A federal judge has ordered Whidbey Telecom to give the Lummi Nation at least 30 days’ notice before beginning any ground-disturbing work on its Point Roberts broadband projects, which are the subject of an ongoing legal challenge.
Judge Kymberly K. Evanson’s July 15 ruling in U.S. District Court in Seattle — part of the tribe’s request for a preliminary injunction — found that “Lummi Nation is likely to succeed in its claim” that Whidbey Telecom disturbed Lummi burial sites and has not reinterred the displaced ancestral remains under the Nation’s supervision, as required by Washington law.”
The ruling continues: “Lummi Nation faces irreparable harm if ground work were to commence without the Nation’s knowledge,” adding that “most of the excavation to date has occurred with no notice to the Nation.”
The tribal nation also asked the judge to bar Whidbey Telecom from doing more ground-disturbing work in Point Roberts, require the company and Whatcom County to put security in place, and give Lummi Nation access to the disturbed sites.
Evanson ruled the tribe’s requests were premature because neither the company nor the county “objected to the Nation conducting such an assessment”; ground work wasn’t occurring and likely wouldn’t before the case went to trial; and it had yet to apply to the county for permits to access the sites.
The Lummi Nation filed a lawsuit in April alleging that three federally funded broadband projects — Community Connect, ReConnect and Middle Mile — disturbed burial grounds and archaeological sites in Point Roberts.
The lawsuit named Whidbey Telecom, Whatcom County, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Commerce as defendants.
The projects didn’t have legally required tribal consultation or environmental review and caused damage to ancestral human remains and cultural resources, the Lummis allege in the lawsuit, which has an October 2027 trial date.
The tribe seeks declaratory and injunctive relief, damages and orders requiring further review and remediation.
Point Roberts has been part of Lummi cultural life for thousands of years and contains burial grounds and archaeological sites protected under federal and state law. The Nation alleges the defendants violated the National Historic Preservation Act, National Environmental Policy Act, Administrative Procedure Act and Washington law by failing to consult with the tribe before construction began and by continuing work after archaeological materials and human remains were discovered.
Whidbey Telecom and the other defendants have denied the allegations and have asked for parts of the lawsuit to be dismissed.
*This article was edited to reflect that the name of the business is Whidbey Telecom, not Whidbey Telephone.
