[MSN] An archaeological firm that was fired from a job excavating human bones at the city's Texas Ranger museum expansion site is claiming the city has mismanaged the project.

[MSN]

Firm says city mismanaged burial site at Ranger museum

Saturday, March 08, 2008

By Cindy V. Culp and J.B. Smith

Tribune-Herald staff writers

An archaeological firm that was fired from a job excavating human bones at
the city's Texas Ranger museum expansion site is claiming the city has
mismanaged the project.

The city this week terminated a $437,000 contract with American Archaeology
Group to relocate human remains from the site, a former burial ground. Texas
Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum director Byron Johnson said the city chose to
"part ways" with the firm over differences of opinion about the
archaeological process, but he said he can't say much more because the firm
has threatened a lawsuit.

Officials with the archaeology group, which is based in Lampasas, say the
city hasn't told them why they were axed. However, they believe the contract
was canceled because their work was too thorough for the city's liking.
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The firm also claims the city was ultimately responsible for alleged
mistakes made during the project, including:

* Utility lines installed in areas that were not archaeologically cleared or
approved by the Texas Historical Commission for construction work. Human
remains were subsequently discovered under the lines, including full
skeletons.

* Museum workers picked up bones from the site without documenting where
they came from, contrary to state protocol making it less likely that the
bones can be properly identified.

* The city failed to provide accurate information about the site's history
early in the project. The company says it has uncovered documents proving
the area was once the official city cemetery and therefore likely contains
thousands of bodies.

If that information had been known before the expansion started, the firm
says, the state might have prohibited construction there. At a minimum, more
stringent guidelines would have been put in place to minimize the impact to
the burials, they say.

James Bruseth, the Texas Historical Commission official overseeing the
project, said there's no question errors have been made during the course of
the project, such as unapproved utility lines being installed. He also said
the archaeology group has done a good job.

At the same time, Bruseth said he believes the city understands the state's
expectations for the project and wants to finish the job accordingly. Every
time a problem has come up - whether it was an unapproved pipe or bones
being improperly collected - the city has addressed it, he said.

Timeline in question

The issue at the center of the controversy, Bruseth said, appears to be the
project's timeline. He said his understanding is that the city wants to
speed up the archaeological process.

The city may be able to do that by hiring a company that would put more
workers at the site, Bruseth said. The commission would have no objection to
that, as long as the new firm follows the agreed-upon protocols, he said.

The historical commission's main objective is to see that the project is
completed with the least possible impact to the burials, Bruseth said.

"That's in the best interest of everyone," he said.

The city plans to hire another contractor to take over the work, Johnson
said. He added that the city's priority is following the methodologies the
state has set for the project.

Construction on the museum campus began more than a year ago. The project
includes a new headquarters building for Company F of the Texas Rangers as
well as a new education building for the museum.