U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg is expected to visit Haines next week as part of a trip to several communities around Alaska to promote President Joe Biden’s infrastructure spending.
According a release from the Department of Transportation, Buttigieg, along with U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, will arrive in Haines on Aug. 16. They will begin their trip listening to concerns from Alaska Seaplanes. They will then tour the Haines community and stop at the Lutak Dock, which was awarded a $20 million grant to rebuild. After the tour, Buttigieg and Murkowski will meet with community and Tribal leaders.
The stop is expected to last just a few hours. From Haines, Murkowski and Buttigieg will take a state ferry to Skagway and hear concerns about the Alaska Marine Highway System en route. In Skagway, they will tour ferry infrastructure and meet with community and Tribal leaders.
“They will be here several hours in the morning on Wednesday and then on to Skagway,” Haines Borough manager Annette Kreitzer said at Tuesday’s borough assembly meeting.
According to an earlier release from the Department of Transportation, Buttigieg’s three-day tour is to learn “about transportation needs in rural and Tribal areas,” as well as to promote the Biden administration’s infrastructure spending.
“The tour will highlight projects made possible by the Biden-Harris Administration’s investments in American infrastructure while allowing the Secretary to experience first-hand all of the modes of transportation and types of infrastructure that power remote American communities,” reads the release.
On Thursday, the Department of Transportation released a full itinerary.
As of May, the Biden administration says it has committed $2.5 billion in infrastructure projects to Alaska, spread out over 885 projects. They include $286 million for the Alaska Marine Highway System, nearly $300,000 for a climate resiliency plan in Klukwan, $20 million for the Lutak Dock replacement, and $1 million for airport upgrades.
Buttigieg is a former presidential candidate who ran against Biden in the 2020 election.
This story has been updated with new information about Buttigieg’s visit