By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
Before the new boat haulout is designed and built, Sitka’s boating fleet has to give direction on what they want and need, says Garry White, director of the Gary Paxton Industrial Park.
The industrial park board last week considered a plan for building the facility since the Assembly, acting on the results of a voter referendum this fall, approved the expenditure of $8.18 million for the project.
Yet to be decided are the best location of the facility on the limited available space at the industrial park, the width of the Travelift piers, the location for EPA-compliant washdown pads, and the lifting capacity of the haulout equipment, among other decision points, White said this week.
The Gary Paxton Industrial Park lots that will be used for a boat haulout are shown. (Graphic provided to the Sentinel)
Although the haulout will service boats of all kinds, White said the needs of the commercial fishing fleet will carry the most weight.
“In general we’ve just got to make sure whatever equipment or infrastructure that we’re purchasing or installing needs to be able to fit the needs of the fleet,” White said.
The GPIP board met recently to discuss the design parameters and review the “basis of design” for the new haulout, which Public Works Director Michael Harmon described as “a very defined scope of the project we want to build.”
The board also talked about raising the additional funds that will be required for a full service boatyard.
In the October 4 city election voters approved dedicating up to $8.18 million toward a new boat haulout and shipyard. The funds available are the proceeds from the sale of the old Sitka Community Hospital properties.
White said the haulout also must not only meet the needs of the fleet, but fit the funds available. As a first step, the city is advertising for a project manager.
“I’m trying to get in front of it to see if we can come to some consensus of the community, before we’re paying someone to tell us what we should do,” he said. “I don’t want it to be a situation where everyone is just looking out for their own interests, but what’s best for the community.”
White said the discussion so far has been toward a 150-ton capacity machine, which will meet most needs. Possible locations are a site near the old bottling plant near the GPIP dock, or another near the NSRAA hatchery.
Harmon said, “Some of the locations that we’ve looked at in the past could be lower cost to build, but a longer haul for the boats to get to the upland shipyard across the yard.”
The height of the Travelift machine also is important, White said.
“If the actual machine is only 20 feet, then you can only haul a boat that’s 20 feet high from its keel to the top of its house,” he said. The width between the piers is also a consideration, and White noted that vessels are wider today than the average in past years.
“I want to have some direction down and we’ll see what the rest of the process brings,” White said. “We want to build as much infrastructure as we can for the $8.18 million that the voters approved. But we can’t build everything.”
The need for a community haulout has been under discussion by the board for about 20 years, but came into sharp focus in recent years in anticipation of the closure of the last privately owned facility. Halibut Point Marine hauled its last boat in March 2022 as the site became part of cruise ship terminal.
The city sought proposals from private investors and applied for government grants without success.
The city public works department is currently preparing an advertisement for an experienced project management and design team for the haulout.
The park board met with City Administrator John Leach and Public Works Director Michael Harmon last week, approved a draft charter for the project and reviewed budget estimates and the scope of the project.
The target is June 2023 for approval of a “final basis of design and charter scope.” Under the group’s timeline, the design would be done by September 2024, construction on Phase I would start in July 2024, and be completed in December 2024. Phase I includes vessel haulout piers, washdown water collection and washdown facilities, washwater onsite pretreatment facility, a lineup/offload float (for skippers and crew to get on and off boats near the Travelift), and haulout equipment. The first phase timeline completion date is February 1, 2025.
The document reviewed by the board also includes a plan for Phase II upland shipyard development with an expected completion date in 2027.
The $8.18 million is only expected to cover Phase I, officials said.
Harmon said the Public Works Department is on hand to provide support and information for the GPIP board to make decisions, as needed. A key question is figuring out the level of service needed, and what equipment will be needed to meet the level of service.
