4-BPM006639_ADOT Environmental On-call 2025, History and Personnel.pdf

Desert Archaeology, Inc. │ Tucson, Tempe, and Prescott Arizona

Desert Archaeology, Inc. is pleased to respond to the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) Request for Proposal (RFP) (Solicitation No. BPM006639) for On-Call Environmental Consulting Services.

We are responding specifically to the request for Cultural Resources Services, Technical Specialty 4.2.7.

We have seen three amendments to the RFP.

In the following pages, we describe the firm’s history, our experience with on-call projects, ADOT projects, and projects with a similar scope and scale to the tasks outlined in Technical Specialty 4.2.7 conducted in the last five years. We also describe our company organization and key personnel, including our in-house staff and subcontractors, and our quality control/quality assurance plan. Our Method and Approach is submitted in a separate document.

FIRM HISTORY

Desert Archaeology is a full-service archaeological research and consulting firm headquartered in Tucson, Arizona, with branch offices in Tempe and Prescott. The company has performed work in Arizona and the Greater Southwest since 1982. In 2017, the company became a woman-owned small business and a certified Arizona Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) in the Arizona Unified Certification Program (UTRACS No. 10265) and in late 2018, graduated from the ADOT DBE Business Development Program.

Desert Archaeology’s Employer Identification Number is 86-0640182. Should we be awarded the contract, we have identified no terms and exceptions to the contract offered.

Desert Archaeology has completed more than 3,200 cultural resources and historic preservation projects in the southwestern United States, with many of these conducted in southern and central Arizona.

Project history includes large and small archaeological testing and data recovery projects, large and small pedestrian cultural resources surveys, geographic information system (GIS) mapping and graphics projects, and archaeological monitoring projects. We have also provided our clients with many specialized studies, including historical and architectural assessments, artifact and sample analyses, and various preservation and treatment plans. Project budgets range from several hundred to several million dollars.

Because we have worked in a variety of geographic areas, our staff have covered the scope of defined human occupation in Arizona. This knowledge of Arizona benefits our clients as we develop well-informed expectations that are responsive to the unique situation of each project. This also helps us assess sites and make recommendations on-target with the goals of the project. We have established a record of work tailored to the specific needs of each client that is responsive to schedules and budgets and that is of the highest professional quality, thereby meeting our client’s legal, fiscal, and management responsibilities.

Arizona Department of Transportation Request for Proposal Solicitation No. BPM006639

On-Call Environmental Consulting Services:

Firm History and Key Personnel

Arizona Department of Transportation RFP Solicitation No. BPM006639 for On-Call Environmental Consulting Services: Firm History and Key Personnel

Desert Archaeology, Inc. │ Tucson, Tempe, and Prescott Arizona

DESERT ARCHAEOLOGY, INC.’S CAPABILITIES AND

COMPANY ORGANIZATION

Desert Archaeology has the management capabilities, personnel, facilities, and equipment necessary to support the tasks identified in Technical Specialty 4.2.7 for this solicitation and can conduct multiple projects of different sizes and characteristics simultaneously. This allows us to hold multiple on-call contracts as well as deliver on individual projects.

The RFP identifies cultural resources tasks in: (1) cultural resources records review, reporting, and development of consultation letters; (2) cultural resources surveys; (3) site recordation and National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) assessment; (4) testing, data recovery, and monitoring plans; (5) and archaeological excavation and monitoring fieldwork, analysis, and reporting. Desert Archaeology has full service, in-house capabilities for archaeological services required by the contact, and we include Dr.

Gary Huckleberry and Urbana Preservation and Planning, LLC as subcontractors to provide services in support of the data recovery tasks and historic architectural documentation, respectively.

Management Capabilities

The company is managed by president and majority owner Dr. Sarah Herr and environmental coordinators/managers Ms. Patricia Castalia and Mr. Daniel Martinez. They meet weekly with a Coordination Group, members of which represent all company departments. The Coordination Group streamlines workflow, anticipates project needs, and identifies and resolves concerns that may affect projects. Our staff work together from the initial planning and coordination stages through final report production. Each project is managed by a team that includes the principal investigator, the environmental coordinator, and a field director; together, they identify personnel, subconsultants, and other resources required for successful implementation of the task. Monthly research meetings facilitate cross-project discussions and dissemination of project results. General information about completed, ongoing, and forthcoming projects, as well as the personnel assigned to those projects, is shared in monthly staff meetings.

Desert Archaeology staff are well versed in working together to take projects from the initial planning and coordination stages through detailed and accurate field documentation to final report production.

Each project is managed by a team that includes the principal investigator, the environmental coordinator, and the assigned field director.

The principal investigator provides managerial capacity, working with the president and project managers on evaluating, implementing, and tracking. Upon Notice to Proceed, the management team will identify the staff or subcontractors, as well as other resources required for implementation, and develop a budget, schedule, and work flow for the task. The management team will meet with department managers to outline objectives for the project and to identify specific project needs. An archaeologist will be identified as the field director, and other personnel and support staff will be identified and their project roles described. The management team and field director coordinate with subconsultants, vendors, and equipment suppliers, as necessary. This group will ensure that all planning documents are prepared, reviewed internally, and submitted to ADOT in accordance with the project schedule. The field director and laboratory director will obtain any necessary permits and repository agreements and ensure that all permitting requirements are met and access permissions obtained.

