Suchergebnisse

In June of 2015, Raba Kistner Environmental, Inc. (RKEI) was contracted by K. Friese + Associates to perform archaeological investigations related to the replacement of a section of water main located to the east of the Spanish Governor's Palace and City of San Antonio (COSA) offices within the Vogel Belt Complex. Since the project was sponsored by a political subdivision of the state and impacted land owned by the COSA, it fell under the jurisdiction of the COSA's Preservation Ordinance (Division 3, Article VI Historic Preservation and Urban Design, Texas Unified Development Code) administered by the Office of Historic Preservation (OHP). Furthermore, the project also falls under the jurisdiction of the Antiquities Code of Texas, as overseen by the Texas Historical Commission. The investigations were conducted under Texas Antiquities Permit No. 7299. Kristi Miller Nichols served as Principal Investigator. The project was divided into two phases. Phase I consisted of exploratory backhoe trenching and the monitoring of water main trenching in front of the Vogel Belt Complex. Phase II consisted of the removal of pavers in front of the Spanish Governor's Palace and the monitoring of water main trenching and the replacement of the pavers. To accommodate logistical concerns by nearby property owners and to minimize disruptions, the two phases took place nearly a month apart from each other, beginning in June and completed in July. The Phase I trench (9.5 meters; 31.2 feet) was excavated to expose the main from the valve to a bend near Dolorosa Street. No cultural materials were encountered in the exploratory trench, and the SAWS contractor was allowed to continue the remainder of the mechanical trenching while monitored by RKEI archaeologists. Intact cultural deposits were identified near the southern end of the Phase II trench buried at a depth of 80-103 centimeters below surface in an area offset from the original water main installation trench. The intact deposit yielded only Spanish Colonial artifacts, indicating that in situ colonial materials related to the use of the Governor's Palace and Plaza de Armas are potentially present. Investigations determined that intact cultural deposits dating to the Spanish Colonial Period are found in front of the Spanish Governor's Palace and may extend across large portions of the Military Plaza. Therefore, as it has been the standard practice to date, archaeological investigations should continue to be carried out prior to future subsurface disturbances planned within Military Plaza.

In December 2015, Vickrey & Associates, Inc. (Client) contracted with Raba Kistner Environmental, Inc. (RKEI), to perform an intensive pedestrian survey for a proposed 3.2 mile hike and bike trail along Salado Creek near San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas. The proposed trail is an extension of the existing South Salado Creek Greenway Trail which was installed in 2008. The project is owned by the City of San Antonio. Since the project area is currently owned by a political subdivision of the state, the project falls under the Antiquities Code of Texas as administered by the Texas Historical Commission (THC). The purpose of the survey was to determine whether historic or prehistoric cultural resources are located within the Area of Potential Effect (APE), and, if so, assess their significance and eligibility for designation as State Antiquities Landmarks (SALs) and for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). The project was carried out in early January 2016 under Texas Antiquities Permit No. 7491. Dr. Steve A. Tomka served as Principal Investigator. Kristi Nichols served as the Project Archaeologist, and Mark Luzmoor served as field technician. Several circumstances delayed the completion of the survey. Construction activities for a new apartment complex hindered the survey along the northern portion. During the survey, it was noted that the trail was to be placed on portions of an already laid cart path from the Pecan Valley Golf Club that was in this area from 1963-2012. Furthermore, because the golf course had fill brought in to build up the fairways and greens, no shovel tests or backhoe trenches were placed in these areas. Right-of-Entry issues also delayed progress within the golf course as well. Weather also postponed the survey due to wet and muddy conditions. One backhoe trench (BHT) and 19 shovel tests (STs) were excavated within the APE. Surface visibility was around 90 percent throughout the APE. No buried or surface-exposed historic or prehistoric materials were encountered during the survey. All documents collected during the course of the project were returned to the RKEI Archaeological Laboratory for processing. All project related documents, are permanently housed at the RKEI Laboratory. No cultural material was collected over the course of the project.

