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Public pushes back as Assembly advances renaming ordinance for Pioneer Park
Summary
The Assembly introduced an ordinance to rename Pioneer Park to "Alaska Land" and to appropriate $50,000 for sign and related costs; public commenters and historic-park stewards urged preserving the Pioneer Park name while supporters called for restoring the original Alaskaland name. The measure was referred to the Parks & Recreation Commission for recommendation.
An ordinance to change the name of Pioneer Park back to "Alaska Land" and to appropriate $50,000 for related costs drew strong public comment and was placed before the borough Parks and Recreation Commission for further review.
Randy Frank, a longtime resident, told the Assembly he opposed the proposal, calling Pioneer Park "about Fairbanks and our history," and warned the $50,000 appropriation would create additional costs for vendors and nonprofits who “will also have to have costs” to reprint rack cards and advertising. "Don't change the name back to Alaska Land," Frank said during public testimony.
George Lounsbury, president of the Pioneer Museum board, described the site's history and said the park attracts visitors who expect a historical experience. "I've never seen one of them complain about the word Pioneer Park," he told the Assembly, arguing the current name signals the park's historical focus.
By contrast, Deborah Ryan, calling in from Fairbanks, said she and her family "always refer to it as Alaskaland" and urged the Assembly to support returning to that name; she suggested checking for existing signage in storage to reduce costs. Libby Dalton Lane recounted a community review process in 1998–2001 that recommended renaming Alaskaland to a name that better signaled historical programming and described how "Pioneer Park" emerged from that process.
The clerk's agenda described the item as "an ordinance renaming Pioneer Park to Alaska Land and amending the FY 25–26 budget by appropriating $50,000" and listed Assemblymembers Reeves and Cross as sponsors; the ordinance was placed on referral to the Parks & Recreation Commission with a recommendation due back on Feb. 20, 2026. No vote to adopt the ordinance was taken at this meeting.
Next steps: The Parks & Recreation Commission will review the ordinance and report back with recommendations; the Assembly will consider that recommendation and any public testimony before any final action.
