Protests against the Wilderness Crossing development escalated in May 2022 with the erection of tipis on the site, just west of Lincoln’s Wilderness Park and across the road from a sweat lodge ceremonial site. (Paul Hammel/Nebraska Examiner)
LINCOLN — Organizers of a protest encampment next to Lincoln’s Wilderness Park expressed disappointment Thursday that Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird has declined to veto a proposed housing development near two ceremonial Native American sweat lodges.
The proposed Wilderness Crossing development sits across a gravel road from a private enclave called “The Fish Farm,” which has hosted sweat lodge ceremonies for nearly 50 years.
“While we are disappointed the mayor did not veto the legislation impacting the area of the Fish Farm and the historic sweat lodge there, we have many avenues through which we will continue to seek protections for this site and our ceremonies,” said a statement from the Niskíthe Prayer Camp.
Fate of camp undecided
The fate of the encampment of five tepees, which was erected overnight Sunday on the
(photo courtesy of mayor’s office)
development site, has yet to be decided, Erin Poor, a spokeswoman for the Prayer Cam, said Thursday.
On Wednesday, Gaylor Baird issued a statement that while she acknowledged that Lincoln is situated on ancestral lands of several Native American tribes, she planned to OK the Wilderness Crossing development.
She said that the developers have “the right to use their land as they wish within guidelines” and that they had made adjustments to their plans, including adding a buffer strip and setbacks, that have been used to mitigate impacts by other developments adjacent to Wilderness Park.
The mayor cited the Cooper YMCA, Lincoln Southwest High School and the Horizons business park as examples of development along Wilderness Park, a linear park of trails and forest that follows Salt Creek on the southwest border of Lincoln.
Bigger setback sought
The Prayer Camp statement said the acknowledgment rings “hollow and performative if it is not accompanied by action that empowers, honors, and respects Indigenous Peoples.”
The camp’s statement said they wanted a minimum 300-foot setback of development from First Street, the gravel road that lies between the development and the Fish Camp, or removal of a row of houses closest to the Fish Camp. At very least, a park could be established directly across the street from the camp, the statement said.
Wilderness Crossing is planned on 75 acres of farmland now owned by the Catholic Diocese of Lincoln that lies between First Street and U.S. 77, just south of Pioneers Boulevard.
Modifications made
The developer, Manzitto Construction, plans 162 single-family homes, 134 townhomes, 205 apartment units and 30,000 square feet of commercial development.
The company told the Lincoln Journal-Star it had made several modifications to the initial plans, including a 6-foot-tall fence along the east side of the development that faces Wilderness Park, establishing a 10-foot outlot/buffer zone planted with native vegetation, and imposition of light restrictions on homes.
“These modifications to the design of Wilderness Crossing represent the responsiveness of the developer and city planners to issues raised by concerned community members,” Gaylor Baird said in her statement Wednesday.
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