Alaska Airlines wants Juneau terminal work to stop
Published Wednesday, May 14, 2008
JUNEAU -- Alaska Airlines wants airport terminal work in Juneau to stop because it says Juneau is a shrinking community.
The airline is urging the Airport Board of Directors to delay the airport terminal expansion.
An official from Alaska Airlines was expected to present a letter to the board Wednesday.
The letter says that recent increases in the airport's operating and maintenance budgets and the impacts of the energy crises will increase the airline tenant fees to a level that Alaska Airlines can't sustain.
Airport Manager Dave Palmer says the airport project will probably improve the budgets' bottom line for the tenants. He says the airport's energy costs are expected to decrease if the terminal is upgraded as proposed.
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This headline is terrible for Juneau. Hate to say it, but the capital is the community's own worst enemy. We have nimbys who don't want anything to happen in this town. And this is a result of too much anti-anything.
Fairbanks and Wasilla, if either were to be the capital would be subject to what I call the five year mentality. This is an attitude held by well paid state and federal bureaucrats and retirees, it is a Shangri-la, no roads, fairly low crime. So when these five year folks get here they want nothing to change so it doesn't or it takes a very long time to do so.
These 5 year transients team up with the local green folks and it's an almost invincible force. As much as I hate to say it Juneau would be better off in the long run not being the capital.
The result is nothing changes fast enough and everyone suffers. It is a very sad circumstance.
It is incredibly striking that Alaska Airlines, which holds a monopoly in Juneau and Southeast doesn't want the terminal expansion. This doesn't bode well for Juneau at all.
As much as I think the road route to Juneau is overpriced it would be worth it to our state. Our ferries cost too darned much in operating expenses - we can't have mass transit here, cause we don't have the masses. Roads where possible on the mainland and on the islands, will cut the expense, but not the marine highway's necessity.
Senator Gary Wilkin is right about his ideas on extending roads where possible. His mindset will be missed in Juneau. Please send us a replacement with his foresight.
That five-year mindset is the majority view in all of Alaska, not just Juneau. Anchorage (with its larger transient population) is perhaps the only exception, as is the North Slope.
Hello out there. That's just another sign of the beginning of the end folks. It won't be long now before air travel will be a memory for most of us.
If our representatives in Juneau and DC really cared about those of us in the bottom 95% of income they'd start forcing the rebuilding of the railroads and making sure facilities are ready and waiting for travel by ship.
But no, they have to keep trying to open ANWR because well; that'll just solve everything won't it.
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