Voters voted down ship-free Saturdays, but Juneau’s debate over tourism is far from over

Juneau voters rejected a ballot proposal in this year’s local election that would have banned all large cruise ships on Saturdays.

But advocates say this isn’t the end of local grassroots efforts to address the impacts of tourism growth. And now plans for a new cruise ship dock on Douglas Island are making things even more complicated.

This year’s local election season was packed with candidate forums and campaign signs. You couldn’t scroll through social media without seeing an ad.

Most of the time, everyone was focused on the most contentious question on the ballot – whether Juneau should ban large cruise ships on Saturdays? Final election results showed just over 60% of registered voters opposed the idea.

“It’s too harsh to just say there are no boats on Saturdays,” Juneau voter Heather Ramseth said on Election Day. “I think it’s important to be more nuanced in our approach and continue to have conversations, even when it’s difficult.”

Karla Hart is a long-time activist against the growth of tourism and one of the community members behind the initiative.

“I think the fact that 40% voted yes is very telling,” she said.

She believes most people in Juneau want to see real change to slow the spread of tourism, but she wasn’t surprised the initiative failed. That’s because of how much money the opposition group Protect Juneau’s Future poured into its election campaign.

The group raised nearly $500,000, according to a late September campaign finance report. On the other hand, Ship Free Saturdays only grossed $380.

“We didn’t advertise because it was clear we were never going to win an advertising campaign,” Hart said.

One of the loudest voices against the initiative was McHugh Pierre. He is president and CEO of Goldbelt Incorporated, an Alaska Native corporation based in Juneau, and was chairman of Protect Juneau’s Future. One of the group’s larger backers was the Royal Caribbean Group. The cruise line also sent a letter to the city threatening a lawsuit if the initiative passed.

Then, just a day after the election results were certified, Goldbelt and the cruise line announced a partnership to develop a new cruise port on the back side of Douglas Island.

“This is the beginning,” Pierre said in an interview after the announcement. “Now there’s a lot of communication to be done and a lot of feedback to be taken, but what’s really important is that we wanted to start the conversation. We are excited about the long-term prospects of opening this area for our use and for community use.”

City officials said they were surprised by the announcement.

“I personally heard from McHugh Pierre that this is the beginning of the dialogue. But you don’t start a dialogue with the press release the day after a disputed election is certified,” said Alix Pierce, Juneau tourism manager.

Pierce said the timing undermines people’s trust in the city to manage tourism fairly.

“It makes the city look like we were somehow involved, and I can assure the public that was not the case,” she said. “I’m just incredibly disappointed in the approach and the way they handled it.”

Hart was also surprised by the news.

“I think this is an indication that Goldbelt and Royal Caribbean are completely tone-deaf to what’s going on – it’s just completely tone-deaf,” she said.

According to state Attorney General Emily Wright, a proposal like “Ship Free Saturdays” cannot be put on the ballot again until at least a year after the election is certified, which precludes a repeat of the initiative next year.

But Hart said she and other advocates plan to continue making noise by attending town meetings about tourism, speaking to members of the legislature about future ideas and speaking out against the proposed Port of Douglas.

Pierce said the city also wants to inform the public about what changes residents want in Juneau’s tourism landscape.