Juneau Assembly to weigh how it will pick a developer for Telephone Hill housing

Juneau Assembly members will weigh in Monday on how the city will score developers who apply to build up to 155 homes on Telephone Hill, and the city manager says it's their only chance to change the rules.

The downtown hill, between the Downtown Parking Garage and the State Office Building, holds seven empty houses. The state once planned a new Capitol there and transferred the land to the city in 2022.

Now is the time for members to "think carefully about what you believe the selection criteria should be, as it cannot be changed later," City Manager Katie Koester wrote to the Assembly's Committee of the Whole.

The draft call for developers weighs track record most heavily. A team's past projects and experience count for 70 of 100 points. Its vision for the site counts for the other 30, and teams asking for less help from the city score higher. Koester wrote that the weighting will help the city choose "a developer and a project with a high likelihood of success."

That help could include city-paid demolition, a 12-year property tax break, money from the city's Affordable Housing Fund and a negotiable or deferred land price.

The city wants up to 155 units, ideally with 30 of them affordable to households earning 80% of the area's median income. Its wish list also includes buildings no taller than five floors and "old Juneau" design.

The Assembly set aside $5.5 million for demolition and site work in 2025. In April, it told staff to hold off on demolition until a developer offers site-specific plans.

The Alaska Historical Association has applied to list Telephone Hill as a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places, citing homes built between 1882 and 1939.

At the Assembly's Sept. 14 meeting, Larry Talley of the Flats asked members to figure out how much public subsidy a developer would need before tearing down the houses. Carole Bookless of Douglas said the request lacks a development plan and could disadvantage local contractors. Joshua Adams of Friends of Telephone Hill offered to renovate and rent out the houses, according to draft minutes.

If the committee signs off, the city plans to put out the call Nov. 12, with responses due at the end of January. Any land sale would still need a public hearing and an Assembly ordinance, tentatively in July 2027.