By Julie St. Louis
Turnagain Times Correspondent
On Wednesday, May 7, more than 30 Girdwood residents attended the Meadows Community Center to see and hear about the latest draft of the Girdwood South Townsite Master Plan. Members of the planning team, headed by consulting firm Agnew/Beck explained to the attendees the process to-date and provided an overview of the most recent plans while taking questions and comments.
The area for the South Townsite is approximately 186 acres and located south of Alyeska Highway at the junction of Hightower Road and Girdwood Place, continuing south to Ruane Road with the western boundary at California Creek and the eastern boundary at Glacier Creek. Bill Mehner, Executive Director of the Municipality of Anchorage’s Heritage Land Bank—trustee of the South Townsite land—told the audience that “the purpose of this public workshop is to participate in this process and ask questions, and for [the planning team] to form a plan that is reflective of community ideas of what the land should be used for and for its future.”
The meeting represented the second public workshop in the master planning process. The first workshop was held last year over a three-day period Nov. 1-3. According to the planning team executive summary, the earlier meeting investigated the site, scoped issues, brainstormed ideas for the plan and set priority goals. The second workshop was the first chance for the community to get a look at the draft plan that resulted from the three-day session.
Over the course of two hours, the design team and audience members discussed various aspects of the proposed plan and addressed each of nine resulting plan recommendations: Create a main street, keep kids playground and skate park in existing locations, provide for flexible mix of civic and commercial uses; provide for adequate parking, identify location for new Little Bears Child Care Center, improve Forest Fair; protect and improve the Iditarod Trail, provide moderate-priced housing, and create development standards.
Other than a few comments and questions at each discussion phase, the plans drew overall praise and acceptance of those in attendance.
“The Mayor’s office likes these plans a lot, but we want to know what [the community] likes,” said Chris Beck of Agnew/Beck. He added that the plan being discussed focused on making the town center pleasant and walkable, putting pedestrians on equal-footing with cars, with a mix of community and convenience activities.
“No one wants a site plan that looks like mid-town Anchorage,” he said, “but to help businesses we will need to find a balance between adequate parking and pedestrian access.”
Public discussion focused on the new location of Little Bears’ Child Care Center, the location of the proposed road accessing the library, and that of a secondary access road that may become necessary after subsequent development phases.
Girdwood resident, Allison Rein, asked, “why does Little Bears need to be moved, and not stay in its present location?”
Planning team member Sherry Doward, Sherry Doward and Associates, responded that “the current Little Bears building is worn out, and it is also in a highly visible spot that could serve as a visual magnet to draw a broader range of commercial traffic between the North and South Townsites.”
Representatives attending on behalf of Little Bears added that the current site is too small to accommodate the growing needs of Little Bears, and that they “are very pleased with [the proposed new location].”
The proposed master plan stresses the need for “flexible, phase-able, affordable growth.” Phase one will focus on the immediate needs of the civic and commercial areas adjacent to Alyeska Highway that includes Little Bears, the Community Center, Fire Hall and Library. Phases two through four would involve additional commercial and civic uses such as a clinic and grocery story, moderate-income housing and additional open and recreational space.
The next steps after the public workshop will be for the meeting planners to integrate public comments into the overall master plan drafts that will then be discussed in succession by the South Townsite Subcommittee, the Land Use Committee, and the Girdwood Board of Supervisors, before ultimately moving to the Municipality of Anchorage Planning Commission and Anchorage Assembly for final approval. A date to begin development on the South Townsite has not been set, and the plan is pending during the budget processes linked to Department of Transportation projects already underway at Crow Creek Road and the North Townsite.
Minutes of the public workshop and copies of the full development plan with drawings of the proposed South Townsite development are available on-line at http://www.agnewbeck.com/pages-portfolio/girdwood/townsite.html.
The public is welcome to send additional comments until May 16 to the attention of Heather Stewart by e-mail: heather@agnewbeck.com, fax: 222-5426, or by mail: 441 West Fifth Avenue, Suite 202 Anchorage, Alaska 99501.