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Natural resources plans land sale revenue and revives timber auction; seeks modest budget shifts for staff and equipment
Summary
The mayor’s natural resources manager said the borough expects a roughly $600,000 net from an upcoming West Chetanika riverfront subdivision sale and described renewed commercial timber activity and limited gravel sales; the division asked for modest operational increases and fewer contractual needs as internal capacity grows.
Daniel Welch, manager of the mayor’s Natural Resources Division, told the finance committee the borough expects a net revenue gain from a planned West Chetanika riverfront land sale and described steps to reestablish commercial timber auctions and consider new gravel pits.
Revenue and projects: Welch said the West Chetanika (riverfront) sale is expected to net roughly $600,000 under conservative pricing assumptions if the property completes the subdivision and sale process during FY26. He cautioned that if sale timing slips into the next fiscal year, the revenue would be realized later and the FY26 figures would move.
Resource sales and operations: The division is relaunching commercial timber auctions (first since 2014) and has an active West Chetanika project and internal planning for resource sales. Welch said gravel sales remain limited: the borough operates a shared‑use pit under an old DOT agreement with very small sales; reclamation fees previously charged by the borough were removed after an MOU with the state that transferred reclamation responsibility to DOT so the borough would not face an unfunded reclamation liability.
Budget implications: Welch described several modest operating increases to fund office supplies, field tablets and vehicle maintenance as the division becomes fully staffed. He said the division expects to rely less on outside contractors for forestry work because of newly approved term positions that enable internal work and thus lower contracted costs over time.
Ending: Welch said the division is exploring additional revenue options (gravel, timber, land) and noted risks that project timing and permitting can delay cash flows.
