By ARIADNE WILL
Sentinel Staff Writer
The Planning Commission considered a list of tourism-related topics for a 2023 tourism plan Wednesday at its regular meeting.
Members recommended a few changes to draft recommendations, including that Sitka begin considering a cap on cruise passengers visiting in a given season.
The recommendations will be submitted to the Assembly, which will make the final decisions.
Also at the meeting the commission granted a short-term rental permit on Lincoln Street and passed a variance authorizing the Sitka Music Festival to rent out rooms year-round in their building on the Sheldon Jackson campus.
The meeting wound up with a review of tracts of government land around Sitka to be recommended for possible housing development.
Commissioners Chris Spivey, Darrell Windsor, Katie Riley, and Wendy Alderson were present. Stacy Mudry was absent and excused.
Tourism Operations Plan
The panel heard comments and suggestions from the public about the influx of cruise passengers this summer, and continued a discussion of the recommendations for the 2023 Tourism Operations Plan.
The 2022 guidelines for closing Lincoln Street were passed on in the recommendations for 2023, and commission members also spoke of the need for another city panel to deal specifically with tourism planning and management.
Commissioners and members of the public spoke against the closure of Maksoutoff Street for temporary restrooms. Commission member Darrell Windsor said he’d received “lots of calls” from people objecting to it.
“In an ideal world, we won’t have temporary restrooms,” Planning Director Amy Ainslie said, adding that due to costs it might be a long ways off.
The commission agreed that dispersion of cruise passengers at drop-off points through town is needed, but offered no ideas for relieving the congestion at Centennial Hall. Commissioner Katie Riley objected strongly to using the Baranof School playground as a drop-off site.
She said she has concerns about diesel buses idling near residential neighborhoods, as well as the extension of the cruise season into the start of the school year.
The panel discussed diesel exhaust emissions at length. At present the only “no idling” signs are in school zones. In response to a question from Wendy Alderson, chairman Chris Spivey said buses like those now used in the tourist shuttle fleet would create more exhaust starting and stopping than from idling.
The amended recommendations for 2023 suggest that the question be turned over to Sitka’s new Sustainability Commission.
Panel members endorsed the exploration of transportation alternatives such as electric buses.
Housing Development Lands
Planning Director Amy Ainslie made a presentation on a strategy for obtaining land for housing development.
She said three obvious areas are land directly behind Sitka High School, property in the benchland above Halibut Point Road and in Indian River Valley. She said her first choice would be the land near the high school. It and the benchlands are owned by the city, but development in Indian River Valley would require state involvement.
Ainslie said the next step is to conduct a study of the lands to determine how feasible development is.
“How much land do we have, is it safe, and is it buildable?” she said. “What is the appropriate density within any of these lands?”
Cost is also a factor. She said she plans to request funds in next year’s budget for a study of the development potential of the lands, which cannot be done in-house.
She said she envisions “moving all three (parcels) in parallel,” which would lower costs and allow a shift to another parcel if an option doesn’t pan out.
Other Business
In the evening’s regular business, a conditional use permit for a short-term rental was issued by unanimous vote to Kent Bovee for his duplex at 601 Lincoln St.
The property is located in the R-1 Single-Family and Duplex Residential District and its upper unit had previously been approved for short-term rental use, though that permit has since lapsed.
Bovee said he lives in the downstairs unit and will be on-site to manage the property.
Also by unanimous vote, the commission modified a previously approved conditional use permit for Stevenson Hall, 104 Jeff Davis Street, owned by the Sitka Music Festival. In addition to using the building as a bunkhouse for musicians and guest workers, the Festival would be allowed to rent out rooms year-round.
Jim Steffen, speaking on behalf of the applicant, said that the festival would like to rent out rooms to small organizations.
The permit — and applicant — would not allow the building to be rented out to the general public.
Several written comments were submitted by neighbors, all in support of the modification to the conditional use permit.
Under public comment, Thad Poulson requested that the commission recognize parking rights in the lot adjacent to the Sitka Music Festival property. The parking rights in question are for the International Youth Hostel, located at 107 Jeff Davis Street.
Ainslie and Steffen agreed that the hostel would continue to have the parking rights.
