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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAction PlanAction Plan Met Miami February 6, 2014 Since 2000, before any destructive work was undertaken, Met Miami has funded and supported archeological studies to make certain that artifacts existing on the site were found, identified, catalogued and delivered to History Miami. The cost of this effort has so far exceeded $3 million. Thousands of artifacts were uncovered from this exhaustive exercise. From this undertaking, archeologists have been able to piece together important elements of the history of the peoples who occupied this land, preserving for generations to come the knowledge gleaned from good work funded by good citizenship. In the following pages we discuss the nature of what was done and advance a proposal to go forward which, we believe, appropriately balances public interests against the rights and needs of an owner of valuable private property. With respect to that part of our proposal to provide both a space for education and a fund for its presentation, we want to make clear that any presentation of the archeology be designed and presented by archeologists trained in such matters. What we present is but a place holder for their work and a place for that work to be seen. We are particularly sensitive to the need to utilize expertise to present archeological knowledge as part of our management plan. That we respect that knowledge should be obvious from the last thirteen years. The fact that people called to this effort should know what they are doing has been driven home to us most recently as we are presented unrealistic plans to redesign our building. The research we have funded has provided archeologists a wealth of knowledge that, in no small way, has helped to write the book about the civilizations and other occupants of this land. Having paid for the book, we are the last people who would want to tear up any of its pages. The Developer's plan to manage the archaeological site and findings consists of three parts: those archaeological activities that have been completed to date, the mitigation measures to be implemented in order to preserve findings, and the ultimate disposition of those findings. Completed Archaeological Activities: Metropolitan Miami's MDM Development Group began its collaboration with respected South Florida archeologist Robert Carr in 2000, the commitment being an orderly and comprehensive excavation, analysis, artifact preservation and cataloguing of all three city blocks, entirely funded by the developer. It was generally understood that items of significance would be found; after all, Tequesta Indians were known to have lived along both of the Miami River's banks, and Henry Flagler built the Royal Palm Hotel at the site. The order of exploration of the construction sites was: 1. Met 1 -- Piles of creosote -soaked timbers from the Royal Palm Hotel's marina were discovered and removed, along with the contaminated soil around them. Nothing of historical significance was found within the building's footprint; however, a nearby circular pattern of holes dug in the rock was detected, covered and protected for later exploration. 2. Met 3 -- The most significant items of the entire project were discovered within this building's footprint. There are a number of "solution holes," formed when whirling eddies of river water eroded the rock over time, centuries ago. The Tequestas used the holes as graves, depositing specific body parts (arms here, legs there and so forth) at assigned holes in what may have been an attempt to keep "returning spirits" from doing so "whole." Archeological work began at this location in 2005. The final report document, containing detailed mapping and artifact cataloguing, required two years to compile; it was published in December 2010. Skeletal remains of at least 288 individuals were found, and were analyzed for ages, sexes, causes of death, diet and other discernible facts. A freshwater well also was discovered at this location, which may have served Fort Dallas and which also contained human remains at its bottom. A gun shooting range, with many musket balls, also was discovered. The bones and burial stones were re -interred in consultation with, and in a manner approved by, the Seminole Tribe of Florida. 3. Met 2 -- More solution holes were found, but there were no skeletal remains found in them. No items of historical importance were discovered. 4. Met Square -- Excavation at Met Square started in November 2012 and, according to Mr. Carr at that time, was expected to finish in March 2013. The circle of holes first discovered during the exploration of the Met 1 site was fully exposed and named the "Royal Palm Circle." In addition to that circle, several concrete steps from the Royal Palm Hotel and foundation plinths that supported its veranda had been discovered at the time the City of Miami issued its 2013 warrant approval to MDM Development Group for the construction of Met Square. The warrant acknowledged MDM's agreement to recover and relocate the Royal Palm Circle and the hotel steps and plinths into a public plaza, for ground -level public access and viewing, to be located between Met Square and Met 1, as well as the ongoing donation of thousands of recovered artifacts to History Miami. Since then, seven additional, smaller circles of holes in the rock, as well as linear configurations of holes, have been discovered. The overall cost of archeological exploration, cataloguing and analysis, as well as the committed relocation of countless items of historical importance, now exceeds $3 million. The majority of the site has been laser -scanned and mapped by Biscayne Engineering using state-of-the-art equipment to create three-dimensional mapping imagery that can by fully manipulated to study any portion of the post holes down to minute detail. Additional Mitigation to Preserve Findings: Final excavations to reveal the only portion of the site landward of the historic shoreline that had not been previously documented are underway. Once fully excavated and documented, that portion of the site will be laser -scanned by Biscayne Engineering to complete the site mapping. Following test pile program completion, the entire area landward of the historic shoreline will be re - excavated with all post holes marked by PVC pipe sections so that aerial photographs and final laser scanning can be completed. All artifacts collected from the site will be studied off -site by Mr. Carr and catalogued. Once study is completed, Mr. Carr will present a final report detailing all findings and the methods employed, with specific reference to all recovered specimens. During construction activities that follow final site excavation, Mr. Carr will continue monitoring foundation construction activities in the unlikely event that such activities result in previously undocumented discoveries. Disposition: The drainage issues associated with the elevation of the post holes approximately four feet below street level and approximately two feet above existing tidal levels, together with the fact that the post holes are in Miami limestone complicates and likely will make impossible any in situ preservation efforts other than reburial. Exposed to atmospheric conditions, the Miami limestone will erode in a relatively short period of time. As demonstrated by the Miami Circle, while the proper way to protect this type of artifact is to cover it with fill, covered formations have no interpretative value and add nothing to public knowledge. Thus, what has been obtained is knowledge , what can be removed has been removed and, the postholes that remain can only be preserved by making them invisible. Met Miami has developed its plans to set aside a plaza to serve as a pleasant, wonderful place for the public to learn about the peoples who once occupied this site. In that plaza Met Miami proposes to relocate three large scale findings. This would function in large part as an open-air museum with interpretative exhibits: the Royal Palm Circle, the Royal Palm hotel steps, and the Royal Palm veranda piers. We believe it may be necessary to display the Royal Palm Circle itself under semi -transparent material to allow for viewing while offering protection. The plaza's interpretative exhibits would depict site findings, describing the historical significance of the site over different eras and the current understanding of the way of life of the original Tequesta inhabitants. The three-dimensional mapping survey will be used to create pictorial representations of the excavated site and projections of the potential appearance of the fully constructed Tequesta settlement site. All exhibits will be carefully curated in consultation with Mr. Carr and the City's Preservation Office. The entire plaza and its exhibits will be maintained at the Developer's expense. Following cataloguing, all movable artifacts recovered from the site that are not used as part of the interpretive exhibits within Met Square or the plaza will be donated to the History Miami. Additionally, soft -copy versions of the three dimensional mapping surveys of the site will be donated to universities within the State of Florida that request it for further study.