Tuesday, September 24, 2002 Seal Beach may buy wetlands   By Joe Segura, Staff writer Hellman Ranch: Native Americans, developer at odds over burial sites. AL BEACH - Seal Beach city officials are exploring a potential acquisition of a 100-acre degraded wetland area on the sprawling Hellman Ranch, in an effort to take the lead in restoring the site. The move comes as earthmovers have stopped grading the turf on the eastern border of the ranch, along Seal Beach Boulevard, because of a dispute over Native American burial sites. And environmentalists also are concerned that the 100 acres of wetland area, set aside for restoration, will be trimmed to less than half that acreage. Dave Bartlett, project manager for plans to build 70 upscale homes, said that the dispute with the Native Americans has been settled. And he said 100 acres will be restored as wetlands. The city took the first formal step Monday night, on a consent agenda item, promptly approving the search for consultants to conduct the initial environmental reports. Critics found themselves scrambling for time to talk on the issue. Doug Kortof, an environmental activist, warned the city it should not take the lead agency role in the restoration effort. And activist Sue Corbin said the city needed to look at the move more closely. "This is ridiculous, to have this matter show up on the consent calendar,' she said of the process that does not provide public input. Meanwhile, the work has been halted on the construction project, as the developer Laing Homes and Native American members of the Gabrieleno Tongva tribe hammer out an agreement on the handling of Native American ancestral remains. On Sept. 10, the monitors blocked the earthmovers with their cars, in an attempt to guard one burial site, according to tribal chair/chief Anthony Morales. They were threatened with arrest, Morales said, adding that the monitors feared that the developer would fire them putting the two archaeological site at risk of destruction. Joanie Madrid, project manager for Laing Homes, which will build the 70 upscale homes, said the monitors would not acknowledge an archaeologist's ruling that some bones found were those of animals. Morales disputed Madrid's version, and he contacted the state Native American Heritage Commission, which alerted the state Coastal Commission, which had required the monitoring system to assure proper handling of any remains found. Environmentalists contend that wetland restoration commitments have been drastically reduced, and instead of 99 acres of wildlife refuge open to the public, there will be only small ponds available for homeowners on private property. Hellman Ranch officials have convinced the state Wildlife Conservation Board to subtract 53 acres from the mix of sections that would have made up the restoration area on the southwest section of the property, according to Don May, president of the California Earth Corps environmental group. May said that a lawsuit could soon be filed to force compliance with the restoration agreement made with the state Coastal Commission, which approved the development permit base on the restoration plan. However, May said he's basing his concerns on information given to him by several state agencies, including the Coastal Commission, Wildlife Conservation Board and the Coastal Conservancy.