Do you have a great idea for a project that would make tourism in Juneau run a little smoother or make its impact less noticeable? The City and Borough of Juneau wants to hear it.
Juneau residents and businesses can now submit proposals for how the city should spend marine passenger fees for next year. The proposal period runs through Jan. 2.
“I think it’s important that the community feels invested in the use of these funds,” said Alix Pierce, the city’s visitor industry director. “That we’re able to not just sit in a room and come up with a budget and what the city thinks that we need, but that we’re also going out to the community and asking the community for ideas and suggestions.”
Every cruise season the city collects a $5 fee from each passenger that comes off a cruise ship and into Juneau. Those fees can go toward funding tourism projects that benefit visitors and locals. In the past, these fees have funded things like upgrades to downtown public restrooms and improvements at Marine Park. The city expects it to total around $22 million.
Because of a lawsuit the cruise industry filed against the city about how it spends the money it collects, the projects can’t just be for anything or anywhere around town.
The lawsuit was settled in 2019. It puts limits on how the city can use the funds and some projects require approval by the tourism industry.
Most of the projects chosen in the past have been downtown near the waterfront area, where the impacts of tourism are felt the most. But other parts of town can still get projects funded, like near the Mendenhall Glacier, as long as they focus on tourism.
Residents have a few ways they can submit their suggestions. This year the city opened up a new webform where people can submit proposals. Pierce said it gives people a better idea about what projects fit the criteria.
“Hopefully that just educates people, provides them with a little bit more context around the fees,” she said. “I think the more that people understand the money and how it can be spent, the better proposals will get.”
People can also submit proposals on the city’s marine passenger fee webpage or by emailing Pierce directly at alexandra.pierce@juneau.gov.