Juneau Locals to Vote on Large Cruise Ship Ban for Saturday

25.09.2024 - 03:15 / skift.com / Dawit Habtemariam

Thousands of residents in Juneau, Alaska, are voting through next Tuesday on an initiative to ban any cruise ship with a capacity of over 250 passengers from docking in their city on Saturdays and the Fourth of July.

The initiative, called “Ship-Free Saturday,” aims to “reclaim” Saturdays for Juneau residents who feel they have been pushed out of their city by overtourism, said Karla Hart, one of the residents who gathered enough signatures — 2,359 — on a petition to place the proposal on the ballot.

Residents received mail-in ballots on September 12 and have until October 1 to vote. The initiative requires a majority to pass.

Juneau is a major stop for the cruise industry. Royal Caribbean Group, Norwegian Cruise Line, and Carnival — along with Disney, Viking, and other companies — all offer itineraries that include Juneau.

Cruise travel has grown faster than air travel to Alaska in recent years. Cruises account for 65% of Alaska’s summer visitors, said Jillian Simpson, CEO of Alaska Travel.

Juneau, a city of 32,000 people, received a record 1.65 million visitors last year, up from 1.31 million in 2019, according to the city government. On some days 20,000 cruise passengers descend on the city.

In 2023, cruise visitors generated $30 million in direct spending and $3.7 million in revenue for the municipal government on Saturdays, according to the city’s FAQ on the ballot initiative. The cruise season runs from April to October.

Given the potential impact on business, there is also a movement to block the initiative.

Royal Caribbean Group and other businesses have threatened to sue the city if theinitiative passes. Two of the docks are owned by the city, and two are privately owned.

“It’s a no-brainer bad idea, a selfish proposal by folks who want to live in a world that doesn’t exist anymore or in some romanticized version of the past that never really was,” said McHugh Pierre, chairman of Protect Juneau’s Future, a coalition of cruise, tour operators and local businesses, which has raised over $350,000 to oppose the measure.

“The best-case scenario is if this passes, the city says, ‘We choose not to accept cruise ships at our docks.’ But the private companies can’t be told not to accept ships at their private docks. It’s not constitutional,” said Pierre.

After disembarking, cruise passengers typically explore the downtown, take bus or helicopter tours, enjoy whale watching, hike local trails, or visit attractions like Mendenhall Glacier, Nugget Falls, and the Goldbelt Tram.

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