By ARIADNE WILL
Sentinel Staff Writer
The Sitka Planning Commission issued four conditional use permits and a lease amendment at their regular meeting Wednesday.
All items, except one conditional use permit for a short-term rental, passed unanimously.
The short-term rental permit drew attention due to its application, which some commissioners felt was incomplete.
Applicant Mateo Tabachnik told commissioners that he plans to have the bottom floor of the house – located at 101 Cedar Beach Road, in the R-1 single-family and duplex residential district – available as an Airbnb rental. The bottom floor isn’t outfitted with all the amenities guests would likely need, and Tabachnik said they would instead use the second floor of the house for dining and cooking.
Commissioners expressed skepticism during discussion, and issued the permit in a 3-2 vote, with commissioners Chris Spivey, Darrell Windsor, and Stacy Mudry for, and Katie Riley and Wendy Alderson opposed.
“This, to me, is not a complete application for a viable short-term rental,” Riley said at the meeting.
The commission also gave the go-ahead for Shee Atiká Inc. and Adventure Sitka to begin construction of a salmon bake facility and aerial adventure park at 4951 Halibut Point Road, in the R-Recreation district.
The two permits are a step in the development of an adventure park that will cater to visitors arriving at the Sitka Sound Cruise Terminal.
Commissioners asked Project Manager Caroline Storm about cleanup, especially at the salmon bake, which commissioners reasoned could attract bears.
Storm told the panel that no food prep would take place on site, and that the park would be cleaned up daily.
Assembly liaison Thor Christianson added that the operation could lose its lease with the city, should it attract bears and other animals.
An amendment to the municipal lease of tidelands immediately adjacent to 834 Lincoln St. was heard and received a recommendation for approval. The lease amendment concerns tidelands currently used by the Sitka Sound Science Center – located in the R-2 multifamily district – for hatchery operations.
The item came up after a conditional use permit was issued at the commission’s Oct. 6 meeting and the science center found, after the meeting, that their lease doesn’t encompass their full hatchery operations.
The item will soon appear before the Assembly for consideration and approval.
A conditional use permit for a veterinary clinic at 805 Halibut Point Road was approved. The facility, located in the C-1 general commercial district, was formerly a physical therapy clinic.
Applicants Jonathan and Toccoa Wolf said at the meeting that the permit will allow them to expand their veterinary operation, currently located on Jarvis Street.
