Dear Temecula: Never Forget Pechanga Pu’éska Mountain Day

TEMECULA, CA — As Temecula and other Southwest Riverside County residents make plans to celebrate Thanksgiving ahead — and all they are thankful for — it's worth remembering what was almost lost in the community nearly a decade ago.

Each year, since 2012, the City of Temecula has observed “Pechanga Pu’éska Mountain Day” on November 15. Proclaimed a local holiday in Temecula, Pechanga Pu’éska Mountain Day reminds the community of the native culture of the Pechanga Band of Luiseño Indians.

It also gives pause to remember a tumultuous, more-than-seven-year battle that brought together thousands of residents, tribal members and outsiders from all walks of life.

The impetus for Pechanga Pu’éska Mountain Day is truly a unique Temecula story that has been made into a documentary film by Brad Munoa, a member of the Pechanga Band of Luiseño Indians and a writer, director, producer for the Pechanga Creative Studios.

Munoa’s “The Mountain That Weeps” tells of that monumental fight that began in the mid-2000s to save Pu’éska Mountain from an open-pit mining proposal known as the Liberty Quarry project. The much-contested proposal was planned adjacent to the Temecula city boundary and would have been among the largest aggregate mining quarries in the United States, with up to 1,600 gravel trucks trips every day, boulder blasts, lights, noise and dust in the trajectory of the prevailing winds overlooking the city.

For the tribe, the proposal was personal: Pu'éska Mountain is the place of the Sacred Creation Area for all Luiseño Indian People.

Despite being rejected by the Riverside County Planning Commission, the mine was ultimately fast-tracked for approval by the then Board of Supervisors after years of opposition by thousands of residents and businesses, the Pechanga Tribe, the City of Temecula, Save our Southwest Hills, and San Diego State University.

The battle officially ended Nov. 15, 2012, when Pechanga Tribal Chairman Mark Macarro announced during an impromptu news conference that the tribe closed escrow on 365 acres of land that was the proposed quarry site.

“There is no doubt this mine would have degraded our city, and negatively affected our local economy and real estate values,” said Temecula City Council Member Mike Naggar, who attended Macarro's memorable news conference.

“Pechanga rightfully owns their native land, again, and our city and region is forever grateful to the tribe," Naggar said this week.

Macarro still serves as Pechanga Tribal Chairman, and recently said, “We thank the city for remembering this day and honoring our people, our heritage, and our shared community. Our tribe was deeply moved and inspired by the passion and resolve of the community to preserve Pu’éska Mountain for future generations. That determination deepened the bonds between our two governments and strengthened the fabric of our shared community.”

Each year the city and tribe have observed Pechanga Pu’éska Mountain Day with a gathering or cultural activities in Town Square at City Hall. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 health restrictions, an event was not possible for 2020.

Naggar, who is also the city’s appointed liaison to the Pechanga Tribe, suggested that residents celebrate the day by watching "The Mountain That Weeps" to understand how and why Pechanga ultimately negotiated an agreement with the multi-billion dollar Watsonville, Calif., mining company Granite Construction to end the Liberty Quarry deal.

Temecula Mayor Pro-Tem Maryann Edwards agrees, and said the film is perfectly produced and reflects a time in the city’s history that could have changed it forever.

"The City of Temecula is grateful for this accurate and historic accounting of this challenging time," said Edwards, who was also on city council in 2012 and was at the Macarro news conference. "Pechanga Pu’éska Mountain Day formally sets aside one day to show our gratitude to the Pechanga Tribe for saving our community from the impacts of a massive open-pit mine. Liberty Quarry would have irreversibly desecrated the mountainous area southwest of Old Town, the Luiseño Garden of Eden.”

In 2012, Matt Rahn was the lead representative opposing the mine on behalf of San Diego State University. He managed SDSU’s Santa Margarita Ecological Reserve, which shared a boundary with the proposed Liberty Quarry project.

Rahn now serves on the Temecula City Council.

“I once said that the location of this mine was like 'putting a rock concert next to a monastery.’ As proposed, this was going to be one of the largest mining operations of its kind, causing permanent damage to sensitive biological, cultural, and hydrological resources,” he explained.

“This area represents the last of so many things for Southern California — the last inland to coastal wildlife linkage, the last fully-protected free-flowing river, home to many endemic and sensitive species, and a significant cultural legacy for Pechanga that could never be replaced,” Rahn continued.

Riverside County is currently represented by an entirely different Board of Supervisors elected after 2012, and the Temecula City Council has evolved too with new faces on the dais. But Temecula City Council Member Zak Schwank said Pechanga Pu’éska Mountain Day remains "and will continue to give us pause now and into the future. Temecula is proud to have proclaimed a local holiday dedicated to better understanding and celebrating the culture and heritage of Native Americans, and I am honored to be part of this and share my respect for the Pechanga Band of Luiseño Indians.”

“The Mountain That Weeps” is currently featured online at the American Indian Film Festival through Saturday. To purchase tickets and support the Documentary at the Film Festival, the link is provided here. Residents can also view the film after November 14 at www.mountainthatweeps.com.