Commentary

Questions posed to Crow Creek residents:

Pros and cons of planned development offered

By David Lakota
Turnagain Times
Correspondent

The following is part of an ongoing series of articles concerning development along Crow Creek Road. This is a collection of various testimonies based on recent interviews including both pro and con perspectives.
The first residents I came upon were three home-owners Craig Schubert, and a man and woman that recently built their own place at mile-four.
“What do you think about the development?” I asked Craig.
“I think it was well thought out.” he replied.
“What about the projected increase in traffic?” I asked skeptically.
“What traffic?” he replied, “I’m from Jersey.” We all laughed.
“What about the development down below?” I continued. Then the other two both spoke of how Girdwood needs more places to live for people with lower incomes. Craig agreed.
Next I talked to Brandon Ruckel who was born and raised in Alaska. He’s lived up Crow Creek for more than six years. He and his wife have spent most of that time residing in a teepee year-round. Now they are busy building a timber-frame octagon home.
“What do you enjoy most about living here?” I asked him.
“Adventure skiing,” He said, “and the kind, tight community. It’s young and growing. I like the ruralness of it.”
“What about the development going on?” I asked.
He said he’s concerned about the typical cookie-cutter style of commercial development and houses being too close together. “I want future development to happen slowly. Quality usually does not happen quickly. Houses are more creative and have more character when they are owner-built.”
He went on to say that current plans call for less than 15 percent opportunity for the new homes to be owner-built and more than 85 percent of them are being commercially designed and constructed. “It’s just not going to be Crow Creek Road anymore,” he concluded.
Next I went to the home of Tom Swanson. He’s lived up Crow Creek since 1993. He said he wants slow change and wise development. He feels the so-called “Lower Matrix” area needs to be developed last due to it being close to the 100-year flood plain. He said drainage is and has been a serious issue and as a result, at least one prominent local contractor is intentionally not bidding on the forthcoming development of municipal land.
“The Army Corps of Engineers has been holding things up,” he said. “The area where they’re trying to push the waterline through is Class A wetland. It’s excellent moose and beaver habitat. They need to spend money to find another route.”
Another concern Tom has is with the bridge the Alaska Department of Transportation intends to replace next spring over California Creek.
“The bridge that’s there withstood the flood of ’95!” he exclaimed. “We don’t need to spend $3 million on a new bridge when the old one still works. I remember it getting hit by large spruce and cottonwood trees and it didn’t budge. Other bridges, even more modern ones, were washed out and people were stranded. California Creek Bridge is the strongest timber-built bridge I have ever seen. That money can be much better spent elsewhere.”
“What about the increase in traffic?” I asked, considering it’s a one-lane bridge.
He said, “It hasn’t been a problem, especially in the winter. Maybe only once per month in the summer do we have to stop and wait for someone to go by.” Then he added that development needs to be staged upon demand.
The last person I talked to was Sandy Salvatore. She has lived up Crow Creek Road since 1991. I asked her what she likes about it. “I like to be able to walk out my back door and be in the wilderness,” she replied. “Living on Crow Creek Road has a good feel to it. It’s a small, tight community that stands together. It used to be this way down in Girdwood too.”
“Everyone seems to want bigger, better, the best of everything. Girdwood is not the basics anymore,” she said. “It’s not the small hometown atmosphere it used to be. I think simpler is best. Girdwood is the northernmost rainforest (in North America). The more you take away from it the less rainforest you have. I don’t mind development if it is done right, but this is not really feasible. You have to take away too much.”
Salvatore described how she enjoyed picking berries and mushrooms or going for quiet walks and hiking, but all that would change, she said, and it would not be the same if there is over-development.
“Some plants can’t take putting up with traffic,” she continued. “Even greenbelts won’t have certain flora and fauna. I moved away from hillside for that reason. Whatever it is that people like about this place won’t last if it gets developed the way they’ve been doing it.? In Alaska we started out fresh but we’re doing it again, repeating the mistakes of history. Nobody seems to look at history. Girdwood can be an example. I want to see houses that grow here rather than designs from other cities. We have a chance here to do it right, in a way that hasn’t been done anywhere else.”

Letters to the Turnagain Times

To the Editor:

Distinction needs to be made between employees of tunnel and city of Whittier

I’d like to comment on the Letter to the Editor in the last edition that James Wyatt, a visitor to our state, wrote regarding his experiences at the Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel. I think some of his statements are based on the misconception that Whittier runs the tunnel. The Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel is owned by the St ate of Alaska. The State of Alaska contracts operations of the tunnel to a company called VMS, which trains their employees. VMS employs people who live in Whittier and others who do not. If someone has a problem with tunnel operations, I’d hope they would take it up with staff at the office near the pay booth or the DOT Tunnel Manager. They should be able to respond to questions and comments.
We who live in Whittier are trying to rise to the occasion of more visitors each year to the Gateway to Prince William Sound. Many Whittier residents, and summer workers, rely on visitors for successful businesses. We welcome visitors to our small town with open arms, with information and with enthusiasm. We hope that when they visit and enjoy the natural beauty of this area, they will use the principles of “Leave No Trace” so that future generations can enjoy the Sound and areas adjacent to it.
Mr. Wyatt’s concluding sentence, “Hopefully, tunnel personnel can create a
welcoming atmosphere and overtly show travelers that Whittier wants people to visit” suggests that people working at the tunnel have the implicit responsibility of promoting a visit to Whittier. While it’s not a stretch to imagine visitors thinking the attitudes of tunnel operators represent Whittier, I’d like to stress that tunnel operators, with whom I’ve had nothing but good service, aren’t charged with being the welcoming committee to Whittier.
If VMS has received many complaints regarding tunnel operations, they could conduct additional customer service training.
Finally, in my humble opinion, a simple “Editor’s Comment” (below Mr. Wyatt’s letter) informing readers that those operating the tunnel, and the City of Whittier, are completely separate entities would have been very helpful.

