Representative image of an indigenous park. (Image Credits: Pexels)
The site, situated at 1900 Fourth Street in West Berkeley, is the last undeveloped portion of the West Berkeley Ohlone Shellmound area, which was designated a landmark in 2000 by the city. The village dates back an estimated 5,700 years, when the shell mound served as a ceremonial and burial site, made from shells, human remains, and artefacts, according to the Associated Press. Berkeley had blocked a streamlined permit for the proposed housing development in 2018, which prompted Ruegg & Ellsworth to sue the city. The project’s outline included 260 apartments, of which 50% were designated as affordable housing, alongside retail space and parking. The city was ordered by an Alameda County Superior Court judge, in February 2024, to pay $2.6 million, coupled with $1.4 million in legal fees, for violating the Housing Accountability Act. Subsequently, the $27 million purchase, separate from that $4 million, enabled the property to be transferred to the land trust. Sogorea Te’ Land Trust , dedicated to returning Indigenous people their land, secured its purchase funds with a $20 million contribution from the Kataly Foundation, a family foundation funded by Regan Pritzker and her husband, Chris Olin.
Because of its cultural significance, its return followed years of disagreement over whether the property should be developed for housing or preserved. The dispute over the development application brought Bay Area housing needs into direct conflict with Indigenous heritage protection, which landed Berkeley in murky waters of legal consequences. The transfer gives opportunity to the Indigenous community members to determine how the property could recognise and preserve their heritage. Corrina Gould, a co-founder and director of the trust, led the Confederated Villages of Lisjan Ohlone, a group that represented seven tribes across the Bay Area and, alongside Berkeley, had also participated in the lawsuit. Gould described the outcome as significant for the Lisjan people, whose cultural connection to the site continues.