In the fall of 2016, Raba Kistner Environmental Inc. (RKEI) contracted with K Friese & Associates (CLIENT) to monitor the installation of a San Antonio Water System (SAWS) waterline along Cunningham Avenue (Ave.), between Broadway Street (St.) and N. Pine St., along the northern fence line of Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston (JBSA-FSH) and the old Playland Park property. SAWS plans to install waterlines along four distinct locations surrounding JBSA-FSH. Of the four proposed waterlines, only one waterline has the potential of impacting a recorded archaeological site. The proposed waterline warranting archaeological investigation is located along Cunningham Ave. and is projected to intersect the known route of the Acequia de Valero (Acequia de Valero) also known as archaeological site 41BX8. As the utility installation is located on land owned by the City of San Antonio, a political subdivision of the State, and funding will be partially derived from public sources; the project is subject to review under the Antiquities Code of Texas (Texas Natural Resource Code, Title 9, Chapter 191) which protects historic resources found on state lands or lands owned by a political subdivision of the state. Additionally, the project is subjected to review by the City of San Antonio under the City of San Antonio's Preservation Ordinance (Article VI, Historic Preservation and Urban Design, City of San Antonio, Unified Development Code). All work was performed in accordance with the Council of Texas Archeologists (CTA) and Texas Historical Commission (THC) Survey Standards, under Texas Antiquities Committee Permit No. 7833. Kristi Miller Nichols served as Principal Investigator and Mark Luzmoor served as Project Archaeologist. Assistant City Archaeologist, Matt Elverson was present during the exposure and documentation of the acequia. The Acequia de Valero was the first irrigation canal excavated by the Spanish colonists in the upper San Antonio River drainage. The construction of the canal began in January of 1719 for the purpose of transporting water to the agricultural fields of Mission San Antonio de Valero. Previous research conducted by RKEI within the former Playland Park property, south of the current project area, revealed a portion of the Acequia de Valero. Due to the potential of the acequia extending into the project area, the City of San Antonio's Office of Historic Preservation (COSA-OHP) requested that RKEI monitored the mechanical excavation of a 1,000-foot portion of the waterline along Cunningham Ave., specifically focusing on an approximately 66-feet (20 meter [m]) area where the project route of the Acequia de Valero intersects Cunningham Ave. Prior to the installation of the SAWS waterline, the COSA-OHP requested that a Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) survey be conducted to determine if the acequia alignment is still present within the project area. Additionally, the COSA-OHP requested that an exploratory trench be excavated in the area where the acequia crosses the APE, in an attempt to identify and document the acequia. On November 28, 2016, Kristi Miller Nichols and Cynthia Dickey conducted the GPR survey; however, no distinguishable anomalies were detected within in the GPR data. Therefore, on March 7, 2017, monitoring of the exploratory trenching began of an approximately 20 m long trench. The purpose of excavation of the trench was to determine if remnants of the acequia existed within the project area, prior to installation of the waterline. Due to the many layers of fill within the acequia at this location, it was difficult to identify the channel during excavation of the trench. After sections of the trench were excavated, an archaeologist entered the trench and cleared the trench walls to carefully inspect each profile for any signs of the acequia. Approximately 140 m to the east of the intersection of Broadway/Cunningham Ave., there appeared to be an outline of a ditch. Based on the location of the alignment of the acequia on historic maps and further investigations of the profiles, it was determined to be the Acequia de Valero. The north wall profile of the trench revealed the acequia to be approximately 4.15 m wide at the top of the channel and 70 centimeters (cm) wide at its base. The base of the acequia was 1.24 m below the top of the asphalt and neither the base nor its walls were lined. The south wall profile of the trench revealed that the acequia had been partially impacted on this southern edge as it was only 2.9 m wide. The southern wall profile revealed that the eastern end of the acequia was offset from the northern wall, approximately 60 cm to the east, indicating that the trench crosscut the acequia at an angle. Some similarities were noticed between this portion of the acequia and that uncovered within Playland Park, although, the Playland Park portion appears to have been truncated. Similarities between the two sections included the soil types encountered (i.e. the dark soil with cultural material). Once the documentation of the trench walls was complete the trench was filled in. After consultation with the THC and COSA-OHP, SAWS was permitted to install the waterline in the already excavated trench. No further investigations are recommended for this project as long as excavations did not further impact the acequia. All field records and photographs produced during investigations were curated at the Center for Archaeological Research at the University of Texas at San Antonio.

