Kodiak fish waste hauler is only applicant for former cannery site

A deteriorating city-owned waterfront lot in Kodiak drew only one buyer. The Kodiak City Council will now decide what to do about it.

A 45-day public notice period ended Aug. 3 with no competing applications to purchase or lease the property. B&R Fish By Products Inc. applied May 12 to buy the former site of Cook Inlet Processing and industrial-zoned five acre lot assessed at $1.2m.

The site sits vacant. According to B&R's development plan, the city has been paying to demolish structures left after a fire in the old cannery building. The property now holds piles of soil, metal debris and a deteriorating dock. "The property is becoming more of a costly liability than an asset at this point," the company wrote in that plan.

B&R describes itself as a family-owned business that has operated in Kodiak for 38 years and is now run by its third generation. The company holds the fish waste contract that hauls by-products from every Kodiak cannery to the Gibson Cove fishmeal plant.

The company's phased plan calls for site cleanup and a gravel landing in year one, dock repairs and utility work in years two and three, and a roughly 60-by-80-foot maintenance shop in years four and five, with office space to follow. B&R puts its planned investment at more than $1 million.

Interim City Manager Tim Putney's memo says the council must first find the land is not needed for public use, then accept or reject the application and development plan. If the council agrees to sell, staff will collect a deposit for an appraisal, and that appraised value becomes the lowest price the council could accept. If the council declines, the application moves to a regular meeting for formal dismissal.

The application form also notes that, unless city code specifically exempts it, any sale or lease of city property must go through sealed bid or public auction.