A Cultural Resources Assessment for the Western Canal Multi-use Path Project, City of Tempe, Maricopa County, Arizona

Summary

In coordination with the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHW A), the City of Tempe is planning to construct a six-mile-long multi-use path along alternating banks of the Western Canal. The multi-use path alignment, identified in the Tempe Multi-use Path System Detailed Plan (Plan) prepared in August 2000, will start on the west side of the Loop 101 Freeway halfway between Elliot and Guadalupe Roads and will extend west to the intersection of Priest Road on the north side of Arizona Mills Mall (Figure l ). The Western Canal is within a l 00-foot-wide right-of-way owned by the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) and administered by the Salt River Project (SRP). The multi-use path would require at-grade crossings at Priest Road, Hardy Drive, Baseline Road, Guadalupe Road, Rural Road, and McClintock Drive. The canal and multi-use path are located within the limits of the city of Tempe, Maricopa County, Arizona.

The scope of work for this project includes construction of a ten-foot-wide concrete multi-use path with 2-foot-wide decomposed granite shoulders. Placement of lighting fixtures and a steel-driven sheet pile retaining wall to prevent erosion will be determined at a later date during the design process.

The project, which will take place on Reclamation lands, is using Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) funds administered through FHW A It is therefore a federal undertaking that must meet the compliance requirements of Section l 06 of the National Historic Preservation Act. The City of Tempe asked HDR Engineering, Inc. (HDR) to conduct a cultural resources assessment to determine if significant cultural resources will be affected by the project. The Local Government Section of ADOT is coordinating the environmental compliance activities, including cultural resources, on behalf of the City of Tempe. Thus, ADOT will serve as the lead agency for the Section 106 process.

The Western Canal right-of-way has been previously surveyed for cultural resources in its entirety (Aguila 1998; Andersen 1990). In addition, numerous surveys, monitoring, and excavation projects have taken place at various locations along and adjacent to the route. As a result, three archaeological sites and several isolated prehistoric canals have been documented in the current project area. The following report summarizes this past work in and adjacent to the current project area and provides management recommendations for the proper treatment of the identified cultural resources. In addition, suggestions for interpretive signs for the multi-use path are provided in Appendix A.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Salt River Project Digital Library

Keywords

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Daniel Garcia

Prepared By(s): HDR, Inc.

Submitted To(s): Arizona Department of Transportation

Record Identifiers

Cultural Resource Report(s): 04-08

HDR Project No. (s): 15154

Project No. (s): CM-TMP-0(026)A

File Information