New Group Focuses On Cruise Ship Policy

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Category: Local News

Created on Thursday, 29 February 2024 15:24

By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
    A group advocating for better local control of cruise ship tourism announced today that it has formed its own nonprofit organization, Small Town SOUL.
    The acronym stands for Save Our Unique Lifestyle, and was formed after the rejection of two ballot initiative attempts and “the acknowledgment that something still needs to be done,” to control cruise ship tourism, said Larry Edwards, board secretary and one of the eight founding board members.
    “We’re pro-tourism but we think it needs to be at a reasonable level,” Edwards said.
    “Small town SOUL is pro conventions, cruise ship and independent tourism,” board president Klaudia Leccese said. “We do seek to get to the root cause of our cruise tourism problems.”
    The four goals of the 501(c)4 group are to:
    –– Preserve Sitka’s rural designation.
    –– Eliminate excessive cruise tourism.
    –– Protect our health, safety and diverse economy.
    –– Restore the quality of life Sheet’ka’ residents have historically enjoyed on Lingit Aani’.
    “We believe in a diverse economy that includes tourism, fishing, health care, government and local businesses, which all help Sitka thrive,” Leccese said.
    She has been involved in organizations connected to cruise tourism, including 20 years dancing with the New Archangel Dancers, and she objects to the suggestion she’s heard that she or the group are “anti-tourism.”
    Edwards said, “Our mission is broader than just the cruise issue, because the cruise issue is just a symptom of a deeper problem of planning for Sitka’s future.”
    Edwards noted the risks of growth to Sitka by keeping its rural designation, including growth of Sitka as a cruise ship destination. Referring to Sitkan Jeff Feldpausch’s comments at a town hall meeting, Edwards said increased infrastructure also puts the community at risk of losing its rural status.
    “It’s fundamental to the way of life in Sitka––everything from getting sockeye at Redoubt, herring eggs and being able to hunt deer in January,” he said. Loss of rural status also potentially affects Sitka’s ability to get grants that are dependent on a rural designation.
    Leccese added, “I was raised in a subsistence lifestyle and have something to harvest every season–– the January hunt is important to me.”
    The new group believes the current level of cruise ship tourism is excessive, not only because of the risk to subsistence, but also the problems that are created with noise and air pollution, and overcrowding on busy days. Edwards noted that the large crowds prompt closures of Sitka’s main street, which cause challenges for a number of businesses and citizens.
    “Dispersing excessive visitors throughout the wilderness is not the answer,” Leccese said. “We have to drive a half hour further in our boat to get away from people. Generally if we go an hour down the coast to some of our favorite places, it’s nonstop wake, from passing fishing and tour boats.”
    Other board members are Pete Hagan, Ann Walter, Devon Calvin, Reba Callahan, Richard Wein and Ronn Dick.
    Calvin, who has lived in Sitka for six years but has deep roots in the community, said he has been following the issue and wanted to help Sitka figure out what is sustainable in the long-run.
    “One of the parts people don’t often think about is the criteria the federal subsistence board uses in making non-rural determinations,” he said. “That includes use of fish and wildlife. If cruise tourism is causing us to change the way we use subsistence resources, then we have a real reason to be concerned the board will rescind our rural status. ... Do we want ziplines or longlines?”
    All of the board members were among the sponsors of the two applications for a ballot initiative that would have capped cruise visitors at 240,000 in 2024 and instituted daily caps. The goal was to reduce the impacts of large scale cruise tourism on Sitka, which had 385,000 visitors in 2022, and 585,000 in 2023. A number similar to 2023’s is expected this summer, with the first ship set to arrive in about five weeks.
    The group has retained an Alaskan attorney to advise them on how to proceed, and what avenues are available to the group for meeting their goals. The group is also collecting donations, and has a website at https://smalltownsoul.org/.
    On a related issue, the city of Bar Harbor, Maine, has won a federal court case about setting cruise ship limits in their community. The Sentinel will publish a story about the decision on Friday, and the digital newspaper Bar Harbor Story published a story today at https://barharborstory.com/