LONG BEACH : Development Ban for Sacred Site Is Rejected

A Superior Court judge has upheld Cal State Long Beach’s bid to develop a parcel of campus land that Native Americans considered to be sacred.

Opponents of development said they will appeal the ruling, which could delay a final decision on the case for at least a year.

A group of Native Americans had asked the court for a permanent injunction to keep the land vacant because of its religious and cultural significance, but last week Judge Abby Soven denied the petition. Soven said the group’s request would violate the constitutional separation of church and state by allowing a group to use state lands for religious purposes, according to attorneys.

At issue is a 22-acre piece of university-owned land along Bellflower Boulevard that may have been an ancient Indian village called Puvungna. Native Americans say the site is a spiritual center and the birthplace of a deity, Chinishnich, and therefore should remain untouched and accessible.

University attorneys, however, said there is little proof that the site is culturally significant. They said six archeological surveys have failed to produce artifacts, bones or other evidence.

The university originally planned to build a major retail development on the site, but President Robert Maxson said last week that the plan has been scrapped.

“My intention is that this property will remain a campus green spot until such time as it may be needed for educational purposes,” Maxson said in a prepared statement. “As long as I am president there will be no commercialization of this property or any other property on campus.”