The Juneau Planning Commission tabled a conditional use permit for an asphalt plant at the Rock Dump. The decision came after taking public testimony from more than half a dozen residents who took issue with the proposed location Tuesday night. The plant will be back on the commissions agenda at its next meeting.
Many, if not all, of the people who spoke out against the plant during the meeting’s public participation period tapped into a potent fear as the city gears up for cruise season, arguing that plant activity would harm tourism.
Tour operator Dennis Harris was among those who testified against the plant. Like his peers, Harris recognized the need for another asphalt plant in Juneau. But also like the others, he worried that the asphalt trucks moving from the plant through downtown would slow traffic and impede tour operations similar to his own.
“I appreciate the need for asphalt,” he told the commission. “We have projects that need to be done. We have potholes that need to be filled; we have roads that need to be repaved. But this is the wrong plant in the wrong location.”
The plant, which would’ve been located at the Alaska Marine Lines yard, would’ve added any where between 110 and 300 truck trips per day to Thane Road and South Franklin Street, according to Parry Rekers, vice president of Knik Construction Company. Speaking to the commission, Rekers said the Seattle-based construction outfit wouldn’t necessarily be making that many trips all the time and that work would largely be conducted on an as-needed basis for big projects.
“It’s not going to be an every day deal that we’re going to be making 110 trips per day,” he said. “Some days you haul. Some days you don’t.”
That did little to comfort the members of the public who feared the asphalt trucks’ potential impact on traffic in the downtown core, which every truck would have to pass through unless they were delivering asphalt further out Thane road. Commissioner Paul Voelkers and a couple of people who testified mentioned that this plant would roughly double Thane road traffic.
Traffic impacts aside, several people who testified talked about how large asphalt trucks would make downtown a less desirable location for shoppers, potentially harming South Franklin Street businesses.
“Quite frankly this is a terrible choice for businesses like ours on South Franklin Street,” said Suzanne Cohen, who owns Invisible World with her husband. “Store owners work really hard to make it a great experience for tourists, and this is just a slap in the face.”
Several of the seven people who testified said that they would support the asphalt plant if it were to be located in Lemon Creek, a more appropriate location, they said.
Developer Marciano Duran agreed. He said that another asphalt plant would help his business greatly. Juneau only has one asphalt plant at the moment, he said, and competition from another plant could drive prices down. As helpful as this might be, he still testified against the proposed location, and like others said Lemon Creek would be a better fit.
“I think as a community we should support another asphalt plant, and I hope something can be worked out for everybody.”
Rekers said that his company did reach out to the city about securing land in Lemon Creek but was told that none was available.
The commission ultimately voted without objection to table the conditional use permit, but it took a little work to get there. An earlier motion to approve the permit by commissioner Bill Peters, who said he was “very supportive of this,” failed 3–4.
Commissioner Michael Levine then moved to deny the permit, but because only seven commissioners were present the group struggled to get enough votes to support any motion. Levine’s motion failed with a 4–3 vote, one vote shy of the number needed to pass.
At a stand still, Levine put forward a motion to reconsider the item at the commission’s next meeting, hoping to move the meeting forward. It passed without objection, but several commissioners recognized that the choice was not easily made.
“This was a real difficult one to grasp,” commissioner Matthew Bell said.
The Planning Commission’s next meeting is scheduled for May 10.
*Editor’s note: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that the Planning Commision had denied the conditional use permit for the asphalt plant. The commission actually tabled the discussion and will reopen it at its next meeting, scheduled for May 10. The article has been updated and reflects these changes.