In December 2015, Vickrey & Associates, Inc. (Client) contracted with Raba Kistner Environmental, Inc. (RKEI), to perform an intensive pedestrian survey for a proposed 3.2 mile hike and bike trail along Salado Creek near San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas. The proposed trail is an extension of the existing South Salado Creek Greenway Trail which was installed in 2008. The project is owned by the City of San Antonio. Since the project area is currently owned by a political subdivision of the state, the project falls under the Antiquities Code of Texas as administered by the Texas Historical Commission (THC). The purpose of the survey was to determine whether historic or prehistoric cultural resources are located within the Area of Potential Effect (APE), and, if so, assess their significance and eligibility for designation as State Antiquities Landmarks (SALs) and for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). The project was carried out in early January 2016 under Texas Antiquities Permit No. 7516. Dr. Steve A. Tomka served as Principal Investigator. Kristi Nichols served as the Project Archaeologist, and Mark Luzmoor served as field technician. Several circumstances delayed the completion of the survey. Construction activities for a new apartment complex hindered the survey along the northern portion. During the survey, it was noted that the trail was to be placed on portions of an already laid cart path from the Pecan Valley Golf Club that was in this area from 1963-2012. Furthermore, because the golf course had fill brought in to build up the fairways and greens, no shovel tests or backhoe trenches were placed in these areas. Right-of-Entry issues also delayed progress within the golf course as well. Weather also postponed the survey due to wet and muddy conditions. One backhoe trench (BHT) and 19 shovel tests (STs) were excavated within the APE. Surface visibility was around 90 percent throughout the APE. No buried or surface-exposed historic or prehistoric materials were encountered during the survey. All documents collected during the course of the project were returned to the RKEI Archaeological Laboratory for processing. All project related documents, are permanently housed at the RKEI Laboratory. No cultural material was collected over the course of the project.

In December 2014, Lockwood, Andrews & Newman, Inc. (Client) contracted with Raba Kistner Environmental, Inc. (RKEI) to perform an intensive cultural resources survey along Goforth Road between Interstate Highway (IH)-35 and Kyle Parkway for the expansion of the Right-Of-Way (ROW) and the installation of storm sewer inlets, manholes and one bridge in Kyle, Hays County, Texas. The purpose of this survey was to determine whether cultural resources were located within the Area of Potential Effect (APE), and if feasible, assess their significance and eligibility for designation as State Antiquities Landmarks (SALs) and for listing on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). The project was sponsored by the City of Kyle and the owner of the project is the City of Kyle owns the road and its ROW. Since the ROW is owned by a political subdivision of the state, the project falls under the Antiquities Code of Texas as administered by the Texas Historical Commission (THC). The field work was carried out between December 29-30, 2014 under Texas Antiquities Committee Permit No. 7117 issued to Dr. Steve A. Tomka, who served as Principal Investigator. Mark Luzmoor was the Project Archaeologist and Kristi Nichols and Chris Murray assisted during the field work. Background research revealed that no previously recorded archaeological sites are located within the boundary of the APE. However, there are two archaeology sites, seven historical markers and four National Register Properties, within a one mile radius but outside of the APE. A total of 16 shovel tests (STs) were excavated within the APE. Surface visibility was around 10% throughout the APE. Due to extensive disturbances of the banks of Plum Creek, no backhoe trenches were excavated during the project. No artifacts were encountered in any shovel test or on surface during the pedestrian survey. Since no cultural deposits were encountered, RKEI recommends no further archaeological work within the project boundaries. All project related documents are permanently housed at the Texas Archeological Research Laboratory.

