Haines draft would require permits for taxis and tours in the Chilkoot Corridor

A draft Haines Borough ordinance would require a borough permit for every tour, taxi, rideshare driver and multi-day tour working the Chilkoot Corridor, a bear-viewing area where the borough is trying to ease congestion. The Assembly could cap how many permits it issues.

In July, the Assembly adopted a one-year moratorium on new commercial tour permits in the corridor. Its Chilkoot Corridor Working Group, which has spent the year looking at how people and bears share the Chilkoot Lake and river area, had recommended the pause to allow time to evaluate current use "before additional growth occurs."

But taxis, rideshare companies such as Uber and Lyft, and multi-day tour companies are "under-regulated," Borough Clerk Michael Denker wrote to department heads in September, and all of them contribute to the problems the borough is trying to address. Tourism Director Rebecca Hylton called it a "commercial transportation loophole." She wrote that multi-day tour vehicles have been driving into the Lutak residential neighborhood, and that the borough doesn't have a complete picture of how many multi-day operators work in Haines or how many passengers they carry.

Under the draft, the Assembly could set the number of corridor permits each December for the following year, with renewals ahead of new applicants. A permit would cost $100, plus a $250 hearing fee for new permits unless the operator already paid it for a tour permit. New or expanded permits would need a public hearing and Assembly approval. Holders would report their customer numbers each year or face a $500 fine.

The draft also calls for a per-passenger fee to be spent only on the corridor. The amount is blank, and so are the corridor's boundaries and the date the rules would take effect.

Harbormaster Henry Pollan, who supports the ordinance, called the corridor "an internationally recognized, premium bear-viewing location" and wrote that "the corridor is oversaturated during our busiest periods." Fire Chief Zak Overmyer wrote that response times to Chilkoot Lake can approach 30 minutes when responders come from home with large equipment, and that his department takes no stance on limiting tours. The packet includes no comments from tour operators, taxi companies or rideshare drivers.

The Tourism Advisory Board takes up the draft at noon Thursday. Written comments are due to the borough clerk by 5 pm Wednesday. The ordinance hasn't been introduced, and any recommendation from the board would go back to the Assembly.