Juneau residents urge Assembly to spare pools, Field House, Eagle Crest and City Museum amid FY27 cuts

Hundreds of residents filled the Assembly Chambers at a special April 29 meeting to press the City and Borough of Juneau Assembly not to close or sharply curtail parks and recreation facilities proposed for reductions in the manager's FY27 budget.

Connor Sullivan, a Valley resident and Glacier Swim Club parent, framed the argument in terms of safety and community: “Access to safe, welcoming aquatic spaces is not a luxury, it is a necessity,” he said, urging continued funding for both pools so children can learn water safety and the community can host statewide swim meets.

The testimony ranged across ages and uses. Glacier Swim Club athletes, parents and coaches described life‑saving learn‑to‑swim programs used by roughly 300 fourth graders annually and said closing a pool would jeopardize competitive teams, college recruiting opportunities and lifeguard training. “Two pools for a city of 30,000 is necessary,” said one high‑school swimmer, arguing Diamond Park and Augustus Brown pools together provide the capacity for lessons, club practices and public access.

Volunteers and board members also warned against cutting the Juneau Douglas City Museum. Ed Schoenfeld, chair of the Douglas Advisory Board, and several long‑time volunteers said the museum preserves irreplaceable collections and community memory and that closing or divesting a museum carries legal and ethical complications. Dixie Clough of Museums Alaska told the Assembly that museum closures require lengthy legal and professional review because collections are held in the public trust.

Other frequent themes included the Diamond Park Field House's reported FY25 usage (tens of thousands of visits and dozens of user groups), the Treadwell Ice Arena's role for skating and hockey, and the Eagle Crest ski area's community value. Speakers presented usage figures, economic estimates and personal testimony: Bob Foy, a former Glacier Swim Club board chair, said regional swim meets have generated about $120,000 per meet; Kelly Cates cited roughly 74,000 Field House visits in FY25.

Several testifiers urged alternatives to immediate facility closures, including phased reductions in hours, targeted temporary revenue measures, public–private partnerships, and restoring advisory boards (an Aquatics Board had been dissolved earlier). Parents and athletes repeatedly emphasized that reduced access falls hardest on families with fewer resources.

Voices urging fiscal restraint were present as well: Tom Williams, a former CPA, criticized prior capital choices and urged the Assembly to reexamine larger projects rather than cut community services. Some testifiers directly blamed the ballot measures that reduced tax collections for creating the shortfall, while others called for revenue options such as a temporary sales tax adjustment or partnerships with private sponsors.

The public record also included assertions about specific past projects and management decisions (for example, allegations about the gondola project and contested procurement costs). Those accusations were raised from the floor and were not resolved at the hearing.

By the end of the testimony period the message from residents was clear: pools, the Field House, Treadwell Arena, Eagle Crest and the City Museum are deeply woven into Juneau's daily life, safety programs and ability to retain families. Several speakers urged the Assembly to pursue alternatives to closure and to seek community‑acceptable revenue measures before making irreversible reductions.

The Assembly took no final cuts at the meeting; instead the public hearing concluded and the Assembly moved the manager's budget items on to committee review.