Goldbelt gets a new chair as its biggest bets take shape

Goldbelt, the Tlingit-owned corporation that has become one of Juneau's most consequential players, has a new board chair — and the change comes as the company pursues the biggest development bets in its history.

At its annual meeting, shareholders elected three directors, and the board then reorganized, naming Craig Kahklen as chair. The move replaces Katherine Eldemar, who had held the post for just a year. Board leadership at Goldbelt has churned before, and the reshuffle lands at a pivotal moment: the corporation is advancing its Aaní port project on the back side of Douglas Island — a private cruise terminal it says will create local jobs, add a new wastewater treatment facility, and eventually become one of Juneau's largest taxpayers — while also taking a role in the future of the Eaglecrest ski area's proposed gondola. Who steers the board matters more when the corporation is making decisions this big.

For a Native corporation, the payoff of those bets flows back to shareholders. Goldbelt, owned by more than 4,300 descendants of Southeast's original Tlingit people, funds trusts that distribute earnings directly to beneficiaries — including an Ancestral Trust that approved roughly $1.34 million, about $5.25 a share, this spring, and an Elders Trust created last year.

CEO McHugh Pierre briefed shareholders on the company's performance and the Aaní initiative at the meeting.