Desert Archaeology, Inc. │ Tucson, Tempe, and Prescott Arizona

The field director will be responsible for the daily implementation of the tasks outlined in the scope of work, including hiring temporary staff, scheduling staff and subcontractors, overseeing the daily logistics, communicating safety protocols, working within Desert Archaeology’s quality control protocols, assessing progress, and producing or compiling and reviewing deliverables. Our goal is to meet ADOT requirements with minimal, if any, need for revisions/changes upon project review. The principal investigator and environmental coordinator will be the primary points of contact for contracting and project implementation issues; the field director will be included in emails related to purchase order implementation.

Office Space

Desert Archaeology maintains three offices in Arizona. Desert Archaeology’s 7,470-ft2 headquarters in Tucson houses office and production facilities, extensive open work areas that facilitate artifact analysis, archaeological site files for southern and western Arizona, an archaeological library, a map library, an extensive computer network, and a fully equipped archaeological laboratory. An additional 2,000-ft2 of climate-controlled warehouse space is maintained for storage of collections and another 1,000-ft2 space for equipment storage. Our Tempe office is a 4,460-ft2 facility that includes administrative, library, analysis, and storage space. Two members of our mapping team work in a home office in Prescott. Our facilities are secured by extensive electronic continuous monitoring provided by Securitas and physical lockout/ tagout devices and procedures.

All ancestors and funerary objects are housed securely until they are repatriated, unless specific written permission has been granted by the claimant group. Non-mortuary collections received from the field are washed, labeled, and inventoried in our Tucson laboratory facility. Inventory forms prepared by laboratory personnel are entered into Desert Archaeology’s computerized database system. Collections are stored in either the office, which has exterior gates that are locked at night and 24-hour electronic monitoring by Securitas, or a secure off-site location. Inventories are maintained in Desert Archaeology’s computerized database system.

Field and Mapping Equipment

Desert Archaeology maintains sufficient field and mapping equipment for at least two large projects and several small projects to field simultaneously. This includes tools used in excavations, as well as more specialized equipment for mapping, photography, and communication. Desert Archaeology also owns seven field vehicles. Short-term rentals supplement this vehicle fleet, when needed.

Desert Archaeology uses high-precision instruments, contemporary GIS and cartographic software, and rigorous surveying methods for cultural resources mapping. Cartography is customized around GIS-enabled data collection, a comprehensive inventory of equipment, and automated data processing for analyses and graphics production. Sub-meter precision L1 GPS receivers are used for GIS-grade mapping and data collection. Optical and satellite technologies are used for survey-precision measurements; this equipment includes a 5-second total station, four full-constellations GNSS receivers, and five L1/L2 GPS receivers. The integrated, sub-centimeter GPS/GNSS systems are capable of static, PPK, RTK, and VRS network measurements.

Desert Archaeology’s airborne mapping includes fixed and rotary wing uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) operating in compliance with FAA Small Unmanned Aircraft Regulations (14 CFR Part 107). These commercial-grade platforms include a Sensefly Ebee aircraft and DJI Phantom 4 Pro quad copter; both are

Desert Archaeology, Inc. │ Tucson, Tempe, and Prescott Arizona optimized for photogrammetry and provide 20-mp still photography and 4K video. Similar ground-based approaches can be used for small-scale photogrammetry, modeling, and documentation.

Mapping and surveying equipment are controlled by customized data collection applications designed by Desert Archaeology specifically for archaeological mapping. Rigorous surveying measurements are attributed with standardized GIS attribute data in the field; these integrate seamlessly into Autodesk Autocad and Desert Archaeology’s internal enterprise database system where the attribute data automate cartographic processes throughout the project cycle. Spatial and attribute data are analyzed as engineering data in Autodesk Civil, as GIS data in Autocad Map and various ESRI products, or as a stand-alone database.

Desert Archaeology is capable of terrain and landscape modeling, hydrologic analyses, surface and volumetric analyses, thematic mapping, and professional graphic production. Remote sensing products provide an additional element to the project GIS. Aerial photography is processed using structure from motion technologies to generate orthophotography, classified point clouds, topography, and 3D models that are localized to a precision-GNSS control network.

Computer System

Desert Archaeology employs a hybrid cloud IT infrastructure incorporating Microsoft 365 and Backblaze cloud storage alongside on-site Synology 21+ series NAS servers and an Oracle 12c database server.

Current generation Sonicwall firewalls integrate and secure the Phoenix and Tucson office networks and provide secure VPN access to remote staff. Windows 10 and 11 PCs and laptops and Apple iPad Mini 5 units are used in the office and in the field. All server data, cloud data (OneDrive), and key PCs are automatically backed up across multiple devices and locations (including cloud) daily with local-only versions every two hours. The Oracle database hosts accounting, project tracking, field excavation, collection management, and analysis data, providing field directors and analysts the ability to track budgets and task progress, as well as to work with project data via a wide range of custom and off-the-shelf programs (e.g., Office, web applications, Oracle Forms & Reports).

