INTRO: A meeting Thursday, Skagway Assembly members disagreed on many aspects of a proposed waterfront lease. The assembly does agree that a new contract with White Pass and Yukon Route Railroad should go to a public vote. But what that document will look like depends on whether the six assembly members can work through their differences. KHNS’s Emily Files reports. _____ TRACK: The issue driving the lease discussion is Skagway’s need to install a floating dock for larger cruise ships by 2019. White Pass manages the cruise ship docks. In order to make renovations, the railroad wants a 20-year tidelands lease extension. In an economic analysis, port consultants said that if bigger ships aren’t able to dock in Skagway, the town will still see an increase in cruise revenue. It’ll just be much less of an increase than it could get with the larger vessels. That prompted resident Ken Russo to question whether it would really be that bad for the city to lose those ships. ACT 2: Could you live with not as much of an increase for a year to give yourself some time to negotiate a real and effective and more fair win-situation for city? Rather than being pressured into we gotta do this lease right now, I’m under the gun, gotta do it, gotta do it. ACT 1: I do respect what is being said, that, is it the end of the world if we miss the boat one year? TRACK: That’s Assemblyman Orion Hanson. He said maybe Skagway could sustain the loss in cruise revenue. But he worried about the negative affect that would have on local families. He related it to his childhood, when his father couldn’t find work in Skagway. ACT 2: And so he went to Hoonah. And for a couple years, he built houses in Hoonah. And I was 5,6 years old when that was happening. And it wasn’t very fun. I really don’t want to see us lose business to Hoonah again. And I think we do have a crystal ball, we can see that’s coming. TRACK: Hanson said he wasn’t ‘head-over-heels’ for the lease proposal. But he said it could be a palatable deal if the city negotiated it down to a 15-year term, with higher rent payments and more control over the land. Mayor Mark Schaefer echoed something that’s been said a few times. The lease extension could give Skagway time to work on its plan to take over management of the port. ACT 4: So to me, this is sort of like an exit strategy where we regain control of the port, which is one of the things that people are asking for. TRACK: But the fact that the exit strategy wouldn’t happen for another couple decades is a sticking point for some assembly members, including Spencer Morgan. Previously, the assembly said a 15-year lease might be OK. But Morgan said the city should try for an even shorter timeframe of 10 years. Hanson is one of two assembly members on the negotiating team. He responded to Morgan. ACT 5: Ten years – White Pass is not going to go for it. Spencer: My point is put that proposal forward and let them work with it. Orion: Well it was 20 years, we came with 10 years and settled for 15. Spencer: maybe we don’t. TRACK: Assembly members continued to butt heads as they talked about the lease issue. Hanson asked his peers for specific direction that he and Tim Cochran could take to their next negotiation meeting. Instead, the assembly decided to schedule a special meeting on Wednesday, July 26 to work on the details of the city’s counterproposal. Jay Burnham said maybe the city shouldn’t acquiesce to White Pass’s request for a new lease. He said the cruise ship floating dock shouldn’t be contingent on a new, 15-or-20-year contract. ACT 6: If they don’t want to just look at a floating dock, that’s on them, they’re the ones stopping the municipality from moving forward with a floating dock there. And I’m not playing chicken, I’m not waiting for them to blink. I want a floating dock. TRACK: If the city does want to install a floating dock by the time bigger cruise ships get to Alaska, consultants say engineering work needs to start by this fall at the latest.

Skagway’s Broadway Street on a busy cruise ship day. (Emily Files)

A magnitude 7 earthquake was recorded in Anchorage Friday morning causing major infrastructure damage. Many government facilities remain closed.

Meanwhile, the municipality of Skagway is examining how that community would respond to a major emergency. 

Skagway Police Chief Ray Leggit is working with the municipality’s Local Emergency Planning Committee on an existing safety plan called You Are the Help Until Help Arrives.

The program, created by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, teaches residents and community members basic response strategies. It teaches residents how to position the injured during a disaster, protect them from further harm, stop bleeding, and provide comfort until emergency services arrive.

At a borough assembly meeting in November, Mayor Monica Carlson said all of Skagway needs to be prepared for a disaster.

“This plan must include all of the community,” Carlson said. “There is nothing to say that an earthquake, fire or ship accident will not happen here in Skagway. We must be prepared. Every resident brings their knowledge and skill to this drill. The children of Skagway will even play a part.”

Carlson hopes to offer public classes based on the FEMA program in Skagway.  

In addition, the Local Emergency Planning Committee is working on a major disaster drill to be carried out sometime in the spring.

“The last time the city conducted this drill was 10 years ago, while I was on assembly. It’s time we all became better prepared and we can never be prepared enough,” Carlson said.

The drill would be a simulation of how the municipality would respond to a mass casualty situation. According to Carlson, it will require coordinating emergency responders, transportation and communication across town.

“Our town is so unique, we have a mountain railroad, a steep mountain pass, motor coaches, trains, ships, airplanes. There are a lot of moving pieces in Skagway that need to work together if there was anything to happen in our community. It’s good to do so you know where your shortcomings are because we’ll be alone for a while until help arrives,” Carlson said.