Park changes advance around mound at Anclote River Park

Pasco County has taken the next steps toward implementing changes at Anclote River Park that include adding a restaurant and additional parking despite concerns over how they might affect a historic Native American mound there.

The county has filed preliminary plans and recently completed a ground penetrating radar scan of the mound.

A study done by a county consultant earlier this year found no human remains, but previous archaeological surveys of the site found features that suggest there is more underground than a few arrowheads and pottery shards.

A Facebook post on the page of Florida Indigenous Alliance announced on Nov. 23 that the organization had held its 33rd Day of Mourning over the plans. It said it was “the first time at Anclote River Park honoring the ancestors whose cemetery is imperiled by the planned developments on the park including a restaurant.”

That group continues to monitor the county’s plans, as do local residents who are opposing some of the county’s proposed additions. They fear that heightened use of the park will destroy one of the county’s last natural waterfront areas that people can visit without having to pay a premium.

To date, they have gathered more than 4,300 signatures urging that the county reconsider their park enhancement plans.

The site plan for the park changes submitted earlier this month still shows a location for a restaurant, increased parking, expanded beach and other new features that county officials say the popular park needs, including better traffic flow and more access to the waterway.

The mound site is also delineated on the plan bordered on one side by the expanded parking and another by the expanded beach.

Plans to change the park drew public questions almost from the beginning when the Pasco County Commission in August of 2022 approved an agreement with Keith Overton. He is the 24-year president of the popular TradeWinds Island Resort in Pinellas County and several spinoff businesses, including the OCC Roadhouse.

He proposed a themed restaurant, possibly like his RumFish Grill, and the expansion of new water-based sports rentals, such as wave runners and boat tours from the site, in addition to a public venue for events. The restaurant was dubbed “Whiskey Fish on the Anclote” in his proposal.

While there was initial excitement by residents eager to see a restaurant on the water, others soon raised concerns about the proposal. Some of those who frequented the park thought the idea wasn’t going to fit since the spot had historical significance.

There are signs there showing the location of both a Native American mound and a site called the Spanish Well, which was a freshwater spring beside the river used by both Indigenous residents and the Spanish.

Representatives of Florida’s Indigenous people stepped in to raise questions and ask to be kept apprised of the county’s next steps.

The organizations “are critically concerned with Pasco County Parks/Recreation & Natural Resources Department’s plans to place a restaurant/snack bar, volleyball courts and a parking lot in areas with known Indigenous cemeteries and cultural sites at Anclote River Park,” Robert Rosa, board chairperson of the American Indian Movement, wrote to the county recently.

Archaeological studies conducted over the decades included in the archives of the Florida Department of State indicate that there was significant prehistoric occupation on the site. The county’s own study, commissioned after questions were raised about the cultural harm the expansion could cause, gave a hint to what might be there.

One such study done in 1970 by the Suncoast Archaeology Society describes “a six-foot-high temple mound, a midden and a burial mound 75 feet in diameter and 7 feet tall.” That report states the mound was significant because it had not been touched and notes that, while the exact use of the mound had not been determined, researchers said “the possibility exists that it is a burial mound of sizeable proportions.”

The county hired Stantec as a consultant to take a closer look at what exists on the site now. In addition to mapping out areas that were part of the planned location of park upgrades, the company did soil sampling. The sampling found 528 artifacts, with more than three-quarters of them including “lithic material,” items like arrowheads and stone tools. Glass and prehistoric ceramics also were found. The finds indicate that the site may have been occupied several thousand years ago.

A previous study had determined that the mound and surrounding area qualified for a designation in the National Register of Historic Places.

Stantec also recommended that the county avoid work in the area of the mound and in a 30-foot area around it, reducing ground disturbance south and west of the mound “where the archaeological site is most dense and where the ramp associated with the mound once existed.”

The consultant also suggested adding signage to provide interpretive information about the Spanish Well and the mound. If avoiding the area isn’t possible, Stantec suggested conducting a detailed, large-scale dig to document everything found at the site for future study before new construction starts. Such a study, known as a phase 3 study, would begin in January, according to a county spokesperson.