A drill rig at the Palmer deposit in the Chilkat River valley near Haines, Alaska. (File photo/Lex Treinen, Chilkat Valley News)

Critics of a mining project that’s long stirred political debate in the Southeast Alaska town of Haines are celebrating an announcement that the development is on the market — just months after its owner acquired it.

A small, Vancouver-based company, American Pacific Mining Corp., assumed full ownership of the Palmer Project late last year.…