08-22-22 Letter from MN Indian Affairs Council

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AUG-20-9T WED 09:46 t"!1 WOODWARD CLYDE FAX NO, 6125930094 F. O1 Woodward-Clyde Nip ��• Engineeir g 1,c,encos to the earth a Its environment December 17, 1996 ' r ` t1.1 1.17e16120 Mr. Bruce Polaczyk ---- --- Hennepin County Department of Pubic Works 320 Washington Avenue South Hopkins,Minnesota 55343 Subject: Archaeological Assessment of Proposed CSAH 15 Modifications Near Bracketts Point, Hennepin County • Project No. 6E13030 Dear Mr. Polaczyk: As part of the planning process for the modification of CSAH 15 near Brackett's Point Road, Hennepin County requested a cultural resource assessment of the project area,with particular attention paid to reports of Native American Indian burial mounds within and near to the project area. Woodward-Clyde was contracted to perform a literature search to verify these reports and to ascertain if the project as planned would have any effect on extant mounds or mound remnants. After the literature review,a brief site visit was made to relocate extant mounds. Many of the mounds in the originally reported group(Site 21HE03)were found still intact. The following report details the results of thc investigations, and includes a map of the mound group as originally noted and the approximate location of the proposed CSAH 15 alignment in relation to the burials. The review was undertaken to comply with the Minnesota Private Cemeteries Act,Minnesota Statute 307.08,and the Minnesota Field Archaeology Act(Minn. Stat. 138). Work was conducted under State Archaeological Multiple Project License 96-007a. Funding for the project was provided by Hennepin County. After holding public meetings and careful review of the findings,Hennepin County and the City of Orono planners decided not to widen the roadway as shown in the plans herein presented, but to instead,do a simple overlay as an upgrade. INTRODUCTION Hennepin County has developed plans to modify County State Aid Highway 15 by widening the roadway and adding turn lanes in the vicinity of Brackett's Point Road. The project is located in Section 11, TI 17N,R23W along a segment of the road that runs along the north shore of Lake Minnetonka between Smith's Bay and Brown's Bay(Figure 1). Local landowners contacted thc Hennepin County Public Works Department when plans for the road modification came to their attention. Concern was expressed that reported Native Woodward-Clyde Consultants •A subsidiary of Woodward-Clyde Group,Inc. Park Place Wes:Buildnq,Suite 660•6465 Wayzata Bivd.•Minneapolia,MN 55426 612-593-5650•Fax 612-593 0094 J tt:f 1303OF INAt 2 f Qct t 7{1K•6GVA,,