Tribe upset about homes on Poway burial site says ‘blasting’ forced red-tailed hawks out 

The San Pasqual Band of Mission Indians, which wants construction of a Poway housing development to stop because of evidence it is being built on a sacred burial site, said “blasting” developers conducted near nests of red-tailed hawks and other birds drove them away last week. 

Tribal leaders have written to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service seeking help, but said they have heard nothing from the agencies.  

“It’s disappointing to see these builders just destroy this cultural landscape, this village site for the Kumeyaay people,” Jason Lavigne, a coordinator who manages the tribal monitors, said in an interview last week. “It’s very disappointing that they’re not following the regulations and laws that they’re supposed to.” 

Neither fish and wildlife agency commented for this story, despite repeated requests beginning Friday. 

Developer Shea Homes President Paul Barnes said there is daily onsite biological monitoring, weekly nesting bird surveys, nest avoidance buffers, nest monitoring, and full-time biological monitoring occurring at the construction site. 

Tribal leaders are concerned about environmental repercussions on the animals and also say that the hawks hold cultural significance for the tribe. Its members use the feathers for fans. 

The Poway City Council first approved the 41-home Hidden Valley Ranch project in 2003, then again in 2014 with some changes to the design. It sits on a portion of a 420-acre site on the east side of Old Coach Road. 

In between those approvals in 2004, then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a new law that requires local governments to consult with tribes to help protect tribal cultural places through local land use planning.

Tribal leaders found human remains and evidence of a burial site, first in October and twice in March. Since October, the tribe has called on the city and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to stop work on the site. 

Poway spokesperson Rene Carmichael said the city is not legally permitted to comment on any details regarding discoveries, which are required to be confidential. 

She said the city followed state law when the project was approved, including holding public meetings and notifying tribes, and added that a  tribal monitor is on the site daily during construction and that the city has met with tribal attorneys.

“The City has been monitoring the situation closely while the agencies with the appropriate subject matter expertise – various federal and state agencies, including the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers – work through the issues,” Carmichael said. 

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has issued multiple site-specific stop-work requests to the developer, three of which are active, said Public Affairs Chief Dena M. O’Dell. She said that the engineers lack the federal control to stop work across the entire project site.

Barnes said Shea Homes “has been building homes in San Diego for decades and understands its obligations to protect species — including nesting birds — in compliance with all applicable regulations and protocols.” 

There is no indication that construction will stop any time soon.