[Aztlan] Goodbye Indian Mounds, Hello Sam's Club

[Mario Cabrejos]

Goodbye Indian Mounds, Hello Sam's Club
July 10, 2009
By Dan Whisenhunt for The Anniston Star via the Associated Press
http://www.reznetnews.org/article/goodbye-indian-mounds-hello-sam-s-club-363
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OXFORD, Ala. (AP)-A stone mound on a hill behind the Oxford Exchange created
by American Indians 1,500 years ago will soon disappear.

And whether Oxford's taxpayers wanted it or not, they paid for its
destruction.

Workers hired by the city's Commercial Development Authority (CDA) are using
the dirt from the hill as fill for a new Sam's Club. The project has angered
American Indians who, along with a Jacksonville State University archaeology
professor, say the site could contain human remains.

Oxford Mayor Leon Smith and City Project Manager Fred Denney say it was used
to send smoke signals.

The city's CDA uses taxpayer money and assets to lure commercial businesses.
The $2.6 million no-bid CDA contract for preparing the Sam's site went to
Oxford-based Taylor Corp. That money came from the sale of city property to
Georgia-based developers Abernathy and Timberlake and from additional money
provided by the city.

In Alabama, CDAs are exempt from bid laws, meaning contracts can go to
whichever company the board chooses. Oxford's CDA board and its actions have
multiple connections to Smith's political fundraising:

. At least three board members or their employers have contributed to his
political campaigns.

. Taylor Corp., under the ownership of Tommy Taylor, has received thousands
of dollars in city contracts for non-CDA work. Taylor donated $1,000 to
Smith in 2004 and $1,000 in 2008.

. Abernathy and Timberlake donated $1,000 to Smith's re-election campaign in
2004.

. Montgomery-based Goodwyn, Mills and Cawood donated $500 to Smith in 2004.
The CDA gave the company engineering contracts for the exchange. Denney said
the CDA paid the company $45,000 for engineering work, part of which paid
for a University of Alabama study on the American Indian site.

Eligible for National Register of Historic Places?

The Anniston Star newspaper has so far been unable to obtain a copy of the
University of Alabama study, but a letter from the Alabama Historical
Commission's deputy state historic preservation officer indicated the
university did not think the site was eligible for the National Register of
Historic Places. The state Historic Preservation Commission did think the
site was eligible for the National Register.

City Project Manager Denney said the report's authors found little at the
site. Mayor Smith has said there is nothing wrong with the connections
between himself and the CDA. He has described Taylor as a, "good friend."

Attempts to reach representatives for Taylor Corp. and Abernathy and
Timberlake on Monday were unsuccessful. The Birmingham office of Goodwyn,
Mills and Cawood declined comment.

CDA members contacted by The Star declined comment, referring questions to
board chairman Dwight Rice. Attempts to reach Rice on Monday also were
unsuccessful.

Chervis Isom, a Birmingham attorney representing Abernathy and Timberlake,
said the company isn't involved with the hill or the fill dirt.

"If the dirt were contaminated in some way we'd certainly have an interest
in that," Isom said. "Where the CDA got the dirt I'm not sure. We don't have
any control over that." He added he does not think there is any problem with
the dirt.

Denney said workers will remove about one-third of the hill and cover it
with grass. The city eventually will develop commercial business on what
remains of the hill, he said.

A September 2008 proposal by Taylor Corp. describes the demolition in vague
terms. "This item includes undercutting two building pad footprints ..." the
report reads. "The City has agreed to let us spoil the undercut material on
their property across the new bridge."

Denney said the line in the proposal refers to the hill. "The agreement was
we'd furnish the soil," Denney said. "The city would furnish them a place to
get it."

The City Council transferred the property containing the hill to the CDA in
February. Councilwoman June Land Reaves, who voted against the transfer,
said she did not understand the hill property was a part of it.

"I never heard any discussion about dirt being taken from the hillside or a
reason why that was being done, but it seems to me like a lot of cities
capitalize on the history they have ... but (we do not seem) to do that,"
she said.

Too Late for City Council Intervention

Council President Chris Spurlin said it's too late for the City Council to
intervene at the site. He said he hated the bad publicity, but said there is
no proof the site holds human remains.

"The CDA has the authority," Spurlin said. "They're trying to do what's best
for the city. I don't see no reason in buying fill dirt from someone when we
have that hill available."

In a follow-up story, The Anniston Star later reported:

OXFORD, Ala. (AP)-City officials have ignored another protest over the
city's decision to destroy a stone mound on a hill behind the Oxford
Exchange created by American Indians 1,500 years ago.

Tony Castaneda, of Anniston, and Sharon Jackson, of Fruithurst, who say they
are Indian elders, presented Mayor Leon Smith with a petition Monday
containing more than 600 signatures of people opposed to the site's
destruction. The Anniston Star reported Tuesday Smith became agitated when
the two arrived at City Hall, took the petition and went back inside.

Castaneda and Jackson collected more signatures at City Hall that evening.
The state Historical Commission says the mound is the largest of its kind in
Alabama. The city paid to have part of the hill taken down for fill at a
Sam's Club.