Unalaska, AK – The City Council is taking measures to ensure that the road to the new Carl E. Moses Boat Harbor will be built this summer. If it's not, the entire project could be delayed. The city needs to purchase land from the Ounalashka Corporation. At the moment, negotiations are hinging on a conditional land use permit that allows the O.C. to quarry on their property on Little South America. City Manager Chris Hladick said their current permit will be valid if they submit mining development and reclamation plans by May 22 and the plans are approved by the city. Their original permit was deemed invalid because the city didn't have those plans.

The O.C. "also had to submit a mining plan and a reclamation plan or a development plan for the quarry," Hladick explained about the questioned land use permit. "We have a $72 million investment there and we want to be ensured that in the quarry, you're not doing anything that's going to impact this project such as put a bunch of silt up on the bluff that ends up coming down on the parking lot. You know, things of that nature. And they never submitted that."

If the O.C. submits these plans and they are approved, then the two parties will likely enter into an agreement for the city to buy the approximately 187,000 square feet of land along the beach from Prime Alaska to the new boat harbor for the assessed surface value of $1.8 million. The council passed a resolution that would allow this to happen.

However, if they two parties do not sign this agreement then the city will take the O.C. to court in a condemnation process.

"Condemnation is a taking," Hladick said. "The Alaska statutes allow for, if you have to do a project and it's in the public's best interest, that if you have to, it gives you the ability to acquire title to the land through basically filing a law suit."

Then it would be up to the courts to determine how much the city would have to pay for the land. The council also passed a resolution that allows for this process to take place. Hladick explained that both resolutions had to be passed last night so the project can go out to bid and the road can be constructed this summer. The two resolutions together insure that the city will take possession of the land in one way or another.

O.C. CEO Wendy Hawthorne said her organization fully understands the process and does not want to obstruct the completion of the Carl E. Moses Boat Harbor. Either direction the council moves will work for the corporation and for the community.

At Tuesday night's meeting the council also hashed out some of the last details for the small boat harbor. The drive down working dock will be moved from the C-float to the A-float so as to not limit the moorage area for 150 foot vessels. Council wanted to preserve the space because many larger boats said they would moor there. Additionally, larger boats bring in more revenue for the city.

Council members requested that the working float be widened to extend out 60 feet, or the length of the slip fingers on A-float. Council member Roger Rowland explained that this would make it easier for boats to navigate around other boats and tie up to the working dock. They also requested that the crane be moved to the corner of the dock so multiple boats could use it at once. If possible, council also wants to fill in the area between the two pilings on one edge of the dock so another boat can moor there if necessary. All of these options will be incorporated into the design that the council will potentially approve at the May 11 meeting. Council suggested that this will be the last time they send new design requests back to PND, the inner harbor designers.

Hladick said the council did a good job of fine tuning the design, especially given the difficulties of working with a company long distance. The distance made efficient conversations about the inner harbor design issues difficult. They also managed to fit the needs of many people into one space.

"You're trying to do 20 years worth of needs in one project, which is almost impossible to do. But I think they've done a good job on compromising on some of these issues. When it's done, it's going to be something that this whole community can be proud of."

The inner harbor is scheduled for completion by the fall of 2011.

In other council business, they agreed to give the school more than $3.8 million for next year's budget. State statute limits the local contribution to $2.96 million, but the city also assumed maintenance of the pool and other parts of the school, which legally allowed them to give more than state statute would typically permit. The school budget for fiscal year 2011 is about $92,000 higher than this year's budget primarily because of salary increases and the rising costs of providing benefits, like health care.

The next scheduled council meeting is on May 11.