A vacant lot off Ptarmigan Road is one of more than a hundred included in a new city analysis. (Courtesy: City of Unalaska)

If you live in a residential part of Unalaska, chances are you’re neighbors with a vacant lot. That’s what city planners have concluded after a year spent analyzing land use.

They’ve compiled their findings into a new inventory, which assistant planner Anthony Grande presented at Thursday’s planning commission meeting.

"The question we’re trying to answer is, does this vacant land that was found in the land use inventory, does that translate into potential for development in the future?" he said. "Specifically … filling in existing neighborhoods, where there would be one or two vacant lots surrounded by already developed lots."

They found more than a hundred vacant lots in total that are already subdivided and near utility lines. About half of those are on flat ground, and more than half have all three utilities available. 

The inventory is part of a larger effort to take stock of Unalaska’s housing market and find potential for new development. Eventually, it'll become part of a city website focused on housing resources.

The vacant lots -- nearly 90 acres in total -- could hold upwards of 400 housing units, according to the report. But Grande said it’ll take a lot more work to get any of the properties to that point:

"It’s not meant to be an endorsement of a certain lot as being developable," he said. "If somebody wanted to build on a lot, I mean, they would have to invest a bit more time and money in determining, from an engineer, whether it’s buildable, the characteristics of the surface and more information about the utilities."

The analysis does cover the basics, breaking plots down by topography, zoning, number of available utilities and more.

It also includes photos and details for every piece of land: for example, 221 Ptarmigan Rd. The report says that lot is owned by the Ounalashka Corporation and could hold up to four housing units. The planners didn't note note any debris or easement problems at that address. But they do say it’s up against a cliff, and lacks an easy sewer hook-up.

Landowners and neighbors can find details like that for all 117 empty lots the city analyzed.