Staff Responses to CEQA Related - Agenda Item No. 28

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The Village Santa Ana Specific Plan Project Response to ObjectionLetter T1: Andrew Salas, Gabrieleño Band of Mission Indians –Kizh Nation, dated September 5, 2025 Response T1-1: Thecommentintroduces the letter on behalf of the Gabrieleño Band of Mission Indians – Kizh Nation (herein, Kizh Nation) regarding their review of the project Final Supplemental EIR. The Kizh Nation expresses opposition to the City’s decision to update Tribal Cultural Resource (TCR) mitigation measures in the Final Supplemental EIR based on a public comment letter submitted by the Juaneño Band of Mission Indians, Acjachemen Nation-Belardes (herein, Juaneño Band of Mission Indians)As this section is introducing the topics to be discussed in the comment letter, the commenter is referred to the responses to each detailed comment below. The commenter’s specific concerns are included in the subsequent Comment Nos. T1-2 through T1-11. Refer to Response Nos. T1-2 through T1-11 for specific responses to such concerns. No further response is required. Response T1-2: The comment alleges that the City substituted the views of a non-consulting entity (Juaneño Band of Mission Indians) in place of consultation with the Kizh Nation. In compliance with CEQA, the City initiated the Senate Bill (SB) 18 and AB 52 tribal consultation process on November 18, 2023, when the City transmitted written notification to a list of tribes to provide the opportunity to consult regarding the proposed project. In accordance with Government Code Section 65352.3, the contacted tribes included tribes traditionally and culturally affiliated with the project area and tribes maintained on the Native American Heritage Commission’s contact list, which included both the Juaneño Band of Mission Indians and the Kizh Nation, as described in Section 4.14, Tribal Cultural Resources, of the Draft Supplemental EIR. Under SB 18, once the City’s notification is transmitted, tribes have 90 days to request consultation (Government Code Section 65352.3(a)(2)). Under AB 52, tribes have 30 days from receipt of the formal notification to request consultation (Public Resources Code Section 21080.3.1). On March 8, 2024, the Kizh Nation responded to the City’s notification with a request to consult, which occurred via email. The result of the consultation process was the incorporation of the Kizh Nation’s provided mitigation measures, as presented in the Draft Supplemental EIR. Though the Juaneño Band of Mission Indians did not respond to the City’s invitation to consult under SB 18 or AB 52, the Juaneño Band of Mission Indians submitted a comment letter on June 10, 2025 on the Draft Supplemental EIR requesting mitigation measures be incorporated to provide for monitoring by the Juaneño Band of Mission Indians. This comment letter was submitted during the public review period for the Draft Supplemental EIR in accordance with CEQA. The Native American Heritage Commission’s list for the project area includes the Juaneño Band of Mission Indians as a tribe traditionally and culturally affiliated with the project area. Based on comments received from the Juaneño Band of Mission Indians, as part of the Final Supplemental EIR, the City added Project-specific MM TCR-4 and MM TCR-5 to provide for monitoring by the Juaneño Band of Mission Indians. Project-specific MM TCR-6 is also included regarding resource identification, dispute resolution, and final disposition of any recovered resources. These mitigation measures are in addition to the measures requested by the Kizh Nation and do not change the substance of the measures requested by Kizh Nation or result in new or substantially more severe impacts. Response T1-3: The comment argues that public comments are not a substitute for consultation and cannot override tribe-specific mitigation measures and also suggests that by incorporating Juaneño Band of Mission Indians’ mitigation measures, the City ignored its duty to reflect Kizh Nation consultation outcomes in the Final Supplemental EIR. City of Santa Ana September 2025 6