Juneau hangar owners say the airport's own repaving flooded them, and it won't say if that's true

Hangar owners at Juneau International Airport say flooding that began after the airport regraded and repaved is now damaging their buildings, in one case rotting the wood of a whole block. The airport has done drainage work in response but hasn't said whether its own paving caused the problem.

Two owners took it to the Airport Board. Robert Breffeilh, a 23-year owner, said flooding started several years ago and by 2022 cost him items stored on the ground. He showed the damage to airport staff, never heard back, and now expects no response. The repeated grading of the road behind his hangar, he said, raised its bed and dammed the drainage, and felled trees took away the slope that carried water off. He dug his own trench. He also flagged corroded wiring and a fire hazard.

Ralph Kibby said the drain behind the worst-hit hangars has risen enough to leave water standing rather than running toward Jordan Creek, and asked the city to lower the alleyway, pull a dirt berm, and restore the old drainage.

Airport Manager Andres Delgado said staff have done grading and drainage work near the hangars, with more under evaluation. Nothing in the airport's reports says whether its own work caused the flooding.