Mat-Su Assembly to revisit lake and river setback rules in a special meeting

The Matanuska-Susitna Borough Assembly will hold a special meeting Tuesday, Oct. 20, at 4 pm in Palmer to discuss waterbody setbacks, the rules governing how close development may sit to lakes, rivers and streams. It's the only item on the agenda, and no ordinance or vote is scheduled.

Borough code bars structures within 75 feet of a waterbody's ordinary high water mark, with some exceptions. Subsurface sewage disposal systems must stay 100 feet back.

The borough has tried to revise those rules before. The Assembly created a Waterbody Setback Advisory Board in 2023, and the board's draft recommendations in late 2024 included:

• keeping the 75-foot setback, extending it to all future development along any waterbody and including commercial and industrial projects

• creating a path to compliance for existing homes built within the 75-foot setback of lakes in violation of borough code

• requiring a land use permit for grading, clearing, filling, contouring or construction within 75 feet of a waterbody

• keeping kennels, stables, animal yards and animal waste facilities 100 feet from waterbodies

• requiring secondary containment or drip collection for fuel installations within 75 feet of a waterbody

The board was dissolved in March 2025, and Assembly Member Tim Hale sponsored an ordinance incorporating its recommendations, according to the borough manager's quarterly report. The borough Planning Commission declined to recommend approving that ordinance and instead recommended forming a task force to review it, according to the commission's resolutions.

Assembly Member Stephanie Nowers pushed for an October date so the meeting would not conflict with fishing and hunting season. The public can testify at the meeting in person or by phone, or send written comments ahead of time.