Huna Totem Corporation officials say they are full steam ahead with the plan to open downtown Juneau’s fifth cruise ship dock by 2028. That’s despite unexpected timeline delays and price hikes that may scale down the project.
Susan Bell, vice president of strategic initiatives for the Alaska Native village corporation, spoke at a Juneau Chamber of Commerce Luncheon on Thursday. She gave an update on Áak’w Landing, the corporation’s $150 million cruise ship dock and upland waterfront development project.
“We’re really excited about where things are with Áak’w Landing,” she said.
The Juneau planning commission approved conditional use permits for the development in 2023, and the Juneau Assembly approved a tidelands lease for it last year. The dock will be located in Gastineau Channel, off Egan Drive and next to the U.S. Coast Guard station.
The development of the dock has been a contentious topic among the community since Huna Totem first proposed its plan. Norwegian Cruise Line donated the $20 million property to the corporation in 2022.
Bell said the new dock will help spread out tourism’s impact on the downtown area.
“It really, really, really will reduce the vehicular congestion in the downtown area, but it’s also very, very walkable right into town, downtown shops, downtown attractions,” she said. “Just by its sheer location, it does something to help address one of the biggest concerns our residents have, which is vehicular congestion.”
Some critics during the project’s permitting approval process argued the opposite effect, saying it would expose a new area of downtown to increased congestion and visitors.
Bell said residents may see changes to the project since it was originally approved. Unexpected construction timeline delays, tariffs on steel and market volatility have the corporation considering options to modify its plan to reduce costs. One of those options is scaling back the uplands development portion of the project, such as modifications to its plan to build underground parking. That may require Huna Totem to return to the planning commission for updated permitting approval, potentially opening the door to further project delays.
“Costs have escalated since 2023,” she said. “There was a time when our website said we were going to be open in 2025 and it makes our heart ache a little bit every time we change that date on the website.”
But Bell said Huna Totem is moving full steam ahead with its plan to open the dock for the 2028 cruise season. She said construction is slated to begin next summer, which means Tracy’s King Crab Shack 2 will be able to operate there this summer.
Juneau’s local Alaska Native corporation, Goldbelt Incorporated, is likewise proposing another new cruise ship port on the backside of Douglas Island. It submitted a conditional-use permit application to the city in February. The project will still need approval from the planning commission and the Juneau Assembly.
