Alaska Power seeks federal OK for a gate on Gustavus hydro road at center of access dispute

Alaska Power Company has asked federal regulators to approve a revised road plan for its Falls Creek hydroelectric project near Gustavus that calls for a single gate where the access road enters the project.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is taking comments through Nov. 27, according to its notice.

Who can use that road has been disputed before. In 2024, the Gustavus City Council passed a resolution asserting "unfettered" public access to Falls Creek lands by way of the Hydro Road, citing the project's federal license.

The resolution says the utility bought road easements in 2009 from neighboring owners, including the trust that owns the Bear Track Inn. Starting in 2022, it says, the inn's new management posted the road entrance as a "Private Road."

According to the resolution, FERC representatives told the city, the utility and the inn's owners in a February 2024 video meeting that the utility must ensure unfettered public access from Rink Creek Road. The council asked the utility to post a notice saying public access to the Falls Creek area and the national park lands beyond is "an absolute condition of the Federal license."

The company filed its revised plan Aug. 31. FERC's notice says the change would make the road plan consistent with the project's public access and recreation plan, which the commission amended in 2016, and that it was developed in consultation with stakeholders.

The 800-kilowatt plant sits on Falls Creek, also known as the Kahtaheena River, about five miles east of Gustavus.

Anyone can comment, and brief comments can be filed online without registering. Only those who file to intervene become parties to the case.