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Committee hears testimony on SB 47 to allow easements for Chugach State Park access
Summary
The House Transportation Committee heard invited testimony on Senate Bill 47, which would allow the state to grant easements across Chugach State Park so the Municipality of Anchorage can use voter-approved bond funds to upgrade road segments that cross parkland. The committee set an amendment deadline and scheduled a follow-up hearing.
JUNEAU — The Alaska House Transportation Committee on March 25 heard invited testimony on Senate Bill 47, which would allow the state to grant easements across Chugach State Park to enable municipal bond funds to pay for road upgrades to access park trailheads.
The bill was presented for consideration at the committee’s regular meeting at 1:32 p.m.; committee chair Representative Kerrick opened the hearing and invited Roger Marks, a member of the Glen Alps Road Service Area board, to testify. Marks told the committee that hilltop road service areas manage local road maintenance, that much of the traffic on those roads is park-bound, and that two short segments of Canyon Road that lead into the park lie on parkland and therefore cannot currently be financed with municipal bond proceeds unless the state grants easements.
Marks said the hillside road districts address maintenance tasks such as road repair, grading, drainage and snow removal and that Anchorage’s Chugach State Park draws heavy use. He said Anchorage voters created the Chugach State Park Access Service Area (CASA) in 2023 to fund access improvements, and that in 2024 voters approved a $4,000,000 bond specifically for upgrades to Canyon Road — a roughly 0.6-mile route that leads to the Sunnyside of Flat Top and Rabbit Lakes trailhead. Marks told the committee that bond counsel advised the municipality it cannot issue bonds for assets it does not own and that SB 47 would allow the state to grant easements for the two road segments on parkland so bond funds could be used for upgrades.
"And that's why SB 47 is necessary, and we thank you for considering it," Marks said.
Committee members were told that department staff were available for questions: Ricky Geese, director of the Department of Natural Resources' Parks and Outdoor Recreation division, and Christopher Orman, assistant attorney general with the Department of Law's Natural Resources section, were present online. The committee opened and then closed public testimony on SB 47 after no one in the room or online indicated a desire to speak.
The committee set an amendment deadline for SB 47 of Wednesday, March 26, at 5 p.m., and scheduled a follow-up House Transportation Committee hearing for Thursday, March 27, at 1:30 p.m. in Room 124, where the committee will again take up SB 47. The committee also said it will hold an introductory hearing on House Bill 26, a statewide public and community transit plan, at the March 27 meeting.
No formal votes on SB 47 were recorded at the March 25 meeting.