Desert Archaeology has maintained a standardized research and project information database for more than 20 years. It allows field directors, analysts, and other researchers and staff to use familiar and established tools and processes to enter, edit, query, and export data. Our database ensures consistent results and provides the ability to integrate previous research into ongoing projects. Key constraints, range checks, field-specific data validation rules, and application designs ensure data are valid when entered or modified. Database staff provide expertise using ETL (extract-transform-load) techniques that allow researchers to integrate data from other organizations into their standard analysis approaches.

The company uses multiple technologies during fieldwork to facilitate timely communications and notifications in the field and with the company office, Tribal Historic Preservation Offices (THPO), and clients. These include offline/online custom data collection forms for survey and monitoring, as well as secure internet web applications for recording features, units, trenches, and other finds. These applications validate entered data and provide real-time access to information as it is entered.

Desert Archaeology’s production facilities share space with the cartography/mapping and illustration departments as part of an integrated work flow. Specialized Microsoft and Adobe softwares are used for page layout, file conversion, and the creation and editing of graphics. A Xerox professional color laser printer/copier with 1200 dpi output and ledger paper capabilities is used to create draft reports for client review and for quality checks before reports required in hard copy are sent for printing.

Desert Archaeology, Inc. │ Tucson, Tempe, and Prescott Arizona

Insurance

Desert Archaeology holds at least the minimum liability limits of insurance required for Commercial General Liability, Business Automobile Liability, Worker’s Compensation and Employers’ Liability, and Professional Environmental Liability. The company does not conduct operations that require Contractors Pollution Liability Insurance.

QUALIFICATIONS, EXPERIENCE, AND TECHNICAL EXPERTISE

OF KEY PERSONNEL

In this section, we offer examples of experience in the range of management responsibilities and project types that may be required by the ADOT On-Call Environmental Consulting Services solicitation.

Throughout our 40 years of work in Arizona archaeology, Desert Archaeology has developed an exceptional depth of experience in the full range of cultural resources and historic preservation services.

We have repeatedly been awarded on-call contracts by municipal, state, and federal agencies, and a substantial amount of our work has been on transportation-related projects. We provide an overview of this experience and then identify eight projects around Arizona that are comparable to tasks required by

ADOT.

Desert Archaeology has repeatedly been awarded on-call contracts by municipal, state, and federal agencies, and we have conducted a considerable amount of work through these contracts. Currently held on-call/as-needed contracts with work expectations like those in the current soliciation include:

(1) City of Tucson (prime; 1990–present; seven successive contracts); (2) Salt River Pima (SRP) (prime;

2004–present; seven successive contracts); (3) ADOT (prime; 2010–present; subconsultant to AZTEC Engineering, HDR, Kimley-Horn, EEC, WSP; 2004–present; multiple contracts); (4) City of Scottsdale (prime; 2004–present; four successive contracts); (5) Pima County (prime; 2005–present; four successive contracts); (6) City of Phoenix (prime; 2006–present; five successive contracts); (7) City of Phoenix Streets Transportation Department (prime; 2022–present); (8) Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community (SRPMIC) (prime; 2006–2011, 2012–2018); (9) Arizona State Land Department (ASLD) (prime; 2018– present); (10) U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Tribal Nations Technical Center of Expertise On-call (2018– 2023); (11) Pinal County (prime; 2021–present); (12) Bureau of Land Management (BLM) (prime; 2021– present); and (13) Gila River Indian Community (GRIC) (prime; 2024–present).

Desert Archaeology has also worked on numerous state-funded and federally funded ADOT and Federal Highway Works Administration (FHWA) projects including: (1) the Rye Creek Testing and Mitigation project (1988–1992); (2) the multiphase Interstate 10 (I-10) Survey, Monitoring, Testing, and Data Recovery project between the I-10/Interstate 19 (I-19) interchange and Tangerine Road (1993– 2015); (3) the I-10/I-19 Interchange Testing and Data Recovery project (2000–2011); (4) the multiphase Sycamore Creek Testing and Data Recovery project (1992–2005); (5) the US 89—Wupatki to Fernwood Data Recovery project (1997–2012); (6) the US 70—Pima to Safford Testing and Data Recovery project (1999–2005); (7) the multiphase SR 260—Payson to Heber project (1999–present); (8) the State Route 260—Cottonwood to Camp Verde Testing and Data Recovery project (2001–2013); (9) the State Route 77— Snowflake Passing Lanes Testing and Data Recovery project (2008–2017); and (10) the US 191–Wide Ruins project (2005–2013).

