By Joey Chenowith | Casa Grande Dispatch
U.S. Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick said at Casa Grande Ruins National Monument during an open house on Thursday that progress is being made on a bill that would expand the boundaries of the monument.
The 1st District Democrat introduced the Casa Grande Ruins National Monument Boundary Modification Act of 2013 on June 25. If it is passed, control of several pieces of land will transfer from various agencies to the National Park Service in
the interest of preserving cultural artifacts that might be located on the land.
“We are standing on ground that is one of the most culturally rich in the world,” Kirkpatrick said. “This is the best preserved of 13th century Hohokam culture.”
If passed and signed by the president, the National Park Service would
immediately receive land from the U.S. Bureau of Land Management that is connected to the southeast corner of the current boundary. The secretary of the interior would then negotiate a deal between the Park Service and the Bureau of Indian Affairs for land connected to the northeast corner of the park.
“Both those areas are very rich in cultural resources in American history, and something both those agencies are interested in preserving,” said Park
Superintendent Karl Cordova.
Deals for land near the Coolidge Wal-Mart, which is currently owned by Archaeological Conservancy in an attempt to preserve the area until the bill passes, and state land east of Coolidge that contains the Adamsville Ruins, would also be negotiated.
Kirkpatrick has received bipartisan support from her colleagues in southern
Arizona, with co-sponsors including Republican Rep. Paul Gosar and Democratic Reps. Ed Pastor and Raul Grijalva.
