Superior council approves Wisconsin Point plan after tribal members urge protections for cemetery

The Superior Common Council voted to approve the Northwest Regional Planning Commission's Wisconsin Point Area Management Plan on Oct. 16 after a public hearing in which tribal descendants urged protections for burial sites and cultural resources.

Robert Miller, a resident of Hermantown who said he spoke on behalf of elders, told the council his family has "a strong connection to Wisconsin Point" and asked the city to seek National Register of Historic Places status to protect the area. "We don't want our bodies moved anymore. We don't want our homes destroyed anymore," Miller said, describing historical removals of remains and the use of quicklime to eliminate evidence of burials.

City staff and planning supporters told the council the draft plan includes a cultural management zone and that the planning commission incorporated concerns raised by the tribe and the state archaeologist. A city staff member present said the plan had been available for public review in the clerk's office and that the management zones include a cultural overlay intended to leave sensitive areas untouched while guiding future decisions.

Mary Piccard, identified in the meeting as a parks staff member, said she and another staffer met the state archaeologist on site and were awaiting the final archaeologist report. She confirmed the plan recognizes a cultural overlay and that the city had taken some interim steps, such as blocking parking near the cemetery after public comment.

Miller and other speakers recounted that burials were removed from the point in the early 20th century and said ancestors told them graves were later disturbed and artifacts taken to private collections and museums. "Their biggest fear is that if it happens a third time, the evidence that we were there will disappear," Miller said. He asked the council what the Northwest plan would mean for protection of the site.

City staff responded that the plan, as written, does not authorize development in the cultural overlay and that future actions would be guided by archaeologist findings and further consultation with tribal representatives. Staff also said they could provide the archaeologist's interim report and copies of the plan to concerned residents.

After the public hearing, council members moved to approve the resolution adopting the plan. The council voted in favor and the motion passed.

Council members and staff said they would continue outreach to tribal representatives and the state archaeologist to ensure the cultural-zone protections in the plan are implemented as intended.

The plan now moves forward as the official guidance for future land-management decisions at Wisconsin Point; staff said further site-specific work would depend on the archaeologist's final report and any future agreements with tribal stakeholders.