Desert Archaeology, Inc. │ Tucson, Tempe, and Prescott Arizona

In addition, we have performed the following: (1) surveys along State Route (SR) 92 in Sierra Vista, along US 80 north of Douglas, along SR 77 in Oro Valley, and along SR 78 and US 191 northeast of Safford; (2) monitored geotechnical borings for I-10 widening through Tucson; (3) tested along I-19 north of Nogales and on disposal property near I-10 in Tucson; and (4) conducted data recovery at Crismon Ruin (a large Sedentary–Classic period Hohokam settlement south of the Salt River in Mesa), the Fairbank site (an extensive habitation site with both precontact and Historic period components within the right-of-way of SR 82 east of the San Pedro River in Cochise County), at two sites along SR 79 in Pinal County, at multiple sites along SR 86 on the Tohono O’odham Nation, and at a single site along SR 377 between Heber and Holbrook in Navajo County. In 2018, with EEC Environmental as prime, we were awarded the Ruthrauff–I-10 Transportation Interchange project through ADOT procurement and have worked on this multiyear project. Desert Archaeology has substantial experience working with ADOT on transportation projects across Arizona.

Here, we provide eight detailed examples of our work conducted within the past five years. These show our experience working as both a prime and as a subconsultant, on urban and rural projects, and on projects with multiple funding sources. These projects also demonstrate our ability to work within the logistical challenges of transportation corridors. They include archaeological surveys, monitoring, and testing and data recovery excavations. As part of each project, we provide evaluations and assessments of discoveries, analyze artifact and samples recovered, prepare technical reports, and provide consultation and compliance documents necessary for the client to move forward with the regulatory process.

Principal investigators, senior archaeologists, and field directors are assigned to specific projects and are called out in the examples below. The specialized services personnel provide postfield analysis services for every data recovery project and support survey with in-field identifications of artifacts, as necessary.

Desert Archaeology’s management (Dr. Sarah Herr, President; Ms. Patricia Castalia, Environmental Coordinator; and Mr. Daniel Martinez, Environmental Coordinator), cartography, database, laboratory, and production staff also serve every project. These individuals are not called out unless they take a specific role in the work.

Services Provided: Since 2018, Desert Archaeology has implemented nine individual projects, including the multiyear Edison-Eastlake Community Development project, an extensive data recovery project with monitoring anticipated to continue for the next 3 years. Other projects include smaller data recovery and monitoring projects for the city’s Aviation, Parks and Recreation, Streets, and Water Services Departments. This example demonstrates our work on an on-call contract with a wide diversity of environmental and cultural tasks similar in nature and scale to those likely to occur under the ADOT on-call. All Tempe-based key personnel work on City of Phoenix on-call projects.

Services Provided: Desert Archaeology was the sole on-call consultant to the City of Tucson for archaeology and historic preservation under four contracts from April 1990 to November 2006, and we have continued as one of multiple on-call consultants under three contracts issued since then. Over the course of nearly 35 years, we have completed 912 projects for the City of Tucson that represent the full range of tasks outlined in the Scope of Work for the current solicitation, including 16 projects since 2020. The largest categories are surveys (n = 611) and monitoring projects (n = 112), Desert Archaeology, Inc. │ Tucson, Tempe, and Prescott Arizona with almost equal numbers of testing (n = 53) and data recovery (n = 54) projects. We have completed 35 assessments of Historic period properties, including preparation of Historic Property Inventory Forms, building condition and stabilization reports, and architectural assessments using qualified historical architects as subconsultants. Each project has resulted in the preparation of a report, ranging from letter reports to substantial technical reports. This example demonstrates our work on an on-call with a wide diversity of environmental and cultural tasks similar in nature and scale to those likely to occur under the ADOT on-call. All Tucson key personnel work on City of Tucson on-call projects.

Services Provided: ADOT was planning ITS infrastructure improvements along Interstate 40 (I-40) in northern Arizona between the California state line and the I-17/I-40 traffic interchange, a distance of approximately 200 miles. Desert Archaeology conducted a Class I cultural resources records review of the Area of Potential Effects (APE), followed by a Class III cultural resources field survey of unsurveyed portions of the APE. The project is an example of an intensive cultural resources survey project in rural Arizona that resulted in ongoing flagging and monitoring, as well as site relocation efforts to support client needs for the duration of the project. After completion of the survey, a monitoring and discovery plan was developed. Current project activities include flagging for avoidance. Key personnel involved with this project include Meghann Vance and Justin Mortensen.

Services Provided: Desert Archaeology conducted phased archaeological investigations in a 0.66-acre portion of AZ BB:13:497(ASM) in Tucson, Pima County, Arizona for ADOT for the L-SC-007 Assessment (LSCA) project. Canal site AZ BB:13:642(ASM) was also encountered. The investigation was conducted prior to ADOT’s proposed land sale of undeveloped ADOT-owned parcels. During Phase I archaeological testing in March 2020, 38 precontact and historical features were documented in the backhoe trenches. These were determined to be potentially eligible for inclusion in the NRHP under Criterion D. Phase II archaeological data recovery was conducted in the fall of 2020 to meet requirements mandated by ARS §41-841 et seq. A geomorphological study was also completed during the current project to assess the potential for deeply buried (greater than 4.5 m) deposits, as had been suggested by prior research in the area. Phase II data recovery in three loci documented 93 features. Archaeological data recovery revealed the long history of human usage of the project area. During the San Pedro phase (1200–800 BC), farmers grew maize and processed their crops on large metates. Flaked stone manufacturing and resharpening occurred. One Early Ceramic period (AD 50–500) pit was located. The area was again farmed during the Hohokam Sedentary period (AD 950–1150). During the American Statehood period (AD 1912–present), the project area became home to several Mexican-American families. This project is an example of a phased data recovery project involving precontact and historic resources and the involvement of our subconsultant geomorphologist, Dr. Gary Huckleberry. Key personnel involved with this project include Dr. Erina Gruner and J. Homer Thiel.

