Alaska Gov. Bill Walker told a Haines crowd he will make a decision on the controversial Juneau Access Project during his term, but gave no hint on when that would happen.
Walker spoke mostly about the state budget deficit during his 35-minute speech and only briefly touched on the Juneau Road, although the issue was one of the main reasons for his visit.
“I’m here because I have not made up my mind as far as the Juneau Access issue. It’s one that will impact this area. There’s no question about that. I don’t shy away.”
Many people at the event who spoke against the road expressed support instead for improvements to the Alaska Marine Highway System and its aging ferries. In a public comment period, borough assembly member Margaret Friedenauer shared the borough government’s opposition and its support instead for ferry service reform.
Don Poling said it’s “not a Juneau access, but a Juneau barrier.” Others, including Burl Sheldon and George Campbell, pleaded for the governor to not build the road.
From a show of hands, the majority of the crowd opposed the road compared to roughly 20 people who raised their hands in favor of the project. Many donned “Ferry Reform First” pins to show their stance. About 125 people attended Walker’s speech.
Some, like Haines business owner Dan Egolf, suggested ferry system improvements such as researching more energy-efficient ship designs.
“There’s a lot of opportunity out there and it takes some creativity,” Egolf said.
Rob Goldberg said he believed that the $574 million estimate of the project cost is probably low, and asked Walker how he can justify spending that amount when three of the oldest ferries in the fleet will be retired by 2024.
Walker identified himself as a “fierce defender” of the ferry system, saying it needs more attention. He said it is a high priority and he would look at how to improve the system given the state’s fiscal situation. “Some have looked on the fiscal side of (ferry system) as low-hanging fruit (as a place to cut), and it’s not. It’s a low-hanging opportunity is how I look at it,” Walker said.
Walker said the state’s first general obligation bond paid for building ferries.
“People in Nome and Kotzebue agreed to pay a little more in taxes so we could have a marine highway system. That’s what we used to do. That’s what we used to be. We were that kind of a state. We’re still that kind of state. But I … see the regional tug and pull on our transportation systems, because that really impacts lives. It impacts commerce. It impacts health care. It impacts education. It’s so broad — the impacts of the marine highway system,” Walker said.
In an interview with reporters, Walker also said there’s more he could do to promote the ferry system from a tourism standpoint.
When asked why the issue is resurfacing now after about a two-year dormancy, Walker said he was never sure if the issue was ever put away.
“I did rule on some of the other megaprojects, (for which) I had received enough input.… I had not received enough input (on Juneau access)…I had not been to Haines,” he said.
Some people were critical of the Alaska Department of Transportation’s management of the ferry system.
When asked how he would respond, Walker said he was pleased with DOT as a department and will pass on Haines’ concerns transportation commissioner Mark Luiken.
“Walker said he was pleased with the turnout he saw at the Chilkat Center and heard from people on both sides of the issue.
During the interview with reporters, Walker was asked if there was any chance of reinstating funds for a local state Division of Forestry office.
“I will be looking at that when I return (to Juneau),” he said. But he also suggested that without more revenue, such a reversal might be difficult.
“We will evaluate everything we’ve done to see what the impact was. If we reinstate something, and if we do, where do we take the money from? We don’t create the revenue side, so that’s part of the challenge. So we look at all those things,” Walker said.
To a question of whether the he would support a legislative or agency decision on designating rivers for “Tier 3” environmental protection, Walker said, “It might be somewhere in between.”
He also was asked whether he believed the Alaska Legislature could make a nonpartisan decision on a Tier 3 designation.
“I guess we’d have to see,” he said. “There are some decisions in the legislature and this might be an area that they would. It’s hard for me to project… on legislation that’s not in front of them. Sometimes it’s nonpartisan. So we’ll see.”