A cruise ship dock and development project planned for downtown Juneau will be scaled down by more than half its original size but will cost an additional $100 million.
That’s according to Susan Bell, Huna Totem Corp.’s vice president of strategic initiatives. She gave an overview of the planned changes to the Juneau Assembly during a committee meeting Monday night.
“There are some unique challenges to our construction environment right now,” she said. “I highlighted the cost of steel, which you know is actually a very fluid situation right now, but the cost of steel was about $620 a ton in August 2023 and it was north of $1,100 recently.”
The planned development is called Áak’w Landing. It includes a cruise ship dock and a waterfront development project. The Juneau planning commission approved conditional use permits for the development in 2023, and the Juneau Assembly approved a tidelands lease for it last year. The dock will be located in Gastineau Channel, off Egan Drive and next to the U.S. Coast Guard station.
Bell said the corporation hoped to begin construction last year. But due to unexpected construction timeline delays, a legal challenge, tariffs on steel and market volatility, Bell said it’s now aiming to begin next summer and open in 2028. She said since 2023, the project’s cost has escalated from an expected $150 million to now more than $250 million.
She said the corporation plans to reduce the waterfront development portion of the project by more than half its footprint, from 50,000 square feet down to 18,000 square feet. She said the project will still contain key elements of the original design, including a welcome center, waterfront retail and dining, and a cultural center. The new plan doesn’t include underground parking anymore.
“We’ve really worked to retain the design elements, a year-round attractive waterfront development, and the elegance that we were trying to have on this site,” she said.
At the meeting, City Manager Katie Koester said the project will have to return to the planning commission and Assembly for approval of the amended plan, likely in the coming months.
