Tucked away behind a locked gate, plants and animals have taken over the Umatilla Village/Old Town Site.
The city of Umatilla and the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation could soon take over control of managing the vegetation – and wildlife – in that area.
The site has remained empty since, and the city and CTUIR plan to develop the site for recreation and historical significance. On Tuesday, the city of Umatilla authorized Mayor Dave Trott to sign a joint agreement to take over vegetation control at the site.
“The permit will focus on the burial site, but we didn’t want to limit it just to the burial site,” Umatilla City Manager Bob Ward said. “One of the primary concerns for both the tribes and the city is management of invasive species.”
Around the burial site, all vegetation will be cleared out and native foliage replanted in the area. The bulk of the Umatilla Village/Old Town Site has become so overgrown the area has turned into a wildlife habitat, which causes extra complications.
Ward said no action has been decided on how to balance invasive species control and wildlife habitat yet, but the city and tribes will begin researching the issue once the permit is approved.
Once the city and tribe sign off on the agreement, the Corps of Engineers will have 30 days to review the application, and the permit process could then take six month to a year to complete.
In addition to authorizing the mayor to sign the Old Town permit application, the council also approved an updated license and five-year lease for the city’s Third Street Soccer Field. The field is on Corps of Engineer land, and the lease includes the area from that field to Brownell Boulevard.
Ward said the city is working on irrigating that area and hopes to install a second soccer field and to have green space from Brownell to the Umatilla Marina in the future.
