The Juneau Assembly met on Monday for a regular meeting to decide the fate of City Hall, update residents following the recent glacial outburst flood and hear community concerns over electric motorcycles on local trails.
Here are some highlights from the meeting:
• The Assembly voted to sell Juneau’s City Hall building to its neighbor, Sealaska Heritage Institute, for $1.5 million. That’s as the city prepares to move its staff to a new location in the near future.
A majority of the more than a dozen residents who testified on the topic supported selling the property directly to SHI. The other option would have put the building up for sale at a minimum $2.5 million bid. Testifiers pointed to SHI’s proposed vision to build a glass studio and cultural tourism facility at the site, which they say will bring long-term community benefits and cultural diversity to downtown.
The Assembly passed the ordinance in a six-to-three vote. Mayor Beth Weldon and Assembly members Alicia Hughes-Skandijs, Maureen Hall, Paul Kelly, Christine Woll and Ella Adkison voted in support of the direct sale to SHI. Deputy Mayor Greg Smith and Assembly members Neil Steininger and Nano Brooks voted in opposition. Assembly members in opposition cited the city’s ongoing financial issues and concerns over closing the door to other potentially interested buyers.
• City Manager Katie Koester gave the Assembly a brief overview and update on the preliminary damage from this year’s recent glacial outburst flood.
According to preliminary data from 186 homes assessed for damage, 10 homes were affected by the flood and two homes sustained minor damage. The city estimates the flood caused at least $590,000 worth of residential damage. Koesters said the city will continue to collect more data and share its findings with the community in the coming months.
And…
• The Assembly also heard public testimony on several non-agenda topics. One testifier was Reid Harris, president of the Juneau Mountain Bike Alliance. He called attention to an increasing number of electric motorcycles being driven by youths throughout Juneau’s trails, streets and pedestrian walkways.
He and another board member of the alliance say the vehicles are causing damage to local trails and are dangerous to other recreators. They asked the Assembly to develop regulations to address the issue.
Check back in to KTOO.org to see more in-depth coverage of Assembly issues.