Desert Archaeology, Inc. │ Tucson, Tempe, and Prescott Arizona

Services Provided: Archaeological work is being conducted in advance of construction of a flexible lane in the median between north- and southbound lanes of I-17 between Anthem and SR 69.

Archaeological work is conducted as a subconsultant to HDR Engineering. HDR, in consultation with ADOT, identified sites within the APE and those that required archaeological testing or data recovery treatment. Desert Archaeology wrote a Historic Properties Treatment Plan (HPTP) for work to be conducted on Arizona State Land and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land. The HPTP included a Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) Plan of Action. Project logistics for work inside the median were complex and included traffic control plans involving off-duty police escorts and crash trucks to enable crew access and equipment delivery in the project area, as well as scheduling around holiday traffic. Testing phase or Phase I data recovery excavations explored eight sites and Phase II data recovery investigations were conducted at four of those sites. Segments of two historic roads were documented, and work at precontact limited activity, residential, and agricultural sites included systematic surface counts, excavation of test units, and feature excavation. Archaeological monitoring was recommended for areas inaccessible during the testing phase, and boulder petroglyphs were identified for preservation. This project is an example of a phased data recovery plan involving multiple state and federal agencies and complex project scheduling to ensure compliance with relevant safety standards. Key personnel involved with this project include Dr. Erina Gruner and John Marshall.

Services Provided: Cultural resources work for the I-19 broadband project included two deliverables, a Class I literature review and development of a monitoring and discovery plan. Seventy-nine archaeological sites were identified within the project APE. The project limits were extended, resulting in a 20 percent increase to the budget. The plan was crafted to contend with the complexities of a design-build installation of a high-speed fiber optic backbone along the entire I-19 corridor, including frontage roads and ramps. The project directors worked with ADOT to identify general treatment actions within the set parameters but without specific locations for the subsurface installation of the line and node buildings. This project is an example of one that created a balanced work plan that met regulatory requirements while allowing what should be a low-impact project to move forward in areas of (mostly) previously disturbed deposits through a significant number of cultural resources.

Services Provided: ADOT is making safety improvements on 11 curves along SR 377 between Heber and Holbrook, Arizona. Previous archaeological surveys identified one site, AZ P:7:23(ASM), on BLM land at one of the curves on both sides of the highway. Desert Archaeology prepared a treatment plan to address anticipated impacts and implemented data recovery. The archaeological site previously documented was found to have been substantially impacted by highway right-of-way activity since the site had initially been recorded. Features had been damaged or removed, although a substantial artifact concentration remained, and post-fieldwork focused on addressing those research questions identified in the research design that can be answered with artifacts. This project is an example of a focused data recovery project with a relatively significant postfield effort in rural Arizona.

Desert Archaeology, Inc. │ Tucson, Tempe, and Prescott Arizona

Services Provided: In late 2018, Desert Archaeology, as a subconsultant to EEC Environmental, was awarded the archaeological data recovery work on the Ruthrauff Road/I-10 Traffic Interchange project in Tucson, Arizona. Reconstruction of the traffic interchange required a substantial relocation of road, utilities, and new bridge construction. ADOT acquired several private parcels of land.

The project required a treatment plan, Phase I exploratory data recovery, Phase II mitigation data recovery, monitoring demolition of structures on parcels and the removal of underground gas storage by crew with HAZWOPER training, and ultimately, required monitoring of construction. The project required flexible planning as it was constrained by current utility locations, issues of crew and public safety along traffic corridors, almost daily coordination with ADOT and its planners on scheduling access to parcels through the acquisition period, and an attentiveness to the client’s aggressive schedule. The previously documented archaeological sites are multicomponent, with deeply buried Early Agricultural period features with significant research potential. Archaeological logistics, such as site security, environmental compliance (with the assistance of EEC), and dirt management, factored into the project coordination needs. Emergency work was conducted when road over excavation resulted in discoveries. This is an example of a high-profile project with both substantial potential for important archaeological finds and the complex logistics of working along the interstate through an urban setting. Key personnel involved with this project include our subconsultant geomorphologist Dr. Gary Huckleberry.

KEY PERSONNEL

Desert Archaeology currently has a permanent staff of 39, including 29 cultural resources professionals and six support personnel (see Organizational Chart, page 10). We have selected 10 staff to serve as key personnel for ADOT on-call projects, and additional information is provided in a separate document uploaded as Key Personnel Bio Forms. Short resumes for key personnel are attached in Appendix 1. Short biographies of all staff are provided here as these individuals will support key personnel, as needed.

Details regarding the project team, management, and their duties implementing projects are discussed in the separate Method and Approach document.

