Goldbelt Incorporated and Royal Caribbean Group announced a partnership on Wednesday to develop a new cruise ship port on the backside of Douglas Island.
Juneau city officials, including Mayor Beth Weldon, said they felt blindsided by the news.
“Royal Caribbean’s announcement of a dock on the backside of Douglas Island is a slap in the face — we are very unhappy with both Royal Caribbean and Goldbelt,” she said. “They didn’t give us the courtesy of talking to us first. We know nothing of their plans.”
The Alaska Native corporation’s president and CEO McHugh Pierre said Wednesday the companies are optimistic about having the project completed during the 2027 cruise season.
“This is the very beginning,” he said. “There’s a lot of communication that needs to happen now and a lot of feedback, and we don’t have plans, but what’s really important is that we wanted to start the conversation.”
As the beneficiary of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, Goldbelt owns about 1,800 acres of land along the north coastline of Douglas, roughly between False Outer Point and Point Hilda on the island’s west side.
“This is our traditional land. We’re here to stay, and we’re excited for the long-term prospects of opening up this area for our use and for the community’s use,” he said.
Pierre said the location of the port could be anywhere along that coastline. The hope is for the port to be electrified and accommodate two cruise ships at a time.
Along with the port, the companies hope to develop employee housing, floatplane and whale watching docks, helicopter pads and recreate a Lingít village for passengers to visit, among other business opportunities.
They also hope to shuttle tourists on boats from Douglas to Mendenhall Glacier. In a joint press release, the companies say that will help reduce downtown bus traffic and congestion and that the project is aimed at “enhancing the local and visitor experience.”
Deputy City Manager Robert Barr said the city will begin figuring out next steps immediately, like how the project fits with the city’s current agreements with cruise lines and what hurdles the project must go through to get city approval to break ground. This year major cruise lines entered into an agreement with the city to observe a five-ship daily limit. Barr said he does not know for certain if the limit would apply to the project area.
“There are still a lot of unknowns, and the public can expect that we are going to work on their behalf to responsibly manage the visitor industry in a way that works for the whole community and not just one section of it,” Barr said.
Pierre said he is looking forward to working with the city to move the project forward.
“Goldbelt is trying to communicate with people at the appropriate time,” he said. “We don’t have any plans yet, so I don’t know why they’re upset, but that’s on them. It’s not on me.”
The project has been in the works for the past three months, according to Pierre. But rumors of Goldbelt’s plan to develop the west and north sides of Douglas have been circulating for decades.
Goldbelt already owns popular tourist attractions like the Goldbelt Tram downtown and has invested millions of dollars into a gondola project at Eaglecrest Ski Area. The gondola project is still underway, but Eaglecrest officials say once complete, it will help boost summer visitation at the ski area.
Pierre was also one of the loudest voices to speak out against a ballot proposition in this fall’s municipal election that asked voters whether or not Juneau should ban all large cruise ships on Saturdays starting next year.
The proposition ultimately failed, according to the final results of the elections which were released on Tuesday — just a day before the announcement of the North Douglas project. Pierre said the election did not factor into the timing of the announcement.
However, Karla Hart, the community member behind the initiative and a longtime activist against tourism growth in Juneau, disagreed. She said she was disappointed with the news of the planned development.
“I think it’s indication that Goldbelt and Royal Caribbean are entirely tone-deaf on what’s going on — it just is entirely tone-deaf,” she said.
The plan also comes as Huna Totem Corp., an Alaska Native village corporation based in Hoonah, attempts to build a new cruise ship dock in downtown Juneau along the Gastineau Channel. Huna Totem also proposed a waterfront development plan at the site called Aak’w Landing.
Both the dock and waterfront development plan still have a long way to go before breaking ground. The Assembly needs to approve a lease of the city-owned tidelands before Huna Totem can build it.
Pierre said he doesn’t have a clear timeline for when more information will be released about the North Douglas development. But, the companies hope to finish financial estimates and concept designs by next spring.
“The fact is that we’re announcing this to make sure that people know that it’s happening and it’s not happening in secret,” he said. “That we can talk about it and that it’s an opportunity for everybody to share potential needs. And I think we’re on the right track to do that.”
