The U.S. Forest Service says it has a plan in place to staff the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center this tourism season. That comes almost two months after dozens of staff were fired amid federal downsizing.
In a press release Thursday, the Forest Service shared their staffing plan for the Mendenhall Glacier Recreation Area. Five staff will be ready to greet the first cruise visitors of 2025 on Monday and the area will continue opening intermittently throughout the month.
By May 4, the visitor center will be open and staffed from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays and Sundays.
Since February, the Trump administration has cut thousands of federal jobs across the nation, including all but one staff member at the visitor center in Juneau. In a typical summer, there are about a dozen on site.
Some of the fired staff have been rehired. But there is a chance they may lose their jobs again or accept a deferred leave offer as the federal government continues its quest to downsize.
U.S. Forest Service spokesperson Paul Robbins said the visitor center will be staffed most days cruise ships come to Juneau, with the exception of April 26.
The release says the Forest Service presence at the glacier will be made up of staff from the Forest Service’s offices in Juneau, and those staff will be supported by employees with partner organizations like the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska and Discovery Southeast, who already have a presence at the glacier.
In addition to Forest Service employees, the tribe’s cultural ambassador program will have eight staff at the glacier Monday through Friday.
Between these three organizations, the release says staff will be able to manage crowds, provide for visitor safety, maintain trails and facilities and manage bear encounters.
The Juneau Assembly is considering a proposal to set aside $200,000 to help those partner organizations hire more staff for the visitor Center.
While the visitor center will only be open on certain days, the recreation area will be open as usual, from 6 a.m. to midnight each day. The portable bathrooms outside the visitor center will be open at all times, and the bathrooms by the visitor center parking lot will be open from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. each day.
