Land Use

Anchorage Assembly ordinance restores parking permit rule its planning commission voted 8-0 to cut

Anchorage's planning commission voted unanimously to drop a parking lot restriction. The Assembly sponsors put it back in and will take it up Oct. 20.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read

Cordova commission backs sealed proposals for Davis Avenue hillside lot

Cordova Planning Commission voted to recommend sealed bids for a 6,740-square-foot city lot above Davis Avenue, requiring 30 days of public notice if the City Council approves.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read

Sitka's search for housing land narrows to two small parcels

Sitka's search for city land to build housing on has narrowed to two small parcels — the sites with the most room to build are the hardest to develop.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago3 min readFrom Sep 2

A housing-zoning fix has stalled for months before Anchorage's appeals board

A housing-zoning fix has stalled before Anchorage's appeals board since spring — set aside twice — even as the administration pushes housing as a priority.

by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 2mo ago3 min readFrom Jun 11

Follows: Anchorage's planning director could approve bigger encroachments alone

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 AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read

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 News2mo ago1 min read

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 AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read

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 AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read

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 AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read

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 AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read

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 AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read

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 AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read

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 News4mo ago2 min read

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 AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read

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 AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read

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 AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read

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 4mo ago1 min read

A residential block off Abbott Road is going commercial — one lot at a time

Dominos falling A city tries rezoning If they accept it

by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 4mo ago2 min read

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 News5mo ago1 min read

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 News5mo ago1 min readFrom May 30

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 News5mo ago2 min readFrom May 28

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 AlaskaNews5mo ago2 min read

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 5mo ago2 min read

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 5mo ago1 min read

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 AlaskaNews5mo ago1 min read