Assembly Postpones Work on Land Policy

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Category: News

Created on Wednesday, 18 December 2024 14:43

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By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
    After more than two hours of discussion and public comment, the Assembly Tuesday postponed a decision on a commercial recreational land use plan and an ordinance for an updated permit policy for tourism operators.
    Both agenda items at the regular Assembly meeting related to the commercial recreational use of city public land. Both apply to trails (Thimbleberry and Heart Lakes, Cross Trail, Beaver Lake, etc.), water access areas (Back Beach, Herring Cove Beach, Swan Lake, etc.), and special use areas such as Baranof Warm Springs and Goddard Hot Springs.
    Decisions on both were postponed to the second regular Assembly meeting in 2025, on Jan. 28.
    Assembly members expressed a desire for the Planning Department, Parks and Rec Division, and Parks and Recreation Committee to incorporate some of the comments and suggestions from commercial operators and the Assembly, and additional input, into the two documents.
    The Planning Department has been working during the past year to overhaul the commercial recreational land use permitting process, working with the Parks and Rec committee and with guidance from the strategic plan:
    “Review the impacts and benefits of tourism and develop policies that prioritize the quality of life for all Sitkans.”
    The Tourism Task Force during its year in operation also concluded its work with a recommendation to “identify and protect priority recreation sites.” The work by planning and parks and rec led to creation of a land use plan for recreation sites, and a code revision to support a new permitting process.
    A memo from City administrator John Leach, Planning Director Amy Ainslie and Parks and Rec coordinator Kevin Knox stated the need for the ordinance.
    “In the current system the city isn’t able to adequately manage capacity limits, and therefore we aren’t able to manage the permits overall that are granted for any certain area,” says the memo on the ordinance from Leach, Ainslie and Knox, and included in the Assembly information packet.
    The creation of the use plan included working with commercial permit holders, collecting survey comments, holding open houses, and consulting existing carrying capacities of the U.S. Forest Service, for shared management areas.
    One of the main suggestions at the Assembly meeting, after a number of operators gave public comments, was pushing out the implementation of both to 2026, since several who testified said the fee hikes would be onerous and the one-year delay would be helpful.
    The Assembly generally agreed to direct city staff and the Parks and Rec Committee to continue working and collecting public input. It was acknowledged that an effort had been made to collect input, through surveys, open houses on the land use plan, and other public meetings.
    “Let’s come up with what we’d like to see changed, give it back to the people who are going to look at it, give legal a chance to look at it, (look at) unintended consequences, and come back with a plan we’re interested in,” Tim Pike said before the vote. “That may include things to be implemented right now, and pushing things off.”
    The motion to postpone implementation until 2026 failed on a 1-6 vote, with Scott Saline in favor.
    The Assembly weighed the advantages and disadvantages of continuing work on the plan, approving the plan as presented and making changes later, or delaying implementation until 2026.
    The need for creating a commercial recreational land use plan and revising the permitting has become more acute in recent years with the rise in cruise ship tourism, and some opinions that certain commercial operations are negatively affecting favorite trails and places.
    Also the proposed permitting process aims to modernize and streamline the process for both city staff as well as operators.
    The planning department and Assembly, as well as Parks and Rec committee, have received public comments on the need to control the higher numbers on popular city-owned trails and sites. At the same time, there has been a broad acknowledgment that growth in tourism is providing benefits for entrepreneurs and the community. A few at the meeting talked about role of guides and tour operators in safety, education and appreciation of local sites.
    Operators at the meeting spoke in favor of delayed implementation, while there was acknowledgment at the Assembly table of the need to take some actions immediately, particularly with the growth in permits and traffic at Baranof Warm Springs and Thimbleberry trail.
    “This brings up an interesting point,” said Mayor Steven Eisenbeisz. “If you vote to delay are you more in favor of business than residents, and if you vote to implement, are you more in favor of residents than business. That’s not where I want to stand on it but it’s kind of where we put ourselves, in a way.”
    “Part of me wants to hammer this out and get this done,” Kevin Mosher said on the motion. “If we pass (the motion to postpone) it will be a problem for Baranof.”
    Thor Christianson, in speaking in favor of adopting the land use plan, said he sees it as a way to “prevent (commercial use) from growing totally out of control,” he said. “I don’t think too many people are saying it’s completely out of control with the exception of Baranof.”
    The code revisions in the ordinance that was delayed would establish carrying capacity for certain areas. It also would allow city staff to grant permits under the use plan and set permit duration and penalties. The stated purpose of the ordinance has a component for public engagement in establishing policies for recreational land.
    Knox in an interview last week stressed the flexibility of both the plan and ordinance.
    “I think it’s also important to note that this land use plan has significant ability to be adaptable and provide flexibility for operators who already have known, or committed to, tours and rentals, so we will be able to work with operators in making sure that they’re still able to operate.”