At the Bay Street center in Emeryville, local American Indians gathered to protest the opening of a shoreline shopping center in an area targeted for urban renewal. The remains of ancestors of the Bay Area Ohlone band are located at the site. Roughly 200 sets of remains were uncovered from the mound, dated to 2,800 years. Archaeologists and tribal advisers were consulted by city developers but debate still rages as to whether the efforts were as thorough as they could have been. City Manager John Flores stated that the proper steps were taken to memorialize the Ohlone according to an agreement by American Indians and community officials. A public garden to memorialize the Ohlone is in process and a community room will have replicas of artifacts found on display, in addition to a web site detailing the Ohlone history. “Shellmounders” picketed in order to inform shoppers about the history of the area, considered one of the largest shellmound, or burial sites, in Northern California. To date, no descendants of the tribe exist, but many local American Indians are offended by the callous treatment of the site. “I'm astounded any community in this day and age would knowingly destroy a 2,500-year-old site,” said Sandy Sher of the Emeryville Historical Society. “To build on the site when you know there are still bodies there and to drive piles through the bodies -- it's very offensive to the Native American descendants.”
