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Skagway Municipality Assembly delays Main Street decision after debate over green strip and accessibility
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Summary
The Skagway Municipality Assembly debated adding a 2-foot green strip and reducing the shared-use path from 10 to 8 feet in the Main Street rehabilitation concept; concerns about mobility hazards, winter maintenance and costs led the assembly to postpone the item until the first February meeting for further review.
The Skagway Municipality Assembly on Jan. 22 debated whether to amend the preferred Main Street rehabilitation concept to include an 8-foot shared-use path with a 2-foot green strip in place of a 10-foot continuous path, then voted to postpone final action to the first meeting in February.
Vice Mayor Potter moved to amend Resolution 25-29R to adopt the manager’s proposed amendment (dated Dec. 22, 2025) changing the path width and adding the green strip. Potter said the change would retain shared-use capacity while allowing a landscaped filter area that could reduce the need for small retaining walls in places with elevation changes and save on concrete costs. “This is exactly what we talked about at the December meeting,” Potter said, adding that the 8-foot width still provides usable shared-path space.
Assemblymember Pomeroy and Assemblymember Hillis raised accessibility and winter-safety concerns. Pomeroy said her experience with family members who have mobility issues made her “very concerned” that a green strip could be a mobility hazard and that alternatives to grass should be researched. Hillis said maintenance and mowing would add operational burden and that green strips had not been recommended during the public-works review. “We looked at this during public works,” Hillis said. “I just don't think it's worth the effort.”
Assemblymember Burnham supported the green strip as a cost-saving measure, saying it would reduce concrete volume and provide space for snow removal and drainage; Burnham said the redesign could avoid more expensive retaining-wall work. The manager told the assembly engineers considered the change a small adjustment and that cost estimates are comparable to Concept 5, but final engineering and construction funding are not scheduled until a later phase; the manager said the municipality plans to apply for a planning grant and does not expect to advance detailed engineering until at least 2027.
After discussion, Potter moved to postpone item 7a to the first February meeting to allow more members to participate and to give staff and members time to review alternative materials and accessibility impacts. The postponement passed on a 5–0 roll-call vote.
Next steps: the assembly will revisit the Main Street concept at its first February meeting. Staff noted that a preferred concept or narrower set of alternatives will be useful for any planning-grant application.