Attachment 4 Draft Reso No. R-02-16 Project Site vee e L Existing Off-site Detention Basins R ia lto C Wastewater h a Treatment nn e r Facility l; ve ta Ana Ri n Sa Source: Google Earth 2012 Imagery Location of Proposed Detention/Water Quality Basin Figure The Altum Group Agua Mansa Logistics Center Initial Study 10 Less than Potentially Significant Less Than No ISSUES Significant with Significant Impact Impact Mitigation Impact Incorporated 5. CULTURAL RESOURCES - Would the project: a) Cause a substantial adverse change in the significance of a historical resource as defined in §15064.5? b) Cause a substantial adverse change in the significance of an archaeological resource pursuant to §15064.5? c) Directly or indirectly destroy a unique paleontological resource or site or unique geologic feature? d) Disturb any human remains, including those interred outside of formal cemeteries? Information for this section is from the following source: Historical/Archaeological Resources Survey Report Assessor’s Parcel Numbers 0260-072-01 TO -04, -15, AND -16 In the City of Colton San Bernardino County, California, prepared by CRM Tech, June 13, 2013 (Appendix D) and Phase I Environmental Site Assessment, 42-acre Agua Mansa Project, 1350-1600 Agua Mansa Road, Colton, California 92324, prepared by SCS Engineers, April 2013 ( Appendix F). Setting Prior to the arrival of Spanish explorers, the foothills and valleys surrounding the project area were occupied and used by both Gabrielino and Serrano Indians. The Inland Empire area received its first European visitors during the early and mid-1770s, shortly after the beginning of Spanish colonization of Alta California in 1769. For the next 45-50 years, however, the region received little impact from these colonization activities until the establishment of the mission asistencia in 1819. In 1834, the Mexican government began the process of secularizing the mission system in Alta California. In the 1830s-1840s, several expansive tracts of former mission land in the vicinity were granted to various prominent citizens of the province. One of the largest among these land grants, Rancho Jurupa, was awarded to Juan Bandini in 1838. Within a few years, Bandini divided the land grant into two parts and sold them to two ranchéros, one of whom was his son-in-law Abel Stearns. After the annexation of Alta California by the United States in 1848, the original land grant was confirmed as two separate entities, the 6,750-acre Rancho Jurupa (Rubidoux) and the 25,519-acre Rancho Jurupa (Stearns). The project area was part of Rancho Jurupa (Stearns). Historically, the general vicinity of the project area was home to the earliest non-Native communities in the San Bernardino-Riverside area, Agua Mansa and La Placita. Both were founded in the mid-1840s by hispanicized Native American families who had migrated from New Mexico. In 1862, both villages were destroyed by flood, and were subsequently rebuilt on higher ground. By the early 20th century, as their residents moved away in search of employment, Agua Mansa and La Placita gradually lost their identity Agua Mansa Logistics Center Initial Study October 2013 Page 58 Less than Potentially Significant Less Than No ISSUES Significant with Significant Impact Impact Mitigation Impact Incorporated as separate communities from the larger towns nearby. Today, few remnants remain of the two villages, but their legacy is a well-known chapter in local history. The project site lies on the northwestern bank of the Santa Ana River, the main natural waterway in the San Bernardino Valley. The terrain in the vicinity is relatively level, with elevations varying between approximately 875 feet and 890 feet above sea level. Two vacant residential buildings stand in the western portion, one of them accompanied by a concrete block garage, a shed, and a stable. An abandoned wastewater treatment plant, consisting of evaporation ponds, tanks, pipelines, and a small building, is located near the eastern boundary. A power transmission line crosses the southern portion of the project site. Discussion a) Less Than Significant Impact With Mitigation Incorporated. The results of the records search indicate that two historic-period sites, namely the former site of the Agua Mansa village and the Agua Mansa Ditch, were previously identified as lying partially within the project site. In addition, the Bloomington-Colton-Colton Cement power transmission line, reportedly built in 1911, was also noted as lying partially within the project site during previous studies but has not been formally recorded as a historical/archaeological site. During the archaeological field survey, two residential buildings and an abandoned wastewater treatment facility, all dating to the early to mid-20th century, were recorded into the California Historical Resources Inventory. According to previous studies of the area, the Bloomington-Colton-Colton Cement 66-kV transmission line crossed the