Ketchikan’s city council is considering hiring a consultant to take a critical look at a proposed private cruise ship dock at Ward Cove.
In a memo to the council, City Manager Karl Amylon says his office “believes there will be negative impacts to the greater Ketchikan community as a result of the project.”
He is asking the city council Thursday to authorize spending up to $43,500 on retaining the McDowell Group in Juneau for the task
The study would look at a few scenarios including annexing the Ward Cove area to add it to the city’s tax rolls and sales tax base.
The proposed two-megaship berth by private developers is undergoing review by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Last month the city sent a letter outlining its concerns on potentially lost revenue as it would divert ships away from the downtown docks where the city collects a $5 head tax on cruise passengers
Also on Thursday’s agenda — the council will hold a public hearing to consider converting the former Ketchikan Regional Youth Facility into a domestic violence shelter. That project would require $850,000 from the state.
The council will also consider sending a letter to the state’s Alcoholic Beverage Control Board opposing proposed regulations that would further limit events at brewery tasting rooms.
The meeting is at 7 p.m. Thursday in Ketchikan’s City Council chambers.
