A controversial subdivision request will once again go in front of the Petersburg Borough Assembly acting as the Board of Adjustment in October. That’s after Petersburg’s Planning Commission rejected the request for a second time on Sept. 8.
The Central Council of the Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska’s broadband company, Tidal Network, wants to build a tower on borough land near Petersburg’s fire hall. The company has already constructed a tower at Mill Road and is in the process of building another at Papke’s Landing.
But the company has faced loud, sustained opposition from community members for the past year. Communications towers have become a controversial topic and are regularly brought up in public meetings.
The assembly approved the sale of 0.23 acres of land near the fire hall to the company in June. That small parcel is part of a much larger lot, and in order for Tidal Network to buy that small section, the big lot needs to be subdivided. A subdivision request submitted by Tlingit & Haida in July failed in the Planning Commission with no discussion.
Tlingit and Haida appealed, and the issue went before the assembly acting as the Board of Adjustment. The board unanimously agreed to send the subdivision request back to the Planning Commission, and directed it to take formal action.
The issue divided commissioners at their Sept. 8 meeting. Some commissioners felt that the scope of their decision was quite narrow, and that Tidal Network legally met every requirement for a subdivision request.
“Our responsibility in the Planning Commission is not simply to decide whether we personally like the project or whether it’s popular,” commissioner Jim Floyd said. “Our responsibility is to apply the borough’s adopted standards to this application before us, and make findings based on the record.”
Commissioner Tom Kowalske said their group could deny a subdivision request if the land was “unsuited to development” and presented a hazard. Kowalske pointed to a cell tower in Palmer that was damaged this spring during high winds. He felt the tower could be a risk.
“I wrote a letter to the Board of Adjustment explaining some risks that this tower poses,” he said. “But being in such close proximity to the fire hall, that is an added concern of mine.”
After about 50 minutes of discussion and public testimony, the subdivision request failed in a 4-3 vote. Joshua Adams, Mika Cline, Tom Kowalske, and Heather O’Neil voted in opposition, and Chris Fry, Sarah Fine-Walsh, and Jim Floyd voted in favor.
The discussion did not end with the vote. When Chairman Chris Fry tried to move on to the next item on the agenda, Community Development Director Liz Cabrera said the commission needed to state why the subdivision request failed under borough code.
After another 20 minutes of back and forth discussion, the commission determined the tower could be a potential hazard, and that it was in violation of height restrictions.
“They have not demonstrated compliance with applicable zoning because Commercial 1 — which that is — I believe has a 35-foot height restriction,” said commissioner Mika Cline.
Tidal Network has appealed the Planning Commission’s decision. According to the borough clerk, it will once again come before the Borough Assembly acting as the Board of Adjustment on Oct. 5.
That will be the final opportunity for the assembly to weigh in on tower-related issues before election day on Oct. 6.