In December 2014, Lockwood, Andrews & Newman, Inc. (Client) contracted with Raba Kistner Environmental, Inc. (RKEI) to perform an intensive cultural resources survey along Goforth Road between Interstate Highway (IH)-35 and Kyle Parkway for the expansion of the Right-Of-Way (ROW) and the installation of storm sewer inlets, manholes and one bridge in Kyle, Hays County, Texas. The purpose of this survey was to determine whether cultural resources were located within the Area of Potential Effect (APE), and if feasible, assess their significance and eligibility for designation as State Antiquities Landmarks (SALs) and for listing on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). The project was sponsored by the City of Kyle and the owner of the project is the City of Kyle owns the road and its ROW. Since the ROW is owned by a political subdivision of the state, the project falls under the Antiquities Code of Texas as administered by the Texas Historical Commission (THC). The field work was carried out between December 29-30, 2014 under Texas Antiquities Committee Permit No. 7117 issued to Dr. Steve A. Tomka, who served as Principal Investigator. Mark Luzmoor was the Project Archaeologist and Kristi Nichols and Chris Murray assisted during the field work. Background research revealed that no previously recorded archaeological sites are located within the boundary of the APE. However, there are two archaeology sites, seven historical markers and four National Register Properties, within a one mile radius but outside of the APE. A total of 16 shovel tests (STs) were excavated within the APE. Surface visibility was around 10% throughout the APE. Due to extensive disturbances of the banks of Plum Creek, no backhoe trenches were excavated during the project. No artifacts were encountered in any shovel test or on surface during the pedestrian survey. Since no cultural deposits were encountered, RKEI recommends no further archaeological work within the project boundaries. All project related documents are permanently housed at the Texas Archeological Research Laboratory.

In December 2016, the Northside Independent School District (Client) contracted with Raba Kistner Environmental, Inc. (RKEI) to perform a cultural resources pedestrian survey within a 107-acre tract near Galm Road in San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas. The purpose of this survey was to determine whether cultural resources were located within the Area of Potential Effects (APE), and if feasible, assess their significance and eligibility for designation as State Antiquities Landmarks (SALs) and for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). The project was sponsored by the Client and the owner of the project is currently George Weimer (soon to be owned by the Client). Since the area of potential effects (APE) is owned by a political subdivision of the state, the project falls under the Antiquities Code of Texas, as administered by the Texas Historical Commission (THC). Additionally, the APE is 2.5 kilometers to the southeast of Government Canyon State Natural Area. The field work was carried out between January 10 and 13, 2017 under Texas Antiquities Committee Permit No. 7866, issued to Kristi M. Nichols, who served as Principal Investigator. Mark Luzmoor served as the Project Archaeologist and Chris Murray, Richard Sample, Chris Matthews, and Kendra Brownlow assisted during the field work. Background research revealed that no previously recorded archaeological sites are located within the boundary of the APE. However, there are five archaeological sites within a 1-kilometer radius of the APE. In total, 19 shovel tests (STs) were excavated within the APE. Surface visibility was around 80% throughout the APE. Approximately 75% of the APE was open-plowed fields, with the other 25% located in fairly thick underbrush. During the pedestrian survey, 25 isolated artifacts were encountered within the plowed fields of the APE. These included secondary and tertiary flakes, bifaces, and utilized flakes; only the tools were collected. A historic bottle dump also was encountered during the pedestrian survey on the eastern end of the APE. The bottles date to the middle of the twentieth century. Two shovel tests (ST 3 & 5) were positive for cultural material in the top 20 centimeters below surface (cmbs) (two pieces of debitage and one burned rock). 41BX2162 was designated as a multi-component archaeological site due to the large amount of surface finds, the two positive STs, and the historic bottle dump, all along the eastern end of the APE. However, no cultural deposits were encountered beneath 20 cmbs, the majority of the cultural material was recorded on the surface, and no diagnostic prehistoric material was encountered. Thus, RKEI finds that the site lacks research potential and recommends no further archaeological work within the project boundaries. All field records generated by this project will be curated in accordance with the Texas Archaeology Research Laboratory guidelines.

