Haines Borough weighs what to do with 1,180 acres at Excursion Inlet

The Haines Borough has about 1,180 acres of land at Excursion Inlet and is asking residents what to do with it. Options on the table include a residential subdivision, selling it, a future timber sale or keeping it for public use, according to the Planning Commission's agenda for Thursday, Nov. 12.

The commission may send a recommendation to the Borough Assembly. Written comments are due by 5 pm Wednesday.

Much of the land is new to the borough. The state transferred about 478 acres in June, part of the land it owes the borough under Alaska's municipal land entitlement program, according to the state patents. The rest came in 2019.

The land borders the Tongass National Forest and takes in Neva Lake, Neva Creek and South Creek. The state keeps the rights to any oil, gas and minerals underneath, and a public access strip runs along the water.

The borough has thought about selling land there before. In 2020, as the Assembly looked at selling borough land to grow its permanent fund, a presentation to the Assembly and commission listed Excursion Inlet's upside: more than 1,000 acres to develop, a chance to "really shape a neighborhood" and a big boost in property tax revenue. The downsides were that it's remote, has no services, would be a large undertaking and could draw "potential community pushback." Before any sale, borough code requires the land to be classified for sale, with a use designated.

It comes amid a broader look at borough land. Since June, the commission has reviewed about 830 acres of borough property for possible sale, and the Assembly may vote Nov. 18 on making some of it available, according to a Nov. 6 report from planner Chen Wu. That report doesn't mention Excursion Inlet.