HomeMy WebLinkAbout08112021 Planning & Zoning LAYDOWN - Griswold - Seward Airport Replat Comments
August 9, 2021
Resolution 2021-014 Seward Airport ROW acquisition plat proposal
Comments by Carol Griswold
A.Mitigation should be required for the loss of 25.395 acres of city-owned tidelands. The DOT
may dredge, fill, or otherwise destroy this valuable tidelands once they own it. The public
should be compensated for this loss with protection of at least 25 acres of other city-owned
tidelands in exchange. This was done in 2015 at SMIC when 10 acres of tidelands was protected
as mitigation for the construction of the breakwater. A list of equivalent, habitat-rich city-
owned tidelands should be evaluated for conservation and a site selected.
B.This Resolution is significantly different from the original July 6, 2021 Resolution 2021-014
If an amended Resolution is brought forward to P&Z with needed corrections, that should also
be designated as an amended Resolution to be clear.
C.The pages should all be sequentially numbered for reference. Why is page 1 of this work
session packet numbered as page 4?
D.These statements źƓ Ĭƚƌķ are incorrect:
Page 4: Whereas, the parcels for acquisition are not developed and ğƩĻ ƦğƩƷ ƚŅ ƷŷĻ źķĻƌğƓķƭ
Page 7, Subdivision Review,
ğƩĻ ƦğƩƷ ƚŅ ƷŷĻ {ĻǞğƩķ źķĻƌğƓķƭ
Only Parcel 5is part of the tidelands. Parcel 1, owned by Civil Air Patrol, is uplands
located near the Seward Highway and Airport Road. Parcel 4, owned by the Leirer Family
Limited Partnership, includesuplands, wetlands, and estuary. The misleading statements
should be corrected.
E.Whereas, City staff have stated that a subdivision installation agreement is not
Pages 6-7, The Background and Justification section does not
adequately or accurately address the ROW acquisition plat, or explain the city staff decision to
not require a subdivision installment agreement. Page 8: City departments, with the exception
of the Public Works Department, did not even comment on this plat. Was the Public Works
Department comment answered in this packet? No.
The City staff decision to not require a subdivision installment agreement is not in the
best interests of the public. If not now, when is it appropriate to require the owner/developer
(DOT) to provide utilities for airport, lease holders, and other users. What is the liability of
inadequate fire protection? What justifies the lack of essential infrastructure needs for the
Seward Airport?
On page 22, the last page of the packet, (not numbered),
indicated in phone conversations that utility extension is considered a part of this project. Why
is this not required and specified in the Resolution?
F.Pages 6-7, Background and Justification section: If so much space is allowed to try to justify
the selection of Alternative 2.2 here and on pages 16-
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Improvements opposing views should also be included in the packet. Alternative 2.2 is the
result of a flawed public process, artificially limited alternatives, and an erroneous
Environmental Assessment that was not supported by the public, PACAB, or Council.
On December 19, 2019 Council approved Resolution 2019-111 State Legislative
Priorities, and Council Resolution 2019-115 Federal Legislative Priorities, that request the U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to design and construct a flood damage control project to
protect airport runways and property from flooding, and the State of Alaska Department of
Transportation (ADOT) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to repair and restore
existing long Runway 13-31 in order to accommodate larger aircraft and provide effective
disaster response.
G. Page 7: Subdivision Review, Utilities: There are no utilities on these parcels This refers to
Parcel 1, 4, and 5. But this review should include the whole replat, not just the new parcels.
There are some streetlights along part of Airport Road, runway lighting, electric and phone to
some leaseholders, no water, no fire hydrants, no sewer, etc. The accurate analysis of existing
and proposed utilities should be included.
H. Page 7, Subdivision Review, Flood Zone:
The subdivision flood zone review should note these additional zones:
Page 20 (not numbered) DOT Floodplain Map: Most of Parcel 1, Civil Air Patrol, is also in
the wĻŭǒƌğƷƚƩǤ CƌƚƚķǞğǤͲ wC: a watercourse and the areas adjoining a watercourse which have
been or hereinafter may be covered by a Base Flood.
Due to a lack of mapping, the Regulatory Floodway miraculously ends right at the east
side of the new runway with a sharply drawn straight lines on the west and south. A mapped
floodway would include much of the area to the west, and the rest of Resurrection River, the
unnamed stream, and extend across the entire grasslands, pond/wetlands/slough/estuary to
the ocean. Is this project taking advantage of the lack of data to build in the RF, while citing
their inability to raise and improve existing long runway 13-31? Should this project wait until
the data is updated?
ALL of Parcel 5, the Tidelands, is in a special flood hazard, velocity zone 9: high risk,
coastal areas with additional hazards
associated with storm waves.
