A missed deadline may cost the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians years of work and the possibility to acquire the scenic Coos Head site near Charleston.

The U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs has failed to submit an application initiating the land transfer and the General Services Administration the past week opened the purchase of the former Air National Guard base to public interest prospects.

The tribes were considered a lock to get the sought-after property, an 11-acre parcel that includes the Cape Arago lighthouse and a parcel that overlooks the Pacific Ocean. Under federal guidelines, the tribes had first dibs on surplused land but since the BIA missed the deadline initiating the land transfer, Coos Head is now open to purchase by other interested groups who can get federal sponsorship.

"They asked for a 30-day extension. That was granted and then they did not, they were not able to submit a completed request package," said James Biederman, GSA project manager.

Tribal Administrator Francis Somday II said his council is furious about the BIA's handling of the matter, which may end up turning into a loss of land and a potential learning and recreation center it wanted to build. Somday said the tribes submitted its paperwork to the BIA in time but the agency never followed up on the matter.

"(The tribes) had a real shot of getting Coos Head returned to it and because one employee failed to do their job, the tribe loses again," Somday said. "The ownership of this property is part of the 1.6 million acres the tribes gave up in the 1850s and it's going to be another tragedy in the history of this tribe if Coos Head is not returned to its rightful owner."

Phone calls to BIA representatives in Washington, D.C., were not returned.

Somday has not ruled out a lawsuit against the BIA, if the tribes discover they could force an injunction to stop the sale of the property to another group.

"In a nutshell, we have our attorneys working on a potential lawsuit against the BIA for violations of its own rules and regulations," he said.

The GSA follows a complicated, tiered process to determine who will get surplused federal property.

Federal agencies, such as the BIA, get the first crack at the land.

Biederman said the BIA initially requested an extension from the initial deadline to review environmental records for the site. The federal government has for years been cleaning several benzene plumes that leaked from military tanks but the cleanup has yet to be completed.

Biederman said he called the BIA to report the deadline was nearing but he never heard back from the agency and let the extension expire.

Once federal agencies are excluded from the process, the GSA allows anyone with an interest in using the property for public benefit a shot at acquiring the parcel - if they can get federal sponsorship. While homeless shelters have priority over all other interests, the Department of Housing and Urban Development recently determined the site is unfit for use as a homeless shelter, saying the buildings on the site are too deteriorated.

Biederman said the GSA is reviewing whether the tribes will have another chance to acquire the property as a public interest group.

"We are discussing with legal counsel internally right now and with respect of the issue of whether they can pursue this property as a public body, whether the tribes would qualify as a public body under one of the public benefit uses," he said.

Even so, the tribes no longer would receive priority treatment and would compete for the ownership with other interested groups.

"The federal entities, including the BIA, no longer have a priority," Biederman said.

And other public interests are piling up.

Oregon International Port of Coos Bay officials have expressed some guarded interest in working with the original Coos Head Working Group to acquire the property for public use. The group, formed in the late 1990s, included representatives from the port, Coos County, South Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve, Coos Bay and North Bend and the Coquille Indian Tribe as well as the Confederated Tribes.

"Five years ago it was clear," General Manager Allan Rumbaugh said. "The port was interested in helping someone acquire the land."

Today, that support is not as clear but there still is interest.

Commissioner Cheryl Scott said she wants more information about the contaminated areas on the site and wants to review a study produced by the Coos Head Working Group in 1998 before making a decision. She also expressed caution at the prospect that the property remains polluted.

In a study several hundred pages long, the Coos Head group developed a number of alternative uses for the site, all largely based on the concept that eco-tourism could be profitable for the area. Ideas were discussed about using the site for a resort, for an educational interpretive center, or a center combining lodging and learning.

The port by itself would not be able to sponsor the Coos Head group's bid for the property but could be in a better position to seek federal sponsorship.

Idle since 1996, when the Oregon Air National Guard closed the doors on its Coos Head base and moved operations to Klamath Falls, the 40-acre site is proving to be a highly sought-after piece of real estate in Coos County.

The GSA has not done an appraisal on the property and a price is unclear.

Somday said he has been working with the BIA and the GSA to determine if the process can be reversed but he has been getting little from either group.

"In the end, while these two agencies are bickering over this process, who got hurt?" Somday asked. "The tribes."