Acjachemen tribal members said they hope to end delays that have dragged out for 4 years efforts to build a small simulated Native American village in a San Juan Capistrano park.
Multiple incarnations of San Juan Capistrano city councils have approved the village, but each time they ended up putting the project on hold so concerns could be worked out: funding, maintenance, and this latest time, worry the city would be opened up to lawsuits over using the land for something other than intended by the zoning code.
The city on Sept. 11 released the results of a community survey asking residents to rank what they would like to see at the 65 acres of undeveloped city property along the 5 Freeway called the Northwest Open Space. The City Council will discuss the results, along with what councilmembers heard at two community workshops the city organized to gather input, at its Sept. 17 meeting.
Out of 492 who answered the survey, about 60% said they wanted the village to be built on the Northwest Open Space. About a quarter of the survey respondents disagreed. Most residents also wanted to see walking or nature trails in the space.
Since the council put the village plans on hold five months ago, members of the Acjachemen tribe have been holding prayer rallies and turning out in numbers at council meetings and the workshops to convince leaders to not abandon the monument to their heritage and history in the area.
“My ancestors could have never spoken up,” said Jerry Nieblas, a tribal descendant who has been pushing for the park for years. “We grew up hearing their struggle, and we are going to speak up.”
For thousands of years, Acjachemen tribal members lived in the village of Putuidem on much of what is now the Northwest Open Space.
They were driven out of the village when the Spanish arrived and built Mission San Juan Capistrano in 1776.
The simulated village would showcase Acjachemen artifacts and exhibits in authentic huts. It would be both an educational site for the community, but also a place for Acjachemen descendants to hold tribal ceremonies.
City officials have said they could fund the $2 million park through revenues coming from existing bonds, such as Measure Y approved by voters in 2008 to preserve open spaces. City staffers have also said the city has the money to maintain the park, and some tribal members have said they want to pitch in as well.
But, “after three and a half year of hard work, we still have nothing to show for it,” Nieblas said of lobbying efforts for the village.
The latest delay happened as council members also considered a proposal to turn another 40 acres of the Northwest Open Space into a campground, with cabins, cottages and spaces for RVs.
About 20% of the survey’s respondents said they wanted to see camping in the space.
Mark Nielsen, a former San Juan Capistrano councilman, has threatened legal action, saying the campground proposal doesn’t fit the area’s zoning as a community park.
Councilman Troy Bourne has said a similar land use issue could occur with the Putuidem village and called for the council to put on hold all plans for the Northwest Open Space. Putting a pause on the village project was necessary to find the best way to move forward, he said.
It “remains a challenge,” he said, to figure out whether the area would need to be rezoned to allow the construction of the tribal village.
“The lawsuit would not have had anything to do with Putuidem,” said Kerry Ferguson, a former councilwoman who has been a long-time supporter of the village. “They were not objecting to Putuidem. They were objecting to an RV park.”
Several tribal members are also concerned about the proposal for the RV park, instead encouraging a more “passive use” of the property.
Michelle Castillo said the site is a burial ground for her Acjachemen ancestors. “This is the original home. How do you feel if we went to your cemetery and decide to build an RV park there?”
Nieblas said he could see uses such as a farm-to-table restaurant, and wants a committee of tribal members disbanded by the city last year to discuss options.
“If we have to work another year, then for God’s sake, bring a committee together,” he said. “Let’s give anything we can until we can’t give anything anymore.”
The City Council on Sept. 17 could direct city staffers on how to move forward on the Northwest Open Space, Assistant City Manager Charlie View said. It remains uncertain what form that would take.
“My hope would be to come out of the evening formally reaffirming our commitment to the park,” said Mayor Brian Maryott, who has long wanted the park to be built. “I don’t think it needs to continue in a holding pattern.”
