Planning commission approves multiple housing permits, OKs marijuana operations and hears update on Shelter Cove Road

The Ketchikan Gateway Borough Planning Commission voted on a slate of land-use permits and variances and heard a technical briefing on the final phase of Shelter Cove (Settlers/Shelter Cove) Road during its regular meeting. Commissioners approved several conditional use permits and variances to add small housing units, triplexes and tiny-home sites; granted a parking variance and conditional use for a triplex at 621 Pine Street after an amended finding; and forwarded two marijuana permits for cultivation and product manufacturing on Gravina Island.

The Shelter Cove Road presentation came from Christine Klein, project manager for the Shelter Cove Road project and a former deputy commissioner of the Alaska Department of Transportation. Klein said the corridor work began in the 2000s and that the project received statewide capital funding from voters in February 2008. She described the road as a roughly 33-mile corridor across the island and said the most recent phase replaced six log-stringer bridges and included work completed during the COVID period. "This is a unique road. It's one of the few designated in the state of Alaska as a remote, low speed, low volume, gravel road," Klein said, adding that bridge work on a portion of the project cost $7,100,000. Klein also said recent surveys were completed and that the project team would request an exception to the borough's centerline survey requirement because survey monuments cannot be left in the center of a gravel road where they would be sheared off by grading.

Why it matters: The commission's approvals advance several housing projects and clarify how the borough will review marijuana-related uses. Votes to allow additional housing units, tiny-home lots and conversions to triplexes respond directly to local housing shortages; approvals for marijuana cultivation and manufacturing reaffirm the borough's role in reviewing state-licensed businesses under local land-use rules.

Major outcomes and details

Votes at a glance (formal actions recorded at the meeting) - Case 25027 (Apex Holdings) — 3-year conditional use permit to allow a mobile building as a residence at 23A/B and 207 Potter Road (employee housing). Motion: adopt Resolution 45.05a. Mover: Mr. Shaw; second: Ms. Dispenza. Vote: 6–0. Outcome: approved. Notes: Staff reported no complaints from prior one-year renewals and that the unit is hooked to septic.

- Case 25028 (Romero) — Conditional use permit to convert a duplex back to a triplex at 717 Canyon Road. Motion: adopt Resolution 45.068. Mover: Ms. Gubitayo; second: (recorded). Vote: 6–0. Outcome: approved. Applicant stated intent to provide local housing, not short-term rentals, and said they applied for an ADU grant.

- Case 25029 (Wampler/Mart) — Conditional use permit and major variance to allow a triplex without providing the required off-street parking at 621 Pine Street. Staff recommended denial based on on‑street parking capacity; the applicant and neighbors testified about local conditions. The commission initially moved to deny but later amended the finding and approved the request. Final motion: approve Resolution 45.07 (amended). Mover for amendment: Mr. Shaw; second: Mr. Arnold. Final recorded vote: 5 yes, 1 no (DeSpenston voted no). Outcome: approved. Applicant (Megan Wampler) described the unit as a small studio intended for 1–2 occupants, likely low-income renters, and said on-street parking patterns and winter conditions influenced tenant parking behavior. She said the intended monthly rent would fall in the $500–$800 range.

- Case 25030 (Tidewater Farms — cultivation) — Conditional use permit for marijuana cultivation at 3002 West Tongass Narrows (Gravina Island). Motion: adopt Resolution 45.08a. Mover: Ms. De Stinson. Vote tally as entered: approved and forwarded (roll recorded; multiple commissioners supported; final recorded count shows a majority in favor). Outcome: approved. Staff noted the property previously had a conditional use permit and that state licensure conditions tie to permit validity.

- Case 25031 (Tidewater Farms — product manufacturing/concentrates) — Separate conditional use permit for product manufacturing (concentrates) at the same Gravina Island property. Motion: adopt Resolution 45.09. Mover: Ms. De Stinson. Final recorded vote: 4 yes, 2 no. Outcome: approved. Commissioners and the applicant discussed the differences between cultivation and product manufacturing and state testing and licensing standards. Applicant's representative Mark Woodward confirmed site access arrangements and that a previous lessee had ceased operations; the new operator plans a smaller overall footprint than past approvals.

