Juneau moves to repair Mendenhall riverbank and protect flood-hit homes

Juneau would repair 1,300 feet of Mendenhall River bank to protect homes from further flood loss, under a $582,000 grant heading to the Assembly on Monday. The money comes through the Tlingit Haida Regional Housing Authority as an emergency federal housing grant, with the city carrying out the work.

The repairs trace back to the August 2024 glacial outburst flood, which the city says affected 173 tribally owned homes and 470 families. The riverbank grant is the headline item, but it's one of several flood-recovery measures on the same agenda.

The city is also appropriating $427,990 in FEMA reimbursement, most of it for embankment armoring on Antler Way, and another $526,602 for a spread of repairs, including View Drive stormwater work, more embankment armoring, debris removal and a sinkhole fix. More FEMA applications are still under review.

The largest number on the agenda isn't a repair but a debt payment. The city would move about $3.56 million toward the state loan that financed its HESCO flood barriers, the temporary walls installed along the river. That loan comes with 50% of the principal forgiven, leaving Juneau owing roughly $12.9 million. A separate $500,000 reserve would pay to rebuild the driveways, fences and other features the city tore out to put the barriers in, once they eventually come out.