Management

Dr. Sarah A. Herr, RPA (989473), president and majority owner of Desert Archaeology, has worked for the company since 1995 and served as company principal on all projects since January 2017. She has worked as an archaeologist in the Southwest U.S. since 1988. She is the senior project director on the SR 260—Payson to Heber project and has worked in varying roles on many other ADOT-sponsored projects. Dr. Herr has served as principal investigator for on-call and small projects throughout Arizona and elsewhere in the southwestern U.S. Her research interests include settlement of the peripheral regions of the precontact Southwest and the early historic cultural landscapes. She will serve as cultural principal investigator on projects outside the Phoenix Basin and will provide all necessary support to Dr.

Henderson on Phoenix Basin projects.

Dr. T. Kathleen Henderson, RPA (15184), has worked for Desert Archaeology since 1999 and heads Desert Archaeology’s Tempe office. Dr. Henderson has more than 40 years of professional experience and

Desert Archaeology, Inc. │ Tucson, Tempe, and Prescott Arizona

Office Management/ Accounting

Jody Ann Dito, B.A.

Karina Casey, B.A.

Production

Emilee M. Mead, M.A.

Geomorphology

Gary A. Huckleberry, Ph.D.

Consultant

Architectural History

Urbana Preservation & Planning

Wendy L. Tinsley-Becker, MCP, AICP

Field Directors

Leslie D. Aragon, M.A.

Eric S. Carlson, M.A.

Connie A. Darby, B.A.

Erina Gruner, Ph.D.

Brent G. Kober, M.A.S.

Christopher E. La Roche, M.A.

Michael W. Lindeman, Ph.D.

John T. Marshall, B.A.

Justin Mortensen, M.A.

Hoski Schaafsma, M.A.

Meghann M. Vance, M.A.

James M. Vint, Ph.D.

Henry D. Wallace, M.A.

Gregory J. Whitney, B.A.

Senior Archaeologist

J. Homer Thiel, M.A.

Crew Chiefs

Kathleen Bubnekovich, A.A.

Field Crew

Data Analysts

Leslie D. Aragon, M.A.

Ceramics

Tessa L. Branyan, M.A.

Ground Stone

Rachael M. Byrd, Ph.D.

Bioarchaeology

Michael W. Diehl, Ph.D.

Paleobotany

Erina Gruner, Ph.D.

Shell

RJ Sliva, M.A.

Flaked Stone

Nathaniel Sullivan, B.A.

Ceramics

J. Homer Thiel, M.A.

Historic Artifacts

C. Virden-Lange, B.A.

Shell

Jennifer A. Waters, M.A.

Faunal

Laboratory Assistants

Information Technology

Theodore J. Oliver, B.A.

Phillip Liebold

Desert Archaeology Organizational Chart

Laboratory

Sheri Thompson, M.A.

Laura Cerny-Ciaccio, B.A.

Mapping

Stephanie Sherwood, B.A.

Caleb E. Ferbrache, M.S.

Cultural Principal Investigators

Sarah A. Herr, Ph.D.

T. Kathleen Henderson, Ph.D.

Interpretive Graphics

Robert Ciaccio

Environmental Coordinators/ Managers

Daniel J. Martinez, M.A.

Patricia Castalia, M.A.

Kristin Stott, B.A.

GIS Analyst Sr.

Brent G. Kober, M.A.S.

O ut si de

C on su lta nt s

D es er t A rc ha eo lo gy P ro je ct S ta ff an d

D ep ar tm en ta l O rg an iz at io n

BOLD: Key Personnel Red: Tempe or Prescott Personnel

Desert Archaeology, Inc. │ Tucson, Tempe, and Prescott Arizona is a recognized expert in the archaeology of the Phoenix Basin and surrounding areas. She has done innovative work in interpreting the canal and field systems of the lower Salt River Valley. Her work on phased data recovery excavations in the area of the 44th Street Station for the Sky Harbor International Airport PHX Sky Train has resulted in new perspectives on Hohokam irrigation and cultivation practices within the Salt River Valley. Dr. Henderson is presently the principal investigator for all Phoenix area projects including our ongoing on-call cultural resources contracts with the City of Phoenix, the City of Phoenix Aviation Department, the City of Scottsdale, and Arizona State University (ASU). She will serve as cultural principal investigator for Phoenix area ADOT projects.

Ms. Patricia Castalia, M.A., is Desert Archaeology’s environmental coordinator/manager. She administers all Desert Archaeology’s projects. Ms. Castalia has more than 40 years of archaeological experience in Arizona. Prior to joining Desert Archaeology in 1989, she served as project director for the Bureau of Reclamation’s Granite Reef Aqueduct project extending across western Arizona from the Colorado River to the Salt River. She will serve as environmental coordinator/manager on all projects.

Mr. Daniel J. Martinez, M.A., RPA (41591469), is one of Desert Archaeology’s environmental coordinators/ managers. Mr. Martinez has been involved in archaeology since 2006, including experience in Arizona, New Mexico, California, Colorado, Nevada, and Alaska. He is responsible for quality control, project planning, project tracking, budgets, and schedules, in collaboration with Ms. Castalia and Drs. Herr and Henderson. Prior to joining Desert Archaeology in 2025, he served as field director for more than 40 projects, managing survey, testing, and monitoring projects for a variety of state, federal, and private clients, including several New Mexico Department of Transportation (NMDOT) projects. His experience includes report preparation and developing and monitoring project budgets in collaboration with the principal investigator. As environmental coordinator/manager, Mr. Martinez works on all Desert Archaeology projects and with all team members.

