By Jessica Edwards
The Haines Borough Assembly Tuesday voted 3-2 to deny a permit
renewal for Southeast Alaska Backcountry Adventures that included two additional heliports
in the Chilkat Valley.
Assemblyman Steve Vick was absent and excused; Norm Smith
participated telephonically from Mexico.
Heliports proposed by the company are in the upper Chilkat
Valley about 7.25 air miles north of the outlet of Mosquito Lake on land held by the
company, and an airstrip in the Takhin River Valley.
The company can renew its original permit, without additional
heliports, through the borough clerk without assembly approval.
Residents Bruce Bauer, Gabe Long, Karen and Duck Hess, and Dean
Risley spoke in favor of SEABA’s proposal, saying the proposed sites would have no
impacts on residents and approval would be a gesture of support for a local business.
Residents Carolyn Weishan, Mardell Gunn and Patricia Blank wrote
letters to the assembly cautioning against approving additional heliports, saying approval
could lead to a proliferation of landing zones, and potentially endanger mountain goat and
fish habitat.
Assembly discussion of the proposed heliports centered on
whether changes were needed to the borough’s special use designation map and the
definition of the term “heliport.”
Currently, helicopters fly out of the Haines airport, 18 Mile
Haines Highway, and 33 Mile Haines Highway.
SEABA owners had earlier proposed an additional heliport on
private land near 26 Mile, but said in a Feb. 5 CVN letter to the editor they had
withdrawn the request in response to the concerns of neighbors.
Assemblyman Doug Olerud said although he didn’t have an
issue with proposed heliport sites, he would not vote for changes to heli permits until
“we have a way to track where they’re going and where they’re landing…
I’ll vote against any changes until that happens.”
The borough’s commerce committee was tasked last year with
researching viable tracking devices for the industry, such as GPS units, but to date has
not produced a method to ensure accountability.
Assemblyman Pete Lapham said he was concerned adding heliports
required changes to the SUD map. “I think we have to deal with a map change.”
Borough manager Tom Bolen said though he agreed with Lapham map
changes were the intended recourse when it came to heliports, gray areas existed as they
were not designated on the map or defined in borough code.
Borough clerk Julie Cozzi said map changes would be needed to
address flight paths out of the proposed Upper Chilkat Valley site, which is outside
authorized flight paths, and for the Takhin site if the company wished to ski a zone
immediately south, which is restricted from winter use.
Assemblyman Norm Smith said he opposed granting SEABA additional
heliports because it would open the option to others in the industry. “If we give
SEABA permission, we open the flood gates. The whole valley will be peppered with landing
spots.” He asked whether new heliports, if designated, would be available to other
companies.
Assemblymen Scott Rossman, who voted to grant the heliports,
said heliports were clearly not on the SUD map and thus didn’t require an amendment.
He and assemblyman Jerry Lapp said the proposed heliports would
address concerns about congestion expressed at previous meeting by residents near 18 Mile.
In other business, Bolen asked for assembly approval to use
maintenance funds to begin $30,000 to $50,000 in changes to office space in the borough
administration building.
Workstations needed reorganizing and added, he said, both for
current operations and to accommodate a facilities manager. could be made to reimburse
maintenance funds, allowing work to begin promptly.
Olerud asked if the fire marshal approval would be needed as
part of the reorganization, and Bolen said he was hoping to make changes necessary without
involving an architect.
The administration building was last remodeled in 2003.
Bolen said plans for a new boarding float at Letnikof Cove were
on hold as the state Department of Transportation and Department of Natural Resources
disputed jurisdiction over the harbor.
Bolen said DOT maintained management of the harbor transferred
when the state transferred the property to the borough, but DNR disagreed. If the problem
were not resolved within the next week, Bolen said he would request Rep. Bill Thomas
(R-Haines) weigh in with the agencies.
Tidelands application required by DNR could hold the project up
two years, he said.
Bolen said borough attorney Bob Blasco had given 30 days notice
in response to the borough’s request proposals for legal services. Legal services
applications close Feb. 15, he said, and quick assembly action would be required as the
borough would be somewhat “in the lurch” with immediate issues.
The assembly set a committee of the whole meeting March 17 with
the library and museum boards to address inconsistencies in borough code regarding the
relationship between enabling boards and the assembly.
Olerud requested a borough resoultion supporting legislative
changes to wasterwater discharge standards in the 2006 Alaska Cruise Ship Initiative in
response to a letter from the Alaska Travel Industry Association’s Golden Circle
Chapter.
Cruise companies say technology allowing them to meet the
initiative’s standards for copper, ammonia, nickel and zinc doesn’t exist.
Bolen said he would be attentding an upcoming technology
conference in Juneau addressing possibilities for treating wastewater.