In March 2017, the Northside Independent School District (NISD) (Client) contracted Raba Kistner Environmental, Inc. (RKEI) to perform an intensive cultural resources survey within a 9.65-acre tract of land along Cinema Ridge, located immediately south of Oliver Wendell Holmes High School in San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas. The purpose of this survey was to determine if cultural resources were located within the Area of Potential Effect (APE), and if feasible, assess their significance and eligibility for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) and for formal designation as a State Antiquities Landmark (SAL). As the area of potential effects (APE) is located on land owned by a political subdivision of the State, the project falls under the Antiquities Code of Texas (ACT), as administered by the Texas Historical Commission (THC). The field work was conducted March 23 and 24, 2017 under Texas Antiquities Committee (TAC) Permit No. 7960, issued to Antonio E. Padilla, who served as Principal Investigator. Mark Luzmoor served as the Project Archaeologist and Chris Murray assisted during the field work. Background research revealed that no previously conducted cultural resources surveys or previously recorded archaeological sites are located within the boundary of the APE. Surface visibility was around 20 percent throughout the APE. Approximately 50 percent of the APE contained fill brought in from recent construction activities near the APE, while the other 50 percent was covered by thick underbrush. During the pedestrian survey, it was noted that approximately 10 percent of the terrain contained a slope greater than 20 percent. Due to the presence of fill and the greater than 20 percent slope, only 4.35 acres of the 9.65-acres were able to be adequately surveyed. As a result, 10 shovel tests (STs 1–10) were excavated within the APE. During the excavation of the shovel tests within the APE, it was revealed that impacts to the APE from fill dumping activities impacted a larger area than originally perceived. Of the 10 shovel tests excavated seven (STs 1–3, 5, and 7–9) showed evidence of disturbance from filling activities. Additionally one shovel test (ST 7), contained a piece of aluminum a pop top from a can, intermixed with the fill. Only three shovel tests (STs 4, 5, and 10) contained intact soils; however they were negative for cultural material. No cultural materials were encountered within the STs or observed on the surface during the investigations of the APE. Based on the current investigations and due to the lack of cultural materials and cultural features within the APE, RKEI recommends no further archaeological work within the current project boundaries. All field records generated by this project will be curated in accordance with the Texas Archaeology Research Laboratory requirements and the TAC permit.

From April 2013 to November 2014, the Center for Archaeological Research (CAR) at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) conducted archaeological monitoring and test excavations at the site of the 1722 Presidio San Antonio de Bexar, also known in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries as the Plaza de Armas Buildings (Vogel Belt Complex) within Military Plaza in San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas. The project was performed for Ford, Powell and Carson, Architects and Planners, Inc. under contract with the City of San Antonio in anticipation of renovations and improvements to the Plaza de Armas Buildings (Vogel Belt Complex) to serve as offices and studios for the City of San Antonio. The complex is listed as contributing to the Main and Military Plaza National Register of Historic Places District, with the buildings listed individually on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). In addition to the above, the property is owned by the City of San Antonio. Compliance with the Antiquities Code of Texas was required. As such, the State Antiquities Code and Chapter 35 of the San Antonio Local Government Code that require coordination with the City Office of Historic Preservation and the Texas Historical Commission Divisions of Archaeology and Architecture govern the undertakings. CAR, therefore, conducted the work under Texas Antiquities Committee Permit No. 6526. Dr. Steve A. Tomka served as the Principal Investigator for the majority of the fieldwork, the initial analysis, and the description of materials collected. Kristi Nichols served as the Project Archaeologist during this initial monitoring and testing, assisted by Lindy Martinez. Both Dr. Tomka and Ms. Nichols left UTSA in 2014, and Dr. Raymond Mauldin assumed the Principal Investigator role for the project. Clinton McKenzie and Leonard Kemp were the Project Archaeologists for the final phases of monitoring, as well as for assembling the final report. Leonard Kemp oversaw additional test excavation. Trinomial 41BX2088 was assigned to the location. Principal activities during the project included monitoring trenches on the complex's exterior, monitoring soil removal in sections of the interior, and hand excavations of a series of units in the basement. These basement excavations produced a variety of materials. CAR staff documented eight features, including several trash pits, recovered a variety of Spanish Colonial, Native American, and European/English ceramics, along with faunal material, chipped stone tools and debitage, and construction related items. It was concluded that much of this material was intact, and that additional features and midden deposits are present. The project provides direct evidence of materials associated with the Presidio de Bexar, built by the Spanish at this general location in 1722, as well as occupation in this area through the early twentieth century. CAR recommends that prior to any impacts in the basements, or any external impacts greater than 2.0 m in depth at the rear of the Plaza de Armas Buildings (Vogel Belt Complex), a comprehensive, systematic effort to recover significant data be initiated.