- Case 25032 (Merrill) — 3-year conditional use permit to allow a mobile-home-park/tiny-home cluster (four tiny homes) at 12072 Dewberry Lane. Motion: adopt Resolution 45.10a. Mover: Mr. Shaw. Vote: 6–0. Outcome: approved, subject to the standard condition that engineered infrastructure (water, drainage, on-site wastewater) be stamped by a licensed Alaska engineer and reviewed with borough staff before a zoning permit is issued. Applicant said units would be RV-certified, one-bedroom units intended for mid-term rental (1–2 years) and that he would maintain septic service and access.

- Case 25033 (Gas) — Conditional use permit with a major variance for a triplex and deck encroachment at 322 Deermont Street (front-yard encroachment to avoid blasting rock ledge). Motion: adopt Resolution 45.11a. Mover: Mr. Shaw. Vote: 6–0. Outcome: approved.

- Case 25034 — Major variance to allow two-family residences and attached decks to remain with front and side-yard encroachments at 5511 Tongass Avenue. Motion: adopt Resolution 45.12a. Mover: Mr. Shaw. Vote: 6–0. Outcome: approved.

- Case 25035 — Major variance to allow existing attached accessory structures and new accessory deck to remain/encroach at 615 Pickering Way. Motion: adopt Resolution 45.13a. Mover: Mr. Shaw. Vote: 6–0. Outcome: approved.

- Case 25036 — Major variance to allow a two-family dwelling without providing one required off-street parking space at 370 Adams Street (conversion to duplex). Motion: adopt Resolution 45.14a. Mover: (record). Vote: 6–0. Outcome: approved.

- Case 25037 — Major variance to allow an existing attached shed to remain and encroach at 3051 Crest Avenue. Motion: adopt Resolution 45.15a. Mover: Mr. Shaw. Vote: 6–0. Outcome: approved; staff noted the applicant later provided the cost documentation needed to demonstrate the expense of moving/detaching the shed.

- Case 25038 — Preliminary plat (borough-initiated) to eliminate the common lot line between ATS 1103 and ATS 698 Tract A at Mud Bay (lessee Seeley). Motion: adopt Resolution (borough preliminary plat resolution number in packet). Mover: Mr. Shaw. Final recorded vote: majority in favor (roll call recorded); outcome: approved. Staff said the consolidation will help bring a large, developed borough property into a single-lease configuration to address long‑standing compliance and management needs.

- Consent/administrative action — Planning staff concurrence on a nonresidential abbreviated plat creating two lots from Lot 1 PW Ketchikan Subdivision (5022 N Tongass Hwy); waiver for water/sewer improvements because public utilities are not available. Motion: approval of staff concurrence. Vote: 6–0.

Statements and testimony

Planning Director Frank Maloney filled in for the absent case manager and clarified procedural items and standard conditions for zoning permits. On several housing items Maloney emphasized that final zoning permits require stamped engineering demonstrating on-site systems (water, drainage, wastewater) meet code before building permits issue.

Applicant and community testimony highlighted parking constraints on steep streets, seasonal and winter parking behavior, and the borough's role in adjudicating land use while state licensure governs marijuana production. "If it would be emitting a smell... there would be reports on that," the director said when summarizing odor and state testing requirements for marijuana operations; Tidewater representative Mark Woodward added that the proposed operation will be smaller than previous approvals and that land access and transport logistics had been corrected after an earlier lessee used informal routes.

Ending note: Commissioners frequently framed their votes around local housing shortages and the technical limits of the borough's authority (for example, some parking and on‑street decisions lie with the city). Several approvals included clear, engineer‑stamped infrastructure conditions before issuance of final zoning permits.