In the past month, the Haines Borough Assembly and its committees have met four times in closed-door sessions. According to a public notice, the assembly’s Personnel Committee may go into another executive session Friday to discuss interim manager applications, bringing that number to five. Some assembly members have questioned the practice or expressed concern about the lack […]
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Planners pan noise study; reject idea of noise ordinance
The Haines Borough Planning Commission last week blasted a $41,300 noise study authorized by the assembly, calling the study “fundamentally flawed” and “a total joke.” The assembly recently sent the noise study to the commission and asked the body to hold a public hearing on whether the municipality should regulate the use of helicopters for the purpose […]
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Helipad permit sought at 35 Mile
The manager of Coastal Helicopters has filed for a conditional use permit to site a helipad near 35 Mile Old Haines Highway. Michael Wilson, general manager of Coastal Helicopters, plans to site the helipad on a 10.4-acre parcel of property. In the permit application, Wilson wrote the helipad “will allow the Alaska Heliskiing operation to […]
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Helicopter noise study out, but what next?
The final draft of the Haines Borough’s $41,300 noise study is in, but it’s still unclear if or how the results will translate into law or policy. Though the noise study was authorized in February 2015, discussion of its potential costs and benefits dated to March 2014, when the assembly voted to approve a conditional […]
Posted inLetters to the Editor
Apply Lutak standard at 26 Mile
What do dog kennels and helicopter noise studies have in common? In fact, two features in the June 18 issue of the Chilkat Valley News address the very same issue: maintaining the peaceful quality of rural residential life in the Haines Borough. The first piece reports on the borough planning commission’s rejection of a Lutak man’s request for […]
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Officials review harbor option history
Concerns about the Small Boat Harbor project this week prompted Haines Borough staff to look into how the current design was chosen. Manager David Sosa and interim public facilities director Brian Lemcke on Tuesday started digging into the question, pulling old assembly agendas, minutes and timelines. The two discovered the Feb. 25, 2014, assembly agenda item to […]
Posted inLetters to the Editor
Noise study shows how to lie with stats
To site something as noisy and disruptive as a heliport in a residential neighborhood is an example of exceptionally poor planning, bound to create serious problems. The point of any kind of zoning is to ensure neighborhood homogeneity and, consequently, peaceful coexistence. People who have to live with heli-skiing don’t get used to it and they don’t stop […]
Posted inLetters to the Editor
Helicopter noise study results predictable
The results of the helicopter noise study at the 26 Mile residential area came out exactly as predicted. Helicopters make noise at a level that bothers some people and not others. The fault in the study is that the flight path and elevation of the helicopter was not regulated or monitored. In addition, nine flights […]
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Helicopter noise study out for public comment until June 26
Haines Borough Manager David Sosa released the results of a draft helicopter noise study late last week, but he said he doesn’t want to share his impressions of the $41,300 study until others have had time to interpret it for themselves. “I would rather not have my views influence anyone else’s thoughts on the noise […]
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Neighbors’ comments sink plan for Lutak dog kennel
The Haines Borough Planning Commission rejected plans for a commercial dog-boarding kennel on Lutak Road last week after receiving more than a dozen comments opposing the idea. The commission voted 7-0 to deny Jonathan Richardson’s application for a conditional use permit to build and run a commercial dog kennel in the Tanani Bay residential subdivision. Richardson, who has lived […]