I. Page 4:
Seward Code Title 16 does not seem to exempt government ROW Acquisition Plats from
a subdivision installment agreement. This needs to be explained and justified. The exemption of
the requirements set forth in 16.05.010 and 16.05.015 should also be discussed.
Seward Code Title 16, Subdivisions, 16.01.015 Conditions to plat approval requires that:
improvements set forth in section 16.05.010 are
16.05.010 Required public improvements include:
underground telephone and electric lines
water system including fire hydrants
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sewer system
road access and street lighting are already provided, but should be reviewed
16.05.015: Compliance procedure: This section details how the required public
improvements will be completed in the subdivision agreement, either prior or after approval
and recording of the final plat, with time schedule for completion, and a guarantee.
J. The required off-street parking for the lease holders is obviously inadequate with cars lined
for adequate off-street parking as per City Parking Code?
K. How will access be provided to the remainder of the private property owned by the Leirer
Family Limited Partnership? Where will
pedestrian access be provided to city-owned tidelands?
Page Access: These parcels will not have vehicular access but will only provide an
extended Right of Way for the airport to have appropriate airspace clearance to shift, lengthen,
and raise Runway 16-
The second part of this statement only applies to Leirer property, Parcel 4. I believe the
point of acquiring the Civil Air Patrol property and the City Tidelands is to provide a safety zone
for the approaches. This statement should be correct
the
L. Encourage the State to complete and
The NO box
should be checked. The 1999 Strategic Plan
should also be checked NO as there is no flood mitigation project as
requested and approved by PACAB and Council.
M. Page 8: Public Comment:
Ɠƚ ƦǒĬƌźĭ
źƓƨǒźƩźĻƭ͵ No public comment regarding this Resolution??? There was no new public notice
sign posted (only one) and no new notifications were mailed out for this work session, so this
statement must refer to the original July 6, 2021 P&Z meeting. Numerous emails were sent to
Community Development before the P&Z meeting.
If this statement includes the initial July 6, 2021 Public Hearing, three people testified and
all expressed concerns with this replat and lack of public notice. I know others phoned and
In the interest of providing abundant adequate public notice, a new sign should be posted
on Airport Road with the date of the next P&Z public hearing, and the property owners and
leaseholders within 300 feet should be notified. The lack of public notice and lack of city
response to inquiries was one important reason that the July 6, 2021 replat approval was
postponed.
N. Page 9: The map labelled Seward Aiport (sic) Replatmap is NOT the Seward Airport ROW
Replat. It is the EXISTING Seward Airport parcel KPB #14802401. The Property Map should be
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relabeled as the current Seward Airport property A new
map of the actual new plat boundaries overlaying the existing parcel on the aerial map should
be included.
O. Page 19 (not numbered) Note Parcel 1, Civil Air Patrol property which includes a pond, is
and ADFG been consulted about this destruction of wetlands and pond? Invasive, non-native
plants will infest this barren area. The pond will heat up, killing the fish and aquatic life. The
taller trees could instead be trimmed down, and a buffer of native shrubs and vegetation
maintained around the pond. ; if possible,
The north approach description
could be noted, as is done for many rural Alaskan airports.
The section next to the devastated cleared and grubbed , meaning
removal of the trees and shrubs. The majority of the rest of this parcel, which includes Bald
Eagle, Great Horned Owl, and many other nesting bird species, wildlife habitat, and wetlands is
This likely means the removal of the older, taller trees preferred by
eagles and owls. These large trees also help maintain the integrity of the forest as their roots
interconnect. Removal will result in the remaining trees falling over and subsequent erosion.
The remaining thin forested buffer between Parcel 1 and Resurrection River will be drastically
weakened, increasing the likelihood of more severe and widespreadflooding and erosion.
The forest and wetlands south of the Airport Road cul-de-sac, on property leased from the
Alaska Railroad Corporation, will also be cleared to make room for the Secondary Lighted Wind
Cone. This will remove another valuable wildlife habitat, as well as the wind protection for
planes parked on the apron. Can this wind cone be moved to another location to reduce the
drastic negative impacts on the habitat?
The fill around the south end of the new runway 16-34 across the pond will destroy rich
estuarine pond and wetlands habitat, filling and blocking the pond from the uplands to the
beach. This inconceivable destruction must be mitigated to the maximum. The protective,
vegetated barrier dune should not be removed or filled. A large, oval culvert under the runway
in the pond should be installed to connect the east and west sides of the pond to accommodate
tidal fluctuations, storm surge, and anadromous fish passage. As noted in copious comments to
DOT, the runway is directly in the path and habitat of many resident and migratory birds,
including large birds (swans, geese, cranes, herons, gulls, etc.) that do not read signs. This is a
dangerous incursion into their home for aircraft and birds.
Thank you for your consideration of these comments.
Carol Griswold
Inside city limits
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