Telephone Hill lawsuit set for trial Aug. 24

Mark Sabbatini
Jun 26
3 min read

Dispute between city, former residents of historic neighborhood has gotten global media attention the past two weeks

By Mark Sabbatini

Juneau Independent

A civil lawsuit challenging the city’s redevelopment plans for Telephone Hill, which have received international media coverage during the past two weeks, is scheduled for trial on Aug. 24 following a hearing on Friday.

The lawsuit by six former residents of the downtown neighborhood where some of Juneau’s oldest homes stand asserts the city is using an illegal development process and violating historic preservation laws. The city argues it has followed proper public process in seeking to demolish existing structures on the property it owns and the historic preservation laws cited in the lawsuit do not apply to Telephone Hill.

Superior Court Judge Amanda Browning on Friday set the case for trial in August rather than an alternative proposed date in January. That may be potentially significant since the next major steps in the project may occur in October when developers have responded to a request to present their qualifications for redeveloping the neighborhood within the parameters envisioned by the Juneau Assembly.

Redevelopment of the neighborhood has been proposed for decades — first by the state as a possible site for a new Capitol, then by the city for residential purposes when it acquired the land in 2022. Residents living in homes there for many years have been aware of the possible redevelopment. But concrete action didn’t occur until the Assembly voted last June to evict people living in 13 residences in the neighborhood on Oct. 1.

Those evictions were delayed by legal challenges, with the last home vacated at the end of February. City officials have stated their next step is to demolish the existing structures and do preliminary site work that will allow denser housing — up to four midrise apartments with 155 residences — and possibly businesses and other development.

News stories about the dispute were published by The Wall Street Journal on June 13 ("A housing crisis comes for Juneau’s most historic homes") and the Britain-based Daily Mail on June 16 ("Locals in scenic city fight to stop bulldozers from leveling their historic homes for swanky new condos"). Both focus much of their coverage on the personal stories of former residents now involved in the lawsuit, but also refer to the city’s ongoing housing shortage issues.

The Wall Street Journal article, noting the Assembly put demolition plans for Telephone Hill on hold in April, ends its article by reporting neighborhood advocate Catherine Fritz visited the homes in May. The front door to one of the homes has apparently been broken open.

“I’ll call the property manager and tell them that it’s open again,” she told the newspaper while taking photos with her phone. “The city is not doing its responsibility.”

"No trespassing" signs are now posted prominently throughout the neighborhood.

Fritz, an architect, is also listed as the sole expert witness for the former Telephone Hill residents in the lawsuit by Fred Triem, the plaintiffs’ attorney. Court documents show she has issued a report making a wide range of assertions about why the city’s redevelopment plans are illegal and not feasible. The city, in a legal response, questions the validity of many of her claims and notes there is no record of her testifying as an expert in any legal proceeding during the past five years.

Arguments about whether she can be an expert witness for the plaintiffs were heard June 12, with a ruling by Browning pending.

Triem said in an interview Friday a trial is expected to last about five days. However, both the plaintiffs and the city have pending motions seeking summary judgment from Browning on some or all of the claims in the lawsuit.

The judge did not address those motions on Friday. A pre-trial hearing was set for 9 a.m. on Aug. 7.

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