an 800-year-old Onondaga Indian grave site,
officials said Wednesday.
"This has been a very satisfying experience for the Onondagas. The state
has been quite cooperative and responsive to the chiefs' concerns," said
Joseph Heath, the tribe's attorney.
The new location is just south of the site originally proposed for the
five-lane bridge in the hamlet of Belgium, 11 miles north of Syracuse,
said state transportation department spokeswoman Diana Graser.
The new site was one of three locations presented as feasible
alternatives for the long-awaited project during public hearings, Graser
said.
Because the distance across the river is slightly longer than at the
original site, the bridge must be built in phases, rather than one stage
as initially planned, Graser said. That will increase the cost of
construction and make it more expensive to handle the detoured traffic,
she said.
"At this point, it's very difficult to put a figure on the increases,"
she said.
State archaeologists uncovered a grave Dec. 19 in a resident's front
yard just east of the river while digging test holes for the new bridge.
State officials later identified the remains as those of a 5-year-old
child from the 13th century. The remains have been left in the ground,
covered by a tarp.
Onondaga chiefs believed it was likely that other American Indian
remains were in the area _ used for centuries by the Onondagas _ and
asked the state to stop the process and preserve the site. Heath said
many prehistoric American Indian and historic Colonial artifacts have
been unearthed but have yet to be catalogued.
After a series of meetings between transportation officials and Onondaga
chiefs, the state agreed to halt the project and design a new plan that
would not disturb the sensitive area.
"This result is good," said Onondaga Nation spokeswoman Wendy Gonyea.
"It shows some consideration."
Heath said state officials also agreed to consult with Onondaga leaders
on all future road and bridge projects in the area _ a dialogue Heath
said was mandated by federal law on any projects using federal money.
"(The state) did four years of studying and planning on this project. It
was extensive. If we had been consulted up front ... it would help avoid
this type of re-engineering," Heath said.
The state had planned to begin building the wider bridge this spring,
but now construction is not likely to begin until this fall at the
earliest, Graser said. The project should take about two years to
complete, she said.
The state's plans also call for disassembling the old two-lane Belgium
bridge and reassembling it across the state Barge Canal in neighboring
Lysander.
Copyright © 2002, The Associated Press
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/ny-bc-ny--onondagaremains0501may01.story
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