City leaders want a plan for large-scale development envisioned for West Douglas

Assembly moves ahead on a master plan process for private cruise port and other possible projects, while stressing nothing yet is a done deal

A conceptual drawing of the proposed Goldbelt Aaní private cruise port along the west coast of Douglas Island. (Image by Port of Tomorrow MG)

By Mark Sabbatini

Juneau Independent

West Douglas may well be its own bustling cruise tourism-fueled community in the coming years, but many of Juneau’s city leaders say they want to proceed cautiously with how, where and if that happens.

Goldbelt Inc.’s proposed two-ship private port that might see 500,000 passengers a year using a north Douglas-Juneau crossing to visit the Mendenhall Glacier could be just one phase of extensive development on the company’s and other land, Juneau Assembly members were told during a Committee of the Whole meeting Monday night.

That means road, utilities, emergency services and a bunch of other things may need in-depth scrutiny from various local, state and federal entities. The Assembly members unanimously took a step toward creating a West Douglas Master Plan that would set parameters for the transformation.

But the committee by a 5-4 vote rejected drafting a memorandum of agreement between the city and Goldbelt "that addresses areas of critical concern," with dissenting members saying it suggests Goldbelt’s dock project is a done deal even though the local permitting process is only in the initial stages.

"I think the public will take this as we're moving forward on a project and that is not the intent that I think I want the community to be taking from these conversations," Assembly Member Christine Woll said. "We have a lot to figure out and we do need to be having these discussions about what the city would need to mitigate impacts of any potential development."

Proceeding with work now on a West Douglas Master Plan makes sense so local officials can make their plans while Goldbelt is working on theirs, said Jill Lawhorne, community development director for the City and Borough of Juneau, during a presentation to Assembly members.

"Our intent in coming before you tonight was to set the stage and say, ‘Hey, this is coming. This is a huge deal. It will be hugely impactful to the entire community,’" she said. "And we want to start setting the stage for you of what's to come and what you need to be thinking about."

Also, the master plan process is about looking at more than just what Goldbelt is developing on its land, Lawhorne said.

"It's also the city and borough’s land, and it's critical land for us and we want to be the drivers behind that master plan — while working closely with Goldbelt on their development, of course, as well," she said. "But we also have a lot of our land and other resources out there too."

Part of the master plan process will involve discussing potential impacts with existing neighborhoods in North Douglas as well as assessing undeveloped areas, Lawhorne said.

The Goldbelt Aaní cruise port, if approved, would occupy 251 of the roughly 1,800 acres it owns along the northwest coast of Douglas Island. The company has stated further development could occur on its property, and there is city, tribal and private land nearby where some projects are already underway — including a gondola at Eaglecrest and tribal gaming hall near the ski area — or could be proposed in the future.

A key element of developing a master plan for the West Douglas area is it’s outside the City and Borough of Juneau’s Urban Service Area, Lawhorne said. That means the city isn’t planning to provide much of the public infrastructure that exists in the developed parts of town.

"We don't plan to bring you public water," she said. "We don't plan to bring you public sewer. We don't intend to deliver waste management services or have the private entities do so — it's not planned for. We don't plan for transit. We don't plan for the impacts to our harbors. We don't plan for emergency services."

"And so when we stretch outside that Urban Service Area that's when we really need to be mindful of what those impacts mean, because it's not just adding a development in the middle of the Valley that already has all of those services."

Goldbelt states it intends to develop water, wastewater, power and other core infrastructure as part of its port project scheduled to open by the 2028 cruise season. Development of additional onshore facilities for visitors and employees are expected to continue for a few years past that date, according to the company.

Lawhorne said one intent of the master plan is to consider potential development on Goldbelt’s property beyond the cruise port as part of an assessment of the entire area.

"We still are required to look at the entire land area, and the future phases and what the buildout brings," she said. "So in some ways having a master plan fully completed helps developers because then they can rely on the plan and that information to build out what their buildout would be — what they need for sizing for their water, for wastewater, what do they need for waste management or emergency services?"

Among the steps Goldbelt will have to take are building permits through the city, resolving road access with the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, marine construction and impact issues involving the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and other agencies, according to documents presented to the Assembly. Plans for police, fire and medical emergencies will also need to be addressed.

Another concern expressed by Woll is whether now is the proper time to be drafting a master plan for West Douglas since, while significant development there has been considered for decades, much of that assumes the existence of a second Juneau-Douglas crossing that is still years away from reality.

"I don't like the idea of a developer driving our capacity and our timeline on things," she said. "And I feel like since I've been on this Assembly we've been saying we can't develop out there until we get a second crossing. And so I'm a little like, why the change in kind of strategy?"

Mayor Beth Weldon, who favored moving ahead with a memorandum of agreement with Goldbelt to define shared issues of importance, said she also doesn’t want to make it appear as if "we have accepted this project in any way, shape or form," but the discussions are a worthwhile part of the evaluation process

"I think it still needs quite a bit of work, but I do hear what (city) staff has to say and I think we need to get out ahead instead of postponing and waiting for it to come to us that we have to rush it so much," she said. "Beginning a draft does not mean that it's going to be done at our next meeting, but I think both parties need to start identifying some of the complex ideas or services that they need to come up with. And so I think we should start working on this now."

Weldon, Neil Steininger, Maureen Hall and Nano Brooks voted in favor of having city staff draft a Memorandum of Understanding between CBJ and Goldbelt. Woll, Ella Adkison, Greg Smith, Paul Kelly and Alicia Hughes-Skandijs voted against the motion by the mayor.

Some members said drafting such a memo may again get consideration when Goldbelt is further along in the process and therefore more is known about specifics of the project. Lawhorne said the company is expected to file a conditional use permit application in the near future.

• Contact Mark Sabbatini at editor@juneauindependent.com or (907) 957-2306.