A cabinet deputy secretary has reopened talks with tribes and delayed issuing a work permit, despite pressure from Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick and Sen. John McCain.
By CYNDY COLE Sun Staff Reporter Sunday, November 08, 2009
Some members of Arizona's congressional delegation -- including U.S. Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick, D-Flagstaff -- have asked: When is construction going to start at Snowbowl?
The agency now in charge of that decision is not giving any clear answers. Instead, it says it is attempting to forge a compromise between tribes and ski area owners.
U.S. Sens. John McCain and Jon Kyl first wrote the Department of Agriculture in June, asking for a timeline on when the agency would allow construction to start at Arizona Snowbowl.
The Department of Agriculture, which includes the U.S. Forest Service, is now functionally in charge of the decision to allow or prohibit construction at Arizona Snowbowl. The authority comes after a federal appeals court denied tribes' religious complaints over plans approved by the Forest Service to use reclaimed wastewater to make snow and the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review the decision.
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