Equipment arrives at Cascade Point ferry site before construction is authorized

The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities and its contractor have started moving equipment to the Cascade Point ferry terminal site north of Juneau, the department said Monday. Construction hasn't been authorized.

No work that disturbs the ground can start until the state finishes its environmental checklist and consultations under the Alaska Historic Preservation Act, the department said. It plans to post another update on schedules and potential impacts before construction begins.

The terminal would sit near Mile 42 of Glacier Highway. A $37.6 million federal Rural Ferry Program award for it is meant to shorten sailing times between Juneau, Haines and Skagway, Gov. Mike Dunleavy and Alaska's congressional delegation said in August. The department has worked with Goldbelt on the project since 2022.

The first stage is on land: an access road, a bridge over Cascade Creek, a staging pad and material stockpiled for a future marine causeway, according to the department's project page. It's at 90% design, with about $35 million listed in the draft state transportation plan. The second stage, the berth and waterside facilities, is listed at $80.5 million and is still in federal environmental review, according to an Alaska Marine Highway Operations Board packet.

In March, the state pushed construction past 2026 because the Army Corps of Engineers required full design information for the second stage in the permit application. The Corps has since decided the first-stage area isn't in wetlands it regulates, so that part doesn't need a Corps permit.

The project has drawn criticism. At an Oct. 6 public meeting on the draft plan, one commenter asked the state to cancel Cascade Point, saying the Haines and Skagway governments had called it unnecessary, and to spend the money on a Skagway dock and the rest of the system. A department official responded that the state has a project for Skagway.

In July, operations board member Keith Hillard said $49 million for a new terminal was hard to justify while the system lacks enough vessels and crew, according to draft minutes.