Cordova council approves tidelands disposal for seafood offload dock

The Cordova City Council voted 4–0 Wednesday, with three members absent, to dispose of approximately 4,100 square feet of Alaska Tide Survey 220 tidelands to Camtu's Alaska Wild Seafoods, clearing the way for a new commercial offloading dock adjacent to the company's existing processing plant on Harbor Loop.

The motion directed the city to negotiate a lease or purchase agreement with the party that submitted a letter of interest under Cordova Municipal Code 7.40.060. In calling the vote, the mayor identified that party as Camtu's Alaska Wild Seafoods. The 4,100-square-foot ATS 220 disposal was one of three related land actions the council approved at the same meeting. The others were a roughly 360-square-foot ATS 220 parcel and a roughly 1,780-square-foot portion of Lots 4A and 4B of the Harville subdivision, both also approved 4–0 to facilitate the same project.

Speakers for Camtu's Alaska Wild Seafoods told the council the dock would serve the Copper River and Prince William Sound fishing fleets. One council member noted that the existing facility's crane had long frustrated fishermen waiting to offload. "I'm amazed how long they spent using the slowest crane in harbor for all their offloading," the member said. "The dock is going to be an improvement."

The Harbor Commission had raised concerns about navigation at the harbor entrance. A representative of Camtu's Alaska Wild Seafoods addressed those concerns before the vote, telling the council that more than 500 feet of navigable water would remain between the dock face and Spike Island. "I'm confident that experienced mariners will continue to view the Cordova Harbor entrance as safe, accessible, and fully functional," the representative said. "This project does not narrow the harbor entrance, it simply results in slightly different approach while maintaining ample room for safe navigation."

A council member who said she had visited ports with narrower entrances and comparable vessel traffic said the navigation concern did not change her position. "We just need to support this business that's been supporting our community," she said.

A representative speaking on behalf of the family and Camtu's Alaska Wild Seafoods told the council the re-plat connected to the disposal accomplishes three goals: returning a TDOC tract to the public, setting aside waterfront land for a future public park, and securing the deepwater frontage needed for the dock. "Working waterfront infrastructure is what built Cordova," the representative said.

Background

The project has been in motion since June 2023, when the council passed a resolution supporting Camtu's Alaska Wild Seafoods' proposal to excavate tidelands and authorized the city manager to enter lease negotiations for a portion of ATS 220. The company's processing facility on Harbor Loop dates to a site plan the council approved in 2010.