An agreement may soon be reached between the Texas Department of Transportation and Harris County regarding the future of an ancient archeological site along the path of the Grand Parkway Segment E.

Last summer, archeologists unearthed 10 separate human burial sites thought to be 8,000–14,000 years old along the corridor in a registered archeological site in the vicinity of Cypress Creek. Until then, the site was thought to contain ancient artifacts, not human remains.

"This is one of the oldest multiple burial sites of human beings in North America," said Glen Van Slyke, Harris County assistant county attorney. "It's a pretty significant discovery."

After TxDOT found the remains, they filed an application in a Harris County district court asking for permission to remove and reinter them elsewhere in a permanent burial place.

"We were notified of the court filing because the historical commission in a county in which remains are found are required to get a copy of the lawsuit," Van Slyke said. "The historical commission decided to intervene to try and determine what parties TxDOT had consulted concerning this request to remove the remains."

The commission was concerned because most Native Americans oppose the removal of remains for cultural and religious reasons, Van Slyke said.

"These were intentional burials because of the objects buried with the persons and the positions they were found in," he said.

Van Slyke said TxDOT initially intended to avoid the archeological site altogether during construction of Segment E, which will run through northwest Harris County from I-10 to Hwy. 290 when complete by late 2013.

Original plans called for the agency to erect a chain-link fence around the site with a 20-foot buffer years before the human remains were found, Van Slyke said.

When construction on Segment E began last fall, TxDOT changed its plan and began what is called salvage archeology, and several months later archeologists discovered the first set of human remains, Van Slyke said.

"We're working toward an agreement with TxDOT and the Native American groups to leave the remains in the site and cover the portion that was excavated with concrete that would make it a permanent burial," Van Slyke said. "TxDOT has even agreed for a Native American representative to monitor the site protection plan to make sure the remains aren't disturbed in the future. We're extremely pleased with the outcome."

The discovery did slow construction on the roadway near the site, but TxDOT still expects the four-lane toll road to be completed by the end of 2013.

"Construction crews have been temporarily de-mobilized in the vicinity of the archeological site, but are working in other areas along the project," said Raquelle Lewis, TxDOT public information officer. "While it will be important that we resolve the issues related to the archeological site as expeditiously as possible to avoid potential schedule delays, we are still on track to deliver the roadway in 2013."