AZSITE Consortium
Quarterly Meeting
Pearson Hall,
Present:
Michael Barton, ASU, presiding
David Wilcox, MNA
Carol Griffith, SHPO
Rick Karl, ASM
JoAnne Medley, SHPO
Michiko Tanaka, SHPO
Jerry Howard,
Chris Barrett,
Rod Rothrock, Cochise County Sheriff’s Department
Lynn Neal, EnviroSystems Management, Inc.
Evalyn Andrews, SRM-PIC
Wechoni W. Schurz, SRM-PIC
Dan Daggett, SRMPIC
Nancy Andrews,
Cara Schmidt, SWCA
Jessica Maggio, SWCA
Alissa Bentz, ACS
Introductions and
Minutes
Michael
Barton called the meeting to order at
Old Business
Financial Report
Beth Grindell provided a fiscal year end financial report on AZSITE user fees.
Received in FY 04 $49,000
Net to operations $43,600
Rolled over from previous year $9,200
Total available $51,800
Expenses $24,300 To ASM for wages
$7,700 To MNA for data entry wages
$2,400 To ASM for travel and computer
$34,400 Total expenses
Current balance $17,500
Grindell noted that approval has been granted to ASU for approximately $2000 in data entry expenses that have not yet been incurred.
Database Committee
Data entry:
Karl reported that MNA’s
data as submitted to AZSITE through June, 2004, will be in AZSITE by the end of
this week. Complete BLM data from the
Safford,
AZSITE database move:
The map server was moved without a hitch to a new location at the ASU GIS lab. The data on the database server currently at the CES lab at ASU will be moved soon to a new server at ASM, which should reduce the “downtime” the server has experienced. The new server is newer and faster and should improve web search speeds.
Future Improvements:
Scanning of paper records, especially site maps, is being planned, possibly as a joint grant opportunity for ASM, ASU, and MNA, possibly to the State Library and Archives or to Heritage Funds. Site maps are especially desirable to users. There is a question as to whether the old site cards are useful to researchers, or whether just the maps are most useful.
Barton mentioned that we are also
looking at putting
Barton reported on a meeting
between AZSITE Consortium staff and Todd Bostwick at
Tribal Data
Karl noted that all Tribal data have all been removed from the database and archived on a secure computer at ASM that is not publicly accessible. In response to a question from Daggett, Karl said that any tribe that wants a copy of the data from its reservation lands that was removed from AZSITE should make a formal request. In response to a question from Schurz, Barton noted that we will not send one tribe’s data to another tribe, but that tribes are certainly free to share data if they wish, keeping mind that AZSITE data on tribal lands is undoubtedly not complete. Schurz requested that AZSITE require a request from the tribal president for copies of the tribe’s AZSITE data, rather than accepting requests from archaeologists or cultural resource managers. After discussion, the Consortium, on motion from Wilcox and second from Grindell, voted to require that requests for data on reservation lands come from the tribal president or tribal historic preservation officer.
In response to a question from Wilcox, Karl reported that all new incoming data are checked to see if they intersect with tribal reservation lands. If so, the portion that intersects is clipped out and filed in the tribal lands folder. Where sites cross the boundary of the reservation lands, the portion outside the reservation boundary remains in AZSITE and the portion on tribal lands is moved to the tribal folder and no longer available for viewing. This process applies only to officially recognized reservation lands as delineated on the GIS themes delivered by the State Land Department through ALRIS.
New Business
Records Searches and
AZSITE Data Requests
Karl noted that there is a request form on line and requests can only be accepted on this form, accompanied by a map, or preferably, a .shp file against which requests can be run. AZSITE authorized users can get attribute data and .shp files. If requests come from non-authorized users, they receive only a map and a list of ASM data.
Costs: The current site file check fee is $50 per hour, one hour minimum. Because of the size of requests we are changing the fee to a minimum of $50 for the first six quads searched and then $12.50 per each additional 7.5’ quad that needs to be searched.
Collaboration with
USFS
Barton noted that we are in the process of developing a stand alone data entry program that can accommodate both AZSITE and USFS data in one data entry process. We hope that this will be the beginning of a useful collaboration between the Forests and AZSITE. Schmidt asked a question about whether we notify BLM when contractors submit BLM data to AZSITE. Karl said yes, although the program is rusty.
Phoenix Basin Canals
Howard reported on a meetings between himself, Todd Bostwick, JoAnne Medley, and Rick Karl, as well as Salt River and Gila River Indian Community representatives to get Howard’s canal work updated and into AZSITE so that it will be available to people working in the Phoenix metro area. He compiled Turney’s and Midvale’s data, as well as Hemenway’s survey data and 19th century data into a master canal map and adjacent sites. The map was published in 1990 and much additional data has been collected since then. It is now time to get all that information into a more accessible format and completely update it as well as provide information as to data reliability. Over time the data can be regularly updated. Canals will be recorded as segments, indicating which canal the segment is attached to, as well as data to indicate where the information came from and provide an assessment as to its reliability. Howard also wants to keep some records on how often, for example, Turney’s canals have been looked for and how often they have been found. A separate set of fields will be developed to handle canal data that contractors will complete when canals are discovered. Initial funding to set up the fields and GIS themes may be available from SHPO or the Bureau of Reclamation. There was a discussion of general management and research questions that could be addressed by good canal information. There needs to be further planning. At a very basic level, Howard’s maps will be added as a theme to AZSITE, coded to indicate which portions of Turney’s and Midvale’s maps (and other sources) the information came from.
Cochise County Sheriff’s Department Site Vandalism Prevention
Rod Rothrock, representing the Cochise County Sheriff’s Department, attended to encourage support for their earlier proposal to AZSITE for collaboration in the County’s monitoring of archaeological sites. He informed us that the County is divided into six districts and proposes that the lieutenant in charge of each district be provided with information as to sensitive areas in their district. The County will provide deputies with training so that they can be aware of what pot hunting looks like and how to monitor for it. The County has Intergovernmental Agreements with BLM and with USFS on site monitoring and Rothrock is sure that they would approve the release of comprehensive information to his staff to be used in vandalism prevention. In discussion, it was suggested that we need to know the scale of information to be provided, perhaps at the quarter section level, without specific information as to the nature or location of the site. Wilcox noted that training as to the nature of archaeological materials would be useful and Rothrock noted that they have been working with the Center for Desert Archaeology to provide this type of education. Schurz mentioned training that URS does with Valley Metro area contractors to educate them as to what to look for in the way of archaeological artifacts so that they will recognize them when they are encountered in public works projects. The AZSITE Consortium will review a proposal the Rothrock brought with him and determine what the next steps should be.
Next meeting:
Adjourned on motion and second of Wilcox and Grindell at