Dave Goldstein
Whittier, Alaska

Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel not owned by the city of Whittier

After reading the recent Turnagain Times, it seems necessary to inform your readers that the tunnel into Whittier is owned by the state of Alaska. The state of Alaska contracts operations of the tunnel to a company called VMS, which trains their employees.
Writing not in any official capacity, but as a resident of Whittier, I’d like to apologize to the gentlemen and his family, who had a bad experience with tunnel operations. While a few people from Whittier might be employed by VMS, I believe most of the operators are from elsewhere. Whittier residents are also at the mercy of tunnel operations, with ingress and egress by tunnel schedules. We fully understand the importance of tunnel operations being smooth and efficient.
As for the tunnel operators, I hope that any visitor or local going through the tunnel that might have a problem, will take that issue to VMS. There’s an office near the pay-booth where staff should be able to respond to questions.
It’s not a stretch to imagine visitors thinking the attitude of tunnel operators represents Whittier. However, I’d like to stress that tunnel operators, with whom I’ve had nothing but good service, aren’t charged with being the welcoming committee to Whittier. We who live in Whittier are trying to rise to the occasion of a greater influx of visitors each year to the Gateway to Prince William Sound. Many Whittier residents and summer workers rely on visitors for their businesses to succeed each year. We welcome visitors to our small town with open arms; with information and enthusiasm. We hope they’ll come visit and enjoy the natural beauty of this area, leaving it as untouched by human hands as possible, so that future generations can enjoy the Sound.
This fall we noticed more fishermen drove their vehicles through the tunnel and parked along the road or at the Head of the Bay to fish for Silver Salmon. While we welcome all, we encourage respect for the area and ask that in future years, people dispose of their refuse, including that from their pets, properly.
Whittier is undergoing changes that task the resources of this small community. We ask that you all try to understand the reasons for more restrictions on camping and parking. We simply don’t have the parking space for vehicles and boat trailers to park adjacent to Whittier Harbor for extended visits. For that reason, there’s a charge for parking close-by. We haven’t had the resources to provide camping facilities at the Head of the Bay, including porta-potties, until recently. We don’t mean to be “unfriendly”... we’re simply trying to be more organized with parking and camping while keeping things clean and wholesome in those areas.
We welcome you all to Whittier. Please come and visit us as tunnel hours allow. We hope you’ll enjoy your visit here. Whether you’re here to catch the next State Ferry, or, to fish, or to catch a glimpse of this vast and beautiful area, please know that you’re always welcome in Whittier.

Lavon “Bonnie” Lymer
Whittier, Alaska

GCVA annual Spaghetti Feed and Art Auction cancelled

The Girdwood Center for Visual Arts annual Spaghetti Feed and Art Auction will not be held this fall due to circumstances beyond the control of the GCVA Board. As many of you know, this annual event has been held at the Day Lodge for a number of years. However, this summer and fall The Hotel Alyeska is utilizing the Day Lodge as a staging area for on-going work so it is not available for our use. We have been unsuccessful in securing a location to accommodate the 250-300 community members that attend this annual fundraiser.
We worked with Four Valleys Community School and the Anchorage School District to find a date in September or October that would allow us to hold our event at the Girdwood School. However, conflicts with other school and GCVA Board activities at this time presented timelines that the Board felt it could not meet and present a quality event the community looks forward to each September.
GCVA is planning other community event for 2007-2008 and appreciates the community’s continued support of our mission: “To promote the visual arts; to share in the volunteer effort; to develop a unique gallery for the use of local artists; to encourage the development of other artistic opportunities for the public and its members.” Meanwhile, we invite the community to visit our beautiful gallery on the “Boardwalk” to enjoy the work produced by Alaskan artists. We look forward to seeing you at our next community event.

Lori Sears
Acting President, Girdwood Center for Visual Arts

The “First Annual Tommy J. Boren Invitational Horseshoe Tournament” a great success

On Aug. 29, the Girdwood family came out for the “First Annual Tommy J Boren Invitational Horseshoe Tournament” in the memory of Tommy J. Boren, whom we all miss very much.
Thanks go to Gretchen from the bottom of our hearts for putting this event together and for all of the wonderful food. A big thanks also goes out to Fran who made some awesome horseshoe pits, Eli for the tee-shirt design, and to Fiddler for the sound system.
You are all beautiful people, and we cannot thank you enough. You are in our thoughts and prayers.
God Bless you all. See you next year for the “Second Annual Tommy J. Boren Invitational Horseshoe Tournament.”
Love you guys.

Marti, John and Buddy
Seward, Alaska

 

The Turnagain Times welcomes letters to the editor and provides this space as a forum for the discussion of issues of interest. Unsigned letters will not be printed. We reserve the right to edit letters for length. The opinions expressed in the letters to the editor section are strictly those of the letter writers and do not necessarily reflect the viewpoint of the Turnagain Times. Send your letters to P.O. Box 1044 Girdwood, Alaska 99587, fax to (907) 783-1136 or email at ttimes@chugach.net.