Feds & DOT Working On Planning Study For McCarthy Road
Meetings Will Be Held In Glennallen, Chitina & McCarthy In July, 2024 "I think I'll just walk, honey." Crossing the Kusku...
Meetings Will Be Held In Glennallen, Chitina & McCarthy In July, 2024
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| "I think I'll just walk, honey." Crossing the Kuskulana Bridge in 2013. (Photo, Copper River Country Journal) |
PRESS RELEASE, MAY 14, 2024
Federal Highway Administration - Western Federal Lands (WFL) Highway Division, in partnership with the Alaska DOT&PF and the National Park Service are working together to conduct a Planning & Environmental Linkages (PEL) study for the McCarthy Road. This study will evaluate transportation-related needs and opportunities along the McCarthy Road, identify and evaluate potential improvements, and propose recommendations for future implementation. The PEL study will be completed by summer 2025.
Assessing Needs and Opportunities
A tremendous amount of thoughtful feedback was received during first the online open house held in late November 2023 to January 2024. Thank you!! A summary of the public comments about issues and needs for the 63-mile corridor can be found on the study website: Online Open House Summary. This input as well as data collected since the start of the PEL Study is summarized here: Needs & Opportunities Report and available from the “Documents” section of the websiteMcCarthyRoadPEL.com.
Developing & Evaluating Potential Improvement Options
We’re moving onto the next phase of the planning study which includes developing and evaluating potential improvement options. The study team will be hosting a series of public open houses this summer to get more public input. The questions we want you to consider: What improvement options should be recommended to address the identified road corridor needs? What should be the priorities?
Mark your calendars for the in-person public open houses. More details to follow!
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| Footbridge to McCarthy. June, 2013 (Photo by Copper River Country Journal) |
GLENNALLEN, Tuesday, July 30, 9am to 11am (Location: Copper River School District Office Conference Room, 1967 Aurora Drive, past the post office)
CHITINA, Tuesday, July 30, 6 to 8pm (Location: Chitina Community Hall, off the Edgerton Highway)
McCARTHY, Wednesday, July 31, 6 to 8pm (Location: the new McCarthy EMS Hall)
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| McCarthy Road, past the abandoned Gilahina Trestle. 2013. (Photo by Copper River Country Journal) |
Gone in late July? