Land Use
RSSDevelopment permits, subdivision approvals, comprehensive plans, zoning variances
Anchorage zoning appeals board stalls easier variance approvals
Anchorage's Zoning Board delayed a proposal twice to raise the threshold for director approval of building variances from 5% to 10% encroachment, letting more projects skip public hearings. • The measure returns to the board September 10, then heads to a public hearing September 21 before the Assembly votes.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 10h ago3 min readAI
Kodiak can't sell four lots it has owned since 1986 because they can't get a permit
Kodiak bought the land for a hospital in 1986, built ball fields instead, and still can't sell four lots that can't get a building permit.
by Walter AlaskaNews1w ago2 min readAI
Anchorage Planning and Zoning bumped its entire August docket to September
Every land-use case on the Planning and Zoning Commission's August docket got bumped to September, a month's delay for anyone waiting on a rezoning or permit.
by Alaska News2w ago1 min readAI
Judge vacates Izembek land exchange for King Cove road
A federal judge vacated the land exchange behind the King Cove road through the Izembek refuge, reopening one of Alaska's longest fights on primary day.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min readAI
Girdwood's new parks plan rests partly on land the town doesn't clearly have the right to use
Anchorage's commission approved Girdwood's parks plan though parts sit on land the town hasn't secured: a lot on state ground and trails crossing the airport.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min readAI
A planned Anchorage road would cut into a Hillside couple's yard — so the commission hit pause
A planned Hillside road would cut 45 feet into an Anchorage couple's yard and move their well, so the commission paused the design pending a fresh survey.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min readAI
Chugach seeks industrial zoning for its campus, dropping a buffer
Chugach wants to rezone its Anchorage North Campus to heavy industrial to match its use, dropping a green buffer meant for a highway that likely won't come.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min readAI
Girdwood's parks plan eyes land its own housing plan wanted for homes
Girdwood's parks plan wants disc golf and a dog park on Glacier Creek land the town's housing plan set aside for homes. City staff say resolve that first. Hearing Aug. 3.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min readAI
Mat-Su Platting Board approves Starlight Subdivision master plan over neighbor objections
Mat-Su Platting Board approved the 184-lot Starlight Subdivision master plan Thursday despite neighbor complaints about traffic, mail delivery, and drainage on the roughly 200-acre Knik Fairview site.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min readAI
Anchorage wetlands plan gets first update in over a decade as federal rules shift
Anchorage's wetlands permit rules changed in 2021 when federal oversight shifted, and the city's 2014 management plan is finally getting its first update to reflect that reality.
by Alaska News1mo ago2 min readAI
State agency warns Girdwood Parks Plan shows unauthorized trails on airport land
Alaska DOT&PF told Anchorage the Girdwood Parks Master Plan maps four trail segments across state airport property without permission, risking public access conflicts with aviation uses.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min readAI
Kenai weighs spending city money to develop a city-owned parcel
Kenai votes Wednesday on spending $54,219 to subdivide city land and partner with a developer — though the agenda doesn't say how many lots or what would go there.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min readAI
Kenai moves to clear six pieces of public land for sale
Kenai's council votes Wednesday to strip "public purpose" status from six city parcels, the step before selling them — on a consent agenda, with no public hearing.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min readAI
A Fairbanks lot split turns up permit and floodway snags
A routine lot-line change near Noyes Slough surfaced a few snags — an unpermitted garage, a too-close house, and a floodway where you can't dig without an engineer's OK.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 2mo ago1 min readAI
Eklutna subdivision wins road-deferral variance
Anchorage Platting Board approved road-deferral variances for Eklutna LLC to subdivide three tracts into two lots, including one for the future Eklutna Gathering Center, with conditions on paving standards and a 24-month deadline to record the plat.
by Alaska News2mo ago1 min readAI
Palmer subdivision easement vacation draws access concerns
Alaska's Department of Natural Resources approved vacating two public easements on a Palmer subdivision lot, ending physical trail access despite objections from two neighbors who said the easement provided important passage.
by Alaska News2mo ago1 min readAI
Anchorage Assembly to vote on free land for natural burial cemetery
Anchorage Assembly will vote on giving a 9.6-acre parcel worth $583,000 to a nonprofit to build a natural burial cemetery in South Anchorage, avoiding municipal construction costs as the city's main cemetery nears capacity.
by Alaska News3mo ago2 min readAI
Two Mat-Su subdivisions approved — and the small details say something about how the borough is growing
Mat-Su Borough Platting Board approved two subdivisions Thursday • Palmer project scaled to three lots after sewer extension costs ruled out six-lot plan • Lakeside development near Parks Highway approved for seven tracts accessible by float plane • Utility costs and geography shape where borough growth actually happens
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min readAI
Kodiak Lands Committee directs staff to study housing development on youth baseball field
Kodiak Island Borough Lands Committee directed staff to study converting the 16-acre Killarney Hills youth baseball field into at least 30 residential lots to address housing needs.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago2 min readAI
Mat-Su Borough Platting Board approves Bartlett Hills subdivision with road waiver
Matanuska-Susitna Borough approved a four-lot subdivision near Montana Creek and waived the requirement to build an improved road, allowing access only by existing pioneer road and trail.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min readAI
Assembly transfers nine riverfront parcels to state for erosion control
Alaska borough transfers nine riverfront parcels to the state to build erosion barriers before the Matanuska River threatens the highway.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min readAI
Interior transfers 1.4 million acres in Dalton corridor to Alaska
The Department of the Interior says the conveyance moves Alaska past 96% of its statehood land entitlement. State officials are taking public comment through June 26 on access across the corridor.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
