DOWL to Present on Near Island Development Plan

Kayla Desroches/KMXT

The City of Kodiak is planning an update to the Near Island Development Plan and the engineering company on the project will hold a meeting tonight to hear public feedback. Michelle Ritter, a Senior Planner with DOWL in Anchorage, says the plan identifies areas for development.

“It was a little open ended, so it will be kind of looking at the changes since 25 plus years ago and kind of looking at how to guide the development for the future. And development also includes the built environment as well as trails and parks and other uses as well.”

Near Island is no stranger to development, not all of which the public has welcomed. The City of Kodiak has been quarrying near St. Herman’s Harbor since 2009 and the excavation chips away at trail land which is popular with hikers. The city realized last year that it hadn’t had the permits required for the project and applied for – and gained – a conditional use permit from the Kodiak Island Borough Planning & Zoning Commission last summer.

Ritter says DOWL has done initial research for the Near Island Development Plan and looked at the site.

“We’ve gone out and walked it, met with some of the state quoters. We’ve looked at the existing zoning, we’ve looked at available plans for the area, really just gathered what the existing conditions are, and that’s what we’re gonna present tonight is here’s what we see – now, public and users of the area, let us know, are we missing something, what do we need to add, what do we need to consider?”

The meeting will be in Katurwik Room at the Kodiak Harbor Convention Center with an open house between 7 and 7:30 p.m. Four DOWL representatives will present the Near Island Development Plan between 7:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. and will return to the open house format between 8 and 9 p.m., during which time the public can view plot plans and make comments.

Ritter says the public will have more opportunities in the future to give feedback.