THOUSAND OAKS : Native American Museum Idea Pushed

Thousand Oaks City Councilman Frank Schillo and other community representatives agreed Wednesday that there is enough interest to further explore the idea of developing a Native Peoples Museum in the city.

Schillo presided over a brainstorming session at City Hall with officials of Montecito-based Rising Hawk Productions to discuss their proposal to build a museum. Also attending the meeting were more than a dozen Chumash Indians, officials of the Conejo Recreation and Park District, United Way, Cal Lutheran University and various other organizations.

Al Fiori and Lauren DeChant of Rising Hawk Productions and Jean-Michel Cousteau, an environmentalist and son of explorer Jacques Cousteau, said they envisioned an educational and cultural resource for the entire region.

They said the museum would include a large theater or lecture hall that would not only feature films but actual demonstrations by Chumash and other Native Americans making art. Fiori said the museum would also make available high-tech computers that visitors could use to learn more about native cultures in South America, Alaska, Australia and elsewhere.

Beverly Salazar Folks, a Chumash and resident of Thousand Oaks, said there is no similar type of facility in Southern California.

“It would be great,” she said. “Maybe it would bring the different native groups together and teach the young people” about their culture.

Schillo said he plans to hold another meeting in January to discuss in more detail how to actually develop and fund the project. He said it’s possible that a private developer may be willing to donate some land for the museum, and that other funds for its development would come from grants and private donations.

He said he did not expect the city to pay for any part of its development.