southern portion of the project site, and its presence was confirmed during the field survey. The power line remains in use as a working component of the modern infrastructure, and is similar in appearance to utility lines of modern vintage, undoubtedly due to past upgrading and maintenance. The power line is an entirely utilitarian feature of standard design and construction that exhibits no particular historic, architectural, technological, engineering, or aesthetic qualities. Due to the lack of any potential for historic significance, the segment of the Bloomington-Colton-Colton Cement 66-kV transmission line across the project site is not considered to be a historical/archaeological site. There are five potential historical resources sites identified in the Historical/Archaeological Resources Survey Report for the project, (1) the site of the former village of Agua Mansa, (2) the Agua Mansa Ditch, (3) the City of Colton Wastewater Treatment Plant, (4) a residence at 650 Agua Mansa Road and (5) a residence at 656 Agua Mansa Road. (1) The general location of the former village of Agua Mansa. The boundaries of the village encompass portions of the southwestern corner of the project site. Agua Mansa was founded in the mid-1840s and destroyed by flood in 1862; then rebuilt on higher ground, but it gradually lost its community identity around the turn of the 20th century. Historical sources suggest that none of the activities or developments associated with the Agua Mansa village during its heyday, namely the 1840s-1860s, happened within the boundaries of the project site. Historic maps show that the original location of the "New Mexican Settlement of Agua Mansa" was roughly a mile southwest of the project site, and Agua Mansa Logistics Center Initial Study October 2013 Page 59 Less than Potentially Significant Less Than No ISSUES Significant with Significant Impact Impact Mitigation Impact Incorporated archival property records indicate no building anywhere within the project site until 1912. Furthermore, current documentation on the village identifies no buildings, structures, features, or artifact deposits associated with the village within or adjacent to the project site and no physical manifestation of the village was encountered during the field survey. No physical elements that contribute to the significance and integrity of the former Agua Mansa village exist within the boundaries of the project site. (2) The Agua Mansa Ditch, was constructed in 1862 as a part of the rebuilding effort after the flood that washed out the village and deposited a layer of sand over the fields, making irrigation necessary. In 1886, an easement for the ditch was recorded across the project site in favor of the Agua Mansa Water Company, which was updated in 1899 in favor of the Riverside Water Company. The course of the ditch was delineated across the central portion of the project site, per the easement documentation. The ditch was among the earliest in the area and integral to the growth of the rebuilt Agua Mansa settlement. By 1900, very little of the original Agua Mansa land was under cultivation and a deep frost in 1913 killed much of local citrus and other crops, further sealing the demise of the ditch. At the project site, no physical evidence of a ditch was found during the field survey despite close examination along the charted alignment. It is unclear from the surface inspection whether any remains of the abandoned ditch have survived the past century of agricultural, construction, and other activities on the property, but at this point no features or artifacts associated with the site is known to be present within the project boundaries. (3) The abandoned sewage treatment plant with two large concrete ponds, a large concrete settling tank, a concrete aeration sludge tank, an above-ground sludge digestion tank, concrete sidewalks, metal walkways around and across the settling tank, rusted metal pipes connecting the tanks to each other, and a well housing/storage building. Overall, the site appears to be in fair condition despite having been abandoned for an extended period of time. The plant was built as a part of the City of Colton's sewer system and was present at least by 1938, according to historic aerial photographs. An inquiry to the City of Colton Public Works yielded no further information on the facility or its years of operation. Because the site is not currently listed in a local register of historical resources, and does not appear to hold any special historical interest in the local community, it does not appear to meet any of the criteria for listing in the California Register of Historical Resources, and does not qualify as a historical resource. (4) A one-story residential building located at 650 Agua Mansa Road (APN 0260-072-02). It appears to be the result of joining an older, rectangular wood-framed structure with a pre- formed module of similar shape and size but about a foot shorter.