By ARIADNE WILL
Sentinel Staff Writer
The Assembly unanimously passed two amendments to Sitka’s zoning code at their meeting Tuesday. Both items had been approved by the Sitka Planning Commission last month.
Both the zoning text change and zoning map amendment affect the R-recreation district, and came before the Assembly shortly after they approved a 20-year lease of city land to Shee Atiká, Inc.
The lease is for a 17-acre parcel at 4951 Halibut Point Road, between the Sitka Sound Cruise Terminal and the ferry terminal.
Shee Atiká, in partnership with Adventure Sitka LLC, plans to develop the tract into a tourist attraction with features such as zip lines and a salmon bake.
The zoning map change rezones the recently leased property as R-recreation. It was previously zoned R-1 single-family and duplex residential.
The zoning text change requires a conditional use permit for outdoor amphitheaters, amusement and entertainment, and eating and drinking places in the R-recreation zone.
The amendment also removes resorts, public utility facilities, and public water facilities as permitted uses in the R-recreational zone, but allows them as conditional uses under permits approved by the Planning Commission.
The conditional use requirement for resorts, public utility, and public water facilities came at the request of the Baranof Property Owners Association (BPOA), at the Baranof Warm Springs townsite on the eastern side of Baranof Island.
BPOA representatives told the Assembly at a previous meeting that changing those uses from permitted to conditional has been a years-long process. They said the change will give the local property owners more control over development in their community, which is part of the City and Borough of Sitka.
Richard Wein spoke under public comment at the meeting, and said he believes the zoning text changes are a good thing, but that Sitkans will need to pay attention to items coming before the Planning Commission, which is responsible for granting conditional use permits.
“You need to be alert to see exactly what is going on there to... protect Sitka interests,” he said.
