Unalaska, AK – The price tag on the Carl E. Moses Boat Harbor keeps increasing as the city council chooses which modifications will help it fit all of the different users' needs. During a three-hour long work session on Tuesday council members discussed different potential modifications, each of which would add to the base price of $24.5 million and raise it up as high as $31 million.

Two options would strengthen floats near the shore and add electrical outlets to make more spaces for small boats that are 32 feet and under. Another would strengthen the C float, which does not have slips, to allow 150 foot vessels to double stack against both sides. The costs of these options varied from about $600,000 up to $2.1 million.

Other choices included making the C float into a wave attenuator, which would eliminate the need for the Army Corps of Engineers to build a floating break water. Currently they do not have the funds to build it, but city manager Chris Hladick said they might in the future.

"We've asked the Corps for the funding for the outer break waters, and the advantage to that is they are responsible for the maintenance of those floats for the rest of time. So if we do a wave attenuator float, we spend more money for it and then we're responsible for the maintenance on that. So I guess we don't want to get ahead of ourselves, build a wave attenuator float, and then not need it."

The council is also considering adding a drive down dock portion to the C float that would be wide enough for many vehicles and be equipped with small cranes for lifting gear and fish. Council member Roger Rowland said that many fishermen would use it and have requested it, but it may not be worth the money. Adding it could add up to $1.5 million to the project cost. The council is tossing around ideas, like building a separate drive down dock out of an old barge, and staff will consult with the designers, PND Engineers, to see their options.

At this point, the council is considering adding 110 volt power to two floats for small boats and strengthening a T-shaped float to allow for another boat longer than 130 feet to moor there. They also want to strengthen and lengthen the C float but not make it a wave attenuator.

The council also held a long debate over the harbor facilities should the building include offices or just showers and restrooms. They decided to postpone that debate for a while. The current planning rush is to pin down the design of the inner harbor so the builders can order the steel. The design needs to be solidified by the March 9 council meeting, when they will award the contract.

At this point, the price of the new small boat harbor could range from $28 to $31 million. The city has only $12 million set aside. That means they need to get about $18 million from some where. One option is to bond for it, but that would require the voters to approve the bond and more or less agree to a 2 mil increase to property taxes. That increase might also increase renters' rates.

Another option, supported by the city manager is to use the money the city already has in the bank. "I'm advocating that they take money out of reserves and then over the next seven years or eight years, they take from the one percent sales tax fund that's committed to capital projects, and just consider that repaying the general fund," Hladick said.

He said it would be cheaper for the city to pay back the general fund than to pay all of the costs of getting a bond and paying interest on it. However, it could mean a tighter yearly budget for the city because they rely on the interest income for part of the budget. Hladick estimates that using money from the bank would take about $800,000 from the general fund, but that money could be replaced fairly quickly.

Hladick also explained that the money in the bank was put aside for large projects like this. "We've been saving money. We've been conservative because we knew this project and the power house project were coming."

Additionally, if the city bonds for the money and has to repay it, the new small boat harbor will operate at a loss of $1.6 million per year. If not, then it will only be a loss of $400,000 per year. "Cause it's unlikely that the rates are going to cover the costs of this boat harbor," Hladick said. Those costs include maintenance, depreciation, and management.

If the city doesn't borrow money for this project then it will have to for future projects, like expanding the landfill and building a new wastewater treatment facility. However, Hladick thinks they can get better deals on loans for those projects since their enterprise funds are not in the red like the ports fund.

The city council will make final decisions on the harbor design at upcoming council meetings.