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Wrangell outlines $50 million EDA grant bid to rebuild port, waterfront and water systems
Summary
City officials presented a three-part proposal for an Economic Development Administration disaster grant—deepwater port/site development, waterfront upgrades with floating docks, and a water-resiliency (flume) project—saying the community is eligible after a 2023 federally declared landslide and estimating a competitive shot at roughly $50 million.
Wrangell officials on the evening meeting presented a three-component application they plan to submit to the Economic Development Administration (EDA) that would fund a deepwater port redevelopment, downtown waterfront improvements and a water-resiliency (flume) project. Organizers said the grant is disaster-based following a 2023 landslide and estimated the community could compete for approximately $50,000,000.
Mason (presenter) told the audience the package includes site development for the mill/6-mile property, waterfront public amenities and a flume replacement to reduce reservoir losses. “So we have a really great chance to achieve $50,000,000 for the community in Rango,” the presenter said, and explained the local match would be about 10 percent of the total. Meilani Shivan, the economic presenter, provided background economic figures and the EDA disaster impact estimate used to justify federal funding: “So far, we’ve been able to calculate the economic impact of that landslide in Wrangle is just over $93,000,000 with the 77 jobs impacted,” she said, adding that the estimate includes government response costs and private losses.
Officials said roughly $38.3 million of the $50 million would be directed at site development at the deepwater port, with the remainder supporting waterfront work and the flume. The team said more than $300,000 has already been spent on preliminary engineering and that award timing would be mid-summer with a planning year before construction could begin. Organizers asked residents to complete a short survey and comment cards to document community support for the EDA application; the presenter emphasized those comments are “really important for the grant.”
Next steps: officials said the borough/assembly will take related decisions forward (including a public hearing on a land-exchange tied to housing and site-readiness), and staff will continue engineering and permitting work if the award arrives.
