Whittier Harbor employees reported sustained winds of 50 knots and gusts up to 75 knots during a ‘weather event’ on March 5.
Photo courtesy of Whittier Harbormaster
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Whittier Harbor employees reported sustained winds of 50 knots and gusts up to 75 knots during a ‘weather event’ on March 5. Photo courtesy of Whittier Harbormaster |
By Rob Cone-Clark
Turnagain Times
Whittier Correspondent
The City of Whittier is moving forward with plans to build a new boat harbor. The new harbor is part of the City’s multi-phase Harbor Development Project. In a special work session held Feb. 26, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers presented an update to the project status. Army Corps planners referred to a completed “reconnaissance report” that include findings of federal interest in a further study in the nature of a “Feasibility Phase Study. The feasibility phase is expected to last about one year and involves site investigations.
Whittier council members along with the Planning and Zoning Commission, Port and Harbor commission, Whittier Chamber of Commerce, and Whittier Boat Owner’s Association have all entered into discussion about the development of 105 acres of City land located at the head of Passage Canal. The City currently uses the scenic area as a rifle range, a depository for rubbish and unregulated camping/parking.
City Manager Mark Earnest asked the Council for permission to enter into a “Cost Sharing Agreement” with The Corp to initiate the new round of data collection, including wind, wave, bathymetric and geotechnical surveys. He noted that new grant monies would fulfill the city’s 2007 obligations saying, “We won’t be out any cash” and “We will get credit for work we already have planned for this summer”.
The harbor development project is needed to address significant overcrowding and deterioration of current harbor facilities. The existing harbor has room for 360 small recreational and commercial vessels, but there are more than 1,500 registered transients and 500 boat owners of a waiting list for slips. If more slips were available, up to 17,000 registered trailored boats in Anchorage alone could be potential users.
The plan involves constructing a 2,400-foot rubble mound breakwater, dredging and excavating up to a 25-acre boat basin, installing a float system to accommodate up to 525 vessels 28- to 54-feet in length. The project also includes uplands improvements such as a boat launch and retrieval, heavy-duty boat lift, parking and staging areas, fish lagoon, cleaning stations, camping and RV facilities, sheltered picnic areas, bathrooms, water and electric utilities and solid/liquid waste collection.