Senior Archaeologist/Field Directors

The senior archaeologist and field directors have a vital role on Desert Archaeology projects. They assume a significant amount of responsibility in the development and implementation of projects in consultation with the management team, and they oversee the integration of fieldwork with postfield analyses and reporting with project analysts and subconsultants. Every attempt is made to match field directors with the projects that best suit their research interests and expertise, a strategy that draws on our staff’s deep experience and that provides efficient and targeted work for ADOT.

Mr. J. Homer Thiel, who will serve as senior archaeologist for this contract, has focused on historical archaeology in his 32 years with Desert Archaeology. He co-directed the multiyear Rio Nuevo project for the City of Tucson, where he focused on the Historic period component at the San Agustín Mission and Tucson Presidio sites. He has also directed numerous excavation projects in the downtown Tucson area including the work for the AC Marriott and, in early 2019, directed the most substantial excavation of the remaining Presidio deposits in Tucson. In Phoenix, Mr. Thiel directed the excavation of Historic period features at the Phoenix Federal Courthouse and at residential parcels in the Community Noise Reduction Program (CNRP). Mr. Thiel is an accomplished researcher in historical archives, focusing his efforts on documenting the lives of early Mexican and Euro-American settlers in Tucson. In addition to his work as senior archaeologist, Mr. Thiel has extensive experience analyzing historic artifacts from Tucson and southern Arizona, including Colonial artifacts from the Spanish, Mexican, and American periods. Mr.

Thiel is also an expert on archival research and has traced the roots of numerous Presidio-era Tucson families. He has published four articles in American Geneology magazine, as well as several articles about nineteenth century American Southwestern families in American Ancestors magazine.

Desert Archaeology, Inc. │ Tucson, Tempe, and Prescott Arizona

Ms. Leslie D. Aragon, M.A., serves as the lead ceramic analyst for current Desert Archaeology projects and having served as a supervisor on projects across southern Arizona and southwest New Mexico, can also serve as a field director or crew chief. While she specializes in Hohokam ceramics, she has worked with ceramics collections from across the U.S. Southwest and is particularly interested in using ceramic production and exchange data to explore group identities and social dynamics of people in the past. Ms.

Aragon has also worked extensively with Hohokam anthropomorphic ceramic figurines from Colonial and Sedentary period contexts.

Mr. Eric S. Carlson, M.A., is an archaeologist and illustrator with more than 30 years of archaeological field experience across the western and southwestern United States, Alaska, southern British Columbia, Hawaii, Jordan, and Ireland. For this contract, he will serve as a field director. He has experience in precontact and historic archaeological survey and excavation, testing projects, site evaluation, construction monitoring, faunal analysis, and preparation of professional reports, and he has assisted with fieldwork on ADOT projects as a field director and monitor. Mr. Carlson is also an experienced illustrator, specializing in field documentation of archaeological features, rock art, structures, and artifacts. He completes graphic layout and design work for interpretive signs, and he has worked as an on-site illustrator on various projects in the U.S. and internationally, completing overview and reconstruction renderings of ancient cultural landscapes.

Ms. Connie A. Darby, B.A., is a field director who helps implement every Phoenix Basin project, and she conducts survey projects in southern and central Arizona. Ms. Darby has broad survey and excavation experience throughout the U.S. In her 18 years with Desert Archaeology (out of more than 31 years of experience), she has served as crew chief, field director, and project director on numerous projects. She was field director for most of the archaeological investigations for the CNRP project, which included historical research, demolition monitoring, and phased data recovery excavations at residential parcels identified as containing historic or precontact resources.

Dr. Erina Gruner brings 13 years of experience working across western, southern, and central Arizona. She has participated in a wide variety of survey, testing, and data recovery projects in Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, California, and Nevada, with an emphasis on southern Arizona and the Four Corners region.

She will act as field director on ADOT projects. Dr. Gruner’s background is in the precontact archaeology of southern Arizona (Hohokam and Papaguería) and in the archaeology of northwestern New Mexico and northeastern Arizona, particularly on Chacoan and post-Chacoan interaction networks. She is a trained ceramic and shell analyst and has experience in the analysis of worked wood and basketry. Dr.

Gruner has recently directed multiple survey and site relocation projects on Yuma Proving Grounds and is a field director on the I-10 and the Silverbell Road Widening project.

Mr. Brent G. Kober, M.A.S., is a Desert Archaeology field director and our GIS analyst senior. He has more than 26 years of experience leading, managing, and documenting archaeological projects throughout the American Southwest and has directed field data collection, mapping, and report figure production for more than 800 projects. Mr. Kober has experience mapping with total station equipment, GPS units utilizing a variety of software, using AutoDesk’s AutoCAD, Adobe Illustrator, and ESRI’s suite of software. He has implemented 3D scanning, drone aerial photography, and photogrammetry on many projects. Since 2014, Mr. Kober has served as a forensic archaeologist, performing archaeological damage assessments throughout the U.S. for government agencies including the BLM, the Bureau of Recalamation, the National Park Service (NPS), the U.S. Air Force (USAF), and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. He has also instructed 3- to 5-day classes on archaeological damage assessment and damage assessment report writing to archaeologists, law enforcement officers, attorneys, and Tribal representatives.

Desert Archaeology, Inc. │ Tucson, Tempe, and Prescott Arizona

Mr. Christopher E. La Roche, M.A., has more than five years of professional archaeological field and laboratory experience in the Southwest. He has worked on precontact sites ranging from Early Agricultural period and Hohokam sequence sites near the Tucson and Phoenix Basins to Salado roomblocks in southwestern New Mexico. He also has experience on post-contact sites, including historical road and trail remains to the remnants of past mining and logging activities. Since 2023, Mr.

La Roche has served as field director for survey projects across southern, central, and northern Arizona, including the Mockingbird Lane Improvements Survey in Paradise Valley, Arizona, and along I-40 near Two Guns. He regularly assists in the planning and execution of testing and data recovery projects.

Dr. Michael W. Lindeman has broad experience as a field director working in the precontact archaeology of Arizona. He has worked for Desert Archaeology for 32 years. He has directed excavations of precontact sites in the Tucson Basin that span the Archaic period through Hohokam occupations, as well as surveys and large-scale excavations at sites in the Tonto Basin that range in age from the Late Archaic to the Early Classic period. Dr. Lindeman has supported or directed excavations at major Hohokam sites including La Ciudad, Valencia Vieja, Julian Wash, and Honey Bee Village in Tucson, and La Villa in Phoenix. He has worked on City of Tucson on-call projects, helping, in particular, to develop a GIS of archaeological sensitivity zones, essential information for project planners working in downtown Tucson. He directed fieldwork on the I-10 Ruthrauff Traffic Interchange project.

Mr. John T. Marshall, B.A., has more than 25 years of archaeological experience in Arizona, New Mexico, California, and Texas. During his time at Desert Archaeology, Mr. Marshall has directed archaeological work for the ADOT I-10 Broadway Curve and L-SC-007 Assessment projects, as well as many smaller ADOT projects. He has worked on a wide array of survey, testing, and data recovery projects, including work for ADOT, SRPMIC, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security near the international border. Mr. Marshall’s experience includes work at many Phoenix and middle Gila River sites including Grewe, Las Canopas, La Villa, and Pueblo del Rio. His survey, excavation, and monitoring work with the SRPMIC has supported improvements on transportation and utility projects and includes data recovery at Monte Vista Road, monitoring for pole replacements and water systems improvements, and monitoring at the Justice Center. He is currently a field director for the multiyear City of Phoenix Edison- Eastlake project at La Ciudad.

Mr. Justin Mortensen, M.A., has 10 years of field director archaeological experience in the Southwest and experience in both internship and professional roles with the NPS, the Phoenix BLM office, the Coconino, Apache-Sitgreaves, and Tonto National Forests, and Yuma Proving Ground, assisting with surveys, document reviews, and database management. Since joining Desert Archaeology in 2021, Mr. Mortensen has worked as crew member and as a field director on data recovery excavations within the City of Phoenix and near New River for ADOT, SRP, and the City of Phoenix, as crew on surveys of Yuma Proving Ground, and as field director of small survey projects in southern and western Arizona.

Mr. Hoski Schaafsma, M.A., has 35 years of archaeological experience in Arizona and the Greater Southwest. He has worked as a principal investigator, a project director, and a field director supervising cultural resources survey, testing, and data recovery projects. His research interests include human settlement and agricultural systems. Mr. Schaafsma has studied those systems around Pueblo Grande, Perry Mesa, and those in the upper reaches of the Queen Creek. His work in the Chama Valley informs modern Tewa water management. He is also interested in late precontact and early historic population movements along the Gila and Santa Cruz Rivers. He has recently directed work at the Kyrene site.

Ms. Meghann M. Vance, M.A., is a field director with 21 years of experience in the Greater Southwest, including nearly a decade of managing inventory and site documentation projects throughout Arizona.

Her research interests include GIS and microscope applications in archaeology, flaked stone technologies, Desert Archaeology, Inc. │ Tucson, Tempe, and Prescott Arizona

Paleoamericans, ethnoarchaeology, experimental archaeology, forensic archaeology, NAGPRA, cultural resources management and practice, and public/community archaeology. Between 2018 and the present, Ms. Vance has significant experience working on the landscapes of central Arizona and has directed several ADOT projects, such as the I-40 Broadband project in northern Arizona. She is highly proficient with large landscape scale analyses, GIS products, and developing recommendations for future work.

Dr. James M. Vint, has pursued archaeology in the field in northern and southern Arizona, as well as in northern New Mexico, since 1984. He has worked on survey and excavation projects that have investigated nearly every time period found in the Greater Southwest, including Late Archaic and Early Agricultural period sites. His knowledge drawn from fieldwork, laboratory analyses, literature reviews, and general interest in reading current and classic reports spans the last 12,000 years of history in the region. Dr.