An agreement between a developer and an Indian tribe could set a
precedent for creating and developing sovereign lands throughout
the state without government control, says an environmental group
that finds the deal alarming.
”
If a scheme like this works, and the county’s wishes are
nullified, you might see this kind of development scenario
occurring in much of California,
”
said Craig Breon, head of the Santa Clara Valley Audubon
Society.
Environmental group opposes Sargent development
Hollister – An agreement between a developer and an Indian tribe could set a precedent for creating and developing sovereign lands throughout the state without government control, says an environmental group that finds the deal alarming.
“If a scheme like this works, and the county’s wishes are nullified, you might see this kind of development scenario occurring in much of California,” said Craig Breon, head of the Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society.
But the head of the Amah Mutsuns working with Sargent Ranch owner Wayne Pierce to build on 3,500 acres responded to criticism Friday, indicating the tribe would leave much of the pristine land undeveloped.
Tribal Chair Irenne Zwierlein said the group of 454 Amah Mutsuns intends to use the proposed sovereign lands for cultural preservation and economic stability only.
She also countered another Amah Mutsun group’s claim that she splintered off four years ago and stole membership records and federal documents. She says that group left the tribe, and that she merely kept the records she worked hard to compile.
Furthermore, once they obtain official tribal status, she said they would involve the affected communities in its planning – but only after they gain federal standing. Officials in San Benito and Santa Clara counties have expressed concern they may be shut out of the process because tribal sovereignty overrides local governments’ power to govern.
“We will be working with the community after recognition because we have to live in the community,” Zwierlein said from her Woodside home. “Our future is living together in a community we want to build.”
The Amah Mutsun Indians, whose ancestral grounds fall on the 6,500-acre Sargent Ranch located at the southern tip of Santa Clara County, approached Pierce about a possible development deal in 2000, Zwierlein said. Two years later, the group submitted a petition to the federal government to gain tribal status, according to the application obtained by the Free Lance.
If they get it – they’re 12th on a priority list that could take several years to climb – they would keep 500 acres to themselves while leasing the remaining 3,000 acres to Pierce.
On their portion of the land, the Indians plan to develop homes, businesses, infrastructure and a $21 million cultural center, according to their economic development plan, a document Zwierlein said the Bureau of Indian Affairs requested in April.
It’s not clear what Pierce, whose three previous attempts to develop on the ranch have been rejected by Santa Clara County, would do on his portion of the land.
There have not been detailed discussions with Pierce about his plans, Zwierlein said. Though they have mentioned building a hospital and an assisted living home on his portion of the trust land, she said. Nothing else was discussed, she said.
Zwierlein, 59, denounced the notion that Pierce could be using the tribe to circumvent government approvals to develop the land. She said she approached Pierce for the deal in 2000 because of the property’s cultural significance as ancestral lands.
“He and his wife have made a commitment to us,” she said.
Still, Indian gaming experts and the Audubon Society view the deal as unconventional. There’s no casino in the proposal, a standard for tribal agreements with developers.
At the group’s annual tribal gathering July 18 in Gilroy, members voted to amend the tribe’s constitution to include a “no gaming” provision. The vote was 127–24, according to a letter from Zwierlein to members. It would take a 75 percent vote to change the constitution again, according to the letter.
Plans at the Sargent Ranch development instead call for a mix of commercial and residential use, while Pierce would potentially gain control-free building rights on 3,000 acres of open ranchland.
Pierce, who has not been reached, has hired a powerful lobbying firm and prominent law firm – both based in Washington, D.C. – to work on the deal.
A representative from the lobbying firm, Clark and Weinstein, confirmed Friday they represent the Sargent Ranch landowner. Pierce, though, is not yet ready to talk publicly about the proposal, said the representative, who requested anonymity.
The proposal, which went public for the first time in newspaper reports Friday, comes only weeks after another Indian tribe’s plans were revealed to build a casino off Highway 25. That tribe is the California Valley Miwoks, a five-member group with financial backing of local investors.
The Miwoks’ Maryland-based attorney Phillip Thompson, an expert on Indian gaming law, believes the Amah Mutsun members would try to build a casino despite their claim to the contrary, he said.
Thompson said the Amah Mutsuns have taken the appropriate steps to eventually gaining federal standing by hiring Washington insiders. He also recognized the unprecedented nature of the tribe’s proposal.
Agreements for development on sovereign or potentially sovereign lands not involving gaming are uncommon because developers view them as more of a risk, he said.
If gaming is involved, strict federal regulations govern development deals, he said. For instance, investors’ contracts with tribes last for a maximum of seven years – with little room for exceptions. After that, tribes take over the operation. Plus, investors take home 30 percent of a casino’s profits under federal law, he said.
Without a casino on the table, though, “there are no limitations,” he said. And that doesn’t sit well with potential financiers.
“A lot of times developers don’t think past – the tribe is going to steal my land,” Thompson said.
Thompson could think of one other similarly broached development deal – between a tribe and a developer – in Santa Barbara County. That involved Fess Parker, who’s famous for playing Daniel Boone and Davy Crockett on television.
His attempts to develop 1,400 acres were rejected by county officials, according to an Associated Press report.
So earlier this year he turned to the Santa Ynez band of Chumash Indians – who are federally recognized and already operate a 190,000 square-foot casino. And the two sides have since been discussing the possibility of developing 745 acres as sovereign land, according to tribal spokesperson Frances Snyder.
Even Snyder acknowledged that, other than those two instances of a tribe and developer negotiating for a non-gaming development, such agreements are rare. Through research, she hasn’t found any others, she said.
Breon, of the Audubon Society, said the possible deal between Pierce and the Amah Mutsuns is the first time he’s heard of such an arrangement. “This does seem like a new twist,” he said.
He’s most concerned, however, about the environmental impacts of developing on 3,500 acres of pristine land chock full of threatened species and some of the last remaining open space in the region.
He’s staunchly against the tribe’s proposal. The land connects the Diablo Range with the Santa Cruz Mountains. For one, the Sargent Ranch serves as a passage for mountain lions. Erasing that corridor would damage mountain lions’ and other animals’ genetic health, he said.
His organization will fight it. And if the proposal stands to set a precedence for similar land deals, he said national environmental groups would, too.
“Our job is to defeat all these proposals,” Breon said. “Until landowners realize this land has a tremendous value to the public as nature, there will always be a say.”
Zwierlein, though, insisted her tribe wants to keep the property’s environmental health intact. The Amah Mutsuns are currently conducting a study on the potential existence of endangered species on the land, she said.
