Chilkat Valley News - Serving Haines and Klukwan, Alaska since 1966

It’s truth or consequences time for the little .75-acre lot at the corner of 3rd Avenue and Main Street in Haines. For more than ten years it sat in limbo as some people waited impatiently for the moratorium to expire in hopes of buying it, while others loudly sought to keep it in the public realm. We’ll needle them a bit and refer to the former as “DUDE” (developer under delusions of entitlement) and the latter as “BANANA” (build absolutely nothing anytime near anything).

DUDE is in favor of privatization over public ownership, allowing the freedom to do whatever he or she wants with it and personally profit from it. The usual reason given in favor of selling the property, however, is that it will produce property tax revenue for the borough. And, while this is true and civic minded, ironically DUDE also openly disdains taxes of any kind, especially ones going to fund public projects like parks. “We have enough of those already”.

BANANA, on the other hand, sees the greenspace and distant views and wants to keep things as they are indefinitely (though maybe another picnic table would be nice). The thinking is that, as borough property, it belongs to the public, and we don’t need to find or buy a comparable piece of land somewhere else to replace it, even if we could. It’s already ours; and selling it just to make a quick buck would severely impact our access and enjoyment. “So don’t touch it”.

I’m here to tell you that there is a middle ground, however, and that it will both produce revenue and preserve the openness and recreational possibilities for the site. But in fairness, I’ll need to come up with a self-deprecating acronym. Maybe something like… MINDLESS (make it needlessly difficult like everyone surely suspects).

MINDLESS tries to inspire by words and pictures what to many is incomprehensible: a town center that is unmistakably the center of town, in the middle of greatest density and connecting to all points. Add to that leased areas for vendors and entrepreneurs, with revenue going to the borough, and convenient public restrooms. A landscaped gathering point for tours and events.

But I’ve done enough blubbering about this over the past ten years to last a lifetime. So, what else then might we do to try to please everyone? I’ll let the outside experts point to the indirect benefits of a town center.

The Urban Land Institute published an article years ago that suggests ten principles for developing successful town centers:

Create an Enduring and Memorable Public Realm.

Respect Market Realities.

Share the Risk, Share the Reward

Plan for Development and Financial Complexity

Integrate Multiple Uses

Balance Flexibility with a Long-Term Vision

Capture the Benefits That Density Offers

Connect to the Community

Invest for Sustainability

Commit to Intensive On-Site Management and Programming.

Here’s a small sample from that article:

The public realm is integrated with adjacent uses that significantly enliven the public space, such as bookstores, libraries, public buildings, cultural facilities, restaurants, and general retail. Each of these uses has its own vocabulary for meeting the street and interacting with the public space that must be carefully considered in the urban design plan.

Another source generalized the benefits like this:

Increased property values

Increased tax revenues

Increased tourism revenue

Improved attractiveness of communities to homebuyers and businesses.

Decreased stormwater treatment costs.

These goals are consistent with the Haines Borough 2025 Comprehensive Plan (2012) as they relate to this, and with the enhanced core development and investment (HEDC Objective 3, Strategy 2) in the EDC 5-Year Plan of 2018.

We are extremely fortunate to be able to even consider this location for a town hub. It’s only by coincidence and the moratorium that such a piece is even available to debate the merits of, let alone develop.

For sure, selling the lot at 3rd & Main is a lot easier. But doing nothing is easier still. And, while I’ve done some planning in the past and provided visuals to generate interest, the scope of a thing like this is sure to be complex, and well beyond the capabilities of one volunteer working in relative isolation. It’s going to involve other professionals and most of all public engagement, including the planning commission and the borough assembly.

That vote is coming up soon folks. And unless it is put on hold and becomes a ballot measure, the public will likely not have a say on what happens to this very important public property in the Heart of Haines.