Commission approves temporary housing barge for cruise-line staff with conditions including ADEC permit and insurance

The Skagway Planning and Zoning Commission approved Conditional Use Permit application 2025005 on Feb. 13, 2025, allowing cruise-line agencies to place a housing barge in a leased area of the Port of Skagway, subject to conditions the municipal administration requested.

Manager Deetsch, speaking for municipal administration, told the commission the municipality has not previously applied code and port tariff rules to a housing barge and asked for specific conditions if the permit is approved. Requested conditions the commission adopted on the record included: temporary habitation limited to April 1–Oct. 31 each year if the barge does not meet winter insulation standards; an approved Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (ADEC) discharge permit specific to the proposed location or, alternatively, use of pump-out to shore; a defend, indemnify and hold-harmless agreement in favor of the municipality addressing rockfall and similar risks; general liability insurance of at least $2,000,000 naming the municipality as additional insured; an emergency-services access plan for residents on the barge; and annual review of the permit by the planning commission.

Cruise Line Agencies of Alaska (CLAA) representative Stuart Stevens, who spoke in support of the proposal, described the vessel (identified earlier in public comment as the Chickamint barge) as previously used by the Forest Service for seasonal crew housing. At the podium, Stevens described plans for hookups to shore power and water, on-board ADEC-approved wastewater treatment equipment (noting two 500-gallon tanks and an aerobic treatment tank described to staff), backup diesel generators and solar panels, and plans to arrange shore-side pump-out and waste transfer to onshore dumpsters when needed. Stevens said the barge would house roughly seven to eight TWIC‑credentialed agents or port security personnel and that CLAA would work with state and federal agencies, the fire marshal, and the municipality on required approvals.

White Pass representative Tory Cornup and the municipality’s manager acknowledged the plan raises novel regulatory and safety questions — including how a housing barge interacts with the Port of Skagway tariff, the municipal sewer outfall mixing zone, and the U.S. Coast Guard’s safety plan for the railroad dock — but both said those issues appeared addressable. Commissioners discussed rockfall risk and wastewater issues on the record. After amending the main motion to adopt the standard findings (health/safety, no injury to neighbors, harmony with plans, and no substantial decrease in neighboring property values), the commission approved the permit by proposed resolution and then adopted the manager’s listed conditions by roll call; the final vote to approve the permit was recorded 3-0.

The commission’s approval is conditional on applicants securing the specified ADEC permit (or approved pump-out plan), carrying the required insurance, filing the indemnity agreement, producing an emergency services plan, and participating in annual P&Z reviews. Separate building, fire marshal, and other agency reviews remain required before the barge can be occupied.