Mat-Su Public Works picks Front Street site for Talkeetna's new water tank and well

Mat-Su Borough Public Works Director Tom Adams on Oct. 29 approved a decision memo that selects two state parcels on Front Street as the preferred site for Talkeetna's new 375,000-gallon water tank, well and related facilities. The 1.42 wooded acres are being transferred from the state to the borough, and some residents oppose building there.

The system serves about 225 customer accounts and lacks enough treated-water storage, leaving low pressure at peak demand, according to the memo. At a June 3 board meeting, borough staff called arsenic one of the top reasons to move the current wellhouse.

The memo's planning estimates put the Front Street site at $5.28 million and the existing C Street plant site, which opponents prefer, at $5.07 million. It says borough ownership avoids lease payments and improves eligibility for funding that requires ownership. The board's April resolution says a $1.5 million forgivable State Revolving Fund loan, a low-interest state loan program for water infrastructure, requires borough ownership. The state withdrew that offer in June 2025 while the borough explored other sites. At the June 3 meeting, staff said ownership "is not MSB mandate but preference."

The memo went to the advisory Talkeetna Sewer and Water Board in its Nov. 4 meeting packet, with a draft resolution supporting preliminary design at Front Street and reapplying for the loan. Records do not show whether the board passed it.

The board's April resolution, passed 3-0, asked for the location with "the least impact on the community" but did not reject Front Street by name.

Board Chair Drew Haag was "disappointed with where the MSB has progressed with researching other sites," according to Oct. 7 minutes. At the same meeting, Steere said people typically voice opposition rather than support, and that with no survey of support for the parcels, the board does not know what the community supports.

The Talkeetna Community Council wrote the state opposing the transfer. Andrea Larson, a neighboring property owner who asked the Planning Commission in September to oppose the site, told the Assembly on Oct. 20 the project "has moved forward without public notice or input" and that opposition dates to January. The memo cites several public-engagement events, including board meetings and radio interviews.

The Alaska Department of Natural Resources approved giving the land to the borough at no cost June 26. It said site selection is a municipal planning responsibility. Title still waits on a borough-paid survey. The Front Street parcels sit in a FEMA 100-year flood zone, as does the existing site, the April resolution says.

The memo says choosing the site does not authorize construction or decide later permitting, funding, environmental or final design questions. In August, the borough engineer projected finished plans by about summer 2027 and construction in 2028.

Larson has asked for formal public meetings before Nov. 17, when she said Public Works is scheduled to brief the Assembly. The sewer and water board next meets Dec. 2 at 1 pm.