State commits $550,000 to Cahokia Mounds
Funding will restore and expand the prestigious World Heritage Site

July 17, 2008

The state is committing nearly $550,000 to Cahokia Mounds to assist in the preservation and restoration of the largest prehistoric Native American city north of Mexico, Illinois State Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias announced today.

The funding is the culmination of a financial commitment made to Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site officials under the previous administration.

Administrators at the 2,200-acre historic site, located five miles east of St. Louis, intend to use the money to expand and preserve the once vibrant prehistoric city and introduce new attractions for tourists, including a multi-language, self-guided audio tour of the grounds.

“We are excited to have this important cooperation with the Treasurer’s Office as these funds will assist us in improving our offerings to the public,” said Bill Iseminger, Cahokia Mounds Assistant Site Manager. “The audio tour program is something we have needed for a long time and it will be the first of several planned presentations that will keep people coming back for new experiences at Cahokia Mounds.” 

Giannoulias is fulfilling a commitment made to Cahokia Mounds under the previous administration. In 2002, former Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka committed to fund projects at the historic site and expected to generate “hundreds of thousands of dollars” in a special preservation fund account. After receiving legislative approval, Topinka deposited $100 million of the state’s portfolio in the Cahokia Mounds preservation fund with U.S. Bank.

The Cahokia Mounds preservation fund received a 0.4 percent of the interest on that money from March 2006 to February 2007, for a total of $860,000. Giannoulias ended the interest earning program shortly after taking office and transferred the income back to the state’s portfolio and General Revenue Fund.

“This is a remarkable site that is historically rich and one that we can learn from,” Giannoulias said. “We want to fulfill the commitment made in the previous administration, but given the current economic conditions and the financial hardship facing Illinois, we believe that any additional interest accrued on that $100 million should go to the state.”

Out of the $860,000, Cahokia officials have already spent approximately $310,000 on a Master Management Plan for the World Heritage Site, a requirement under the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO) designation.

The Master Management Plan was competitively bid and the Woolpert Firm of St. Louis was selected. The firm identified at least $47 million in immediate, mid-term, and long-range project needs for Cahokia Mounds.

Giannoulias and Cahokia Mounds staff identified and approved one of those projects by earmarking $100,000 for an indoor/outdoor audio tour. The Antenna Audio MP3 players will offer tours in English, Spanish, French and German.

Giannoulias and Cahokia Mounds staff plans to identify and approve money for more projects and fund them with the remaining $450,000 within the next year.

The Native American city was inhabited from 700 to 1400 A.D. and boasted up to 20,000 residents and 4,000 acres. The ruins include 70 mounds that served as homes and burial sites. French settlers named the area Cahokia after the Illini Indians who lived there in the 17th Century. The United Nations declared Cahokia a World Heritage Site in 1982.