ishgooda
Sat, 27 Nov 1999 12:09:37 -0800
Posted by [EMAIL PROTECTED] :
peter webster <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> replies:
Shoalwaters will revive talks with Ridgefield
on impasse
The tribe wants to reach a deal for its development as it backs off
from challenging a rider on a federal bill
Saturday, November 27, 1999
By Rick Bella of The Oregonian staff
RIDGEFIELD, Wash. -- Representatives of the Shoalwater Bay Indian Tribe and the
city of Ridgefield have set another meeting in hopes of resolving their differences
over a development the tribe proposes to build just east of the city.
Meanwhile, the 202-member tribe, one of Washington's smallest and poorest, has backed
off from challenging a federal appropriations bill that the Shoalwaters call
unconstitutional. The Shoalwaters say they don't have enough money for a legal
challenge and are looking for broader support from the Native American community.
"I don't know if we're in a position to right that kind of wrong," said Herbert Madzu
Whitish, Shoalwater tribal chairman. "We hate to see an appropriations bill like that
go through. But to participate in the legal system, you have to have a big checkbook."
Last year, a Whatcom County dairy farmer deeded 170.8 acres at Ridgefield Junction to
the tribe. The Shoalwaters then asked the federal government to place the land in
trust so the tribe, which is based on the Washington coast, could develop a
residential subdivision.
The tribe wants the development to provide revenue to pay for health care, education
and economic development on its tiny reservation in Tokeland.
As a sovereign nation, the tribe is legally required to deal only with the federal
government, Whitish said. But an amendment attached to the Interior appropriations
bill by U.S. Sen. Slade Gorton, R-Wash., prohibits the federal Bureau of Indian
Affairs from placing the Shoalwaters' land near Ridgefield into trust unless the tribe
first reaches development agreements with Clark County.
"We believe it is unconstitutional," Whitish said Friday. "The Clinton administration
opposed the rider. But in the end, the president didn't veto it."
At the same time, the Shoalwaters are seriously considering amending their plans for
developing the land, which is just east of Interstate 5, on the Ridgefield city
limits. Initially, the tribe said it wanted to build 1,580 town houses. But
Ridgefield, Clark County and neighbors said such a dense development would strain
services, overburden roads and threaten the semirural lifestyle enjoyed by area
residents.
Since then, the Shoalwaters have said they would be willing to amend their plans and
concentrate on light industrial development, which is favored by the county's
long-range plans.
Whitish said he planned to meet with Ridgefield representatives on Monday in Kelso.
"The longer we get into this project, the more things seem to be stacked up against
us," Whitish said. "But I hope we can develop the project so it provides us a
grubstake and we can provide basic benefits for our people."
Reprinted under the Fair Use http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html doctrine
of international copyright law.
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