The City and Borough of Juneau’s Docks and Harbor’s Department will hold an open house tonight (Wednesday) at the Juneau Yacht Club to get public input on a proposed rebuild of Aurora Harbor.
Voters at the October 2nd municipal election approved a $25-million dollar bond proposition to finance various capital improvements citywide, including $7-million dollars for the Aurora Harbor project.
Port Director Carl Uchytil says Docks and Harbors has secured $11-million of the project’s estimated $18-million dollar price tag.
“There’s various moneys involved in the money we’ve secured to date. Some of it is Docks and Harbors harbor funds money, some of it is from the state DOT municipal harbor grant program, and then $7-million will be from general obligation bonds, which the voters approved earlier this month,” Uchytil says.
PND Engineers of Juneau has been hired to shepherd the project through the design phase.
The initial proposal calls for elimination of more than 100 slips designed for smaller boats, less than 24-feet in length, to make room for more moorage for larger vessels.
Uchytil says that’s due to the changing needs of Juneau boat owners.
“Decades earlier, if you had a 24-foot boat, that had to be in the harbor system. Now, with larger trucks and lighter vessels, a lot of people are choosing to trailer their boats,” Uchytil says.
Uchytil says the project will be completed in phases, and there will be more opportunities for public input along the way.
Tonight’s open house is scheduled for 5 to 7 p.m. at the Juneau Yacht Club. Docks and Harbors staff will be present, along with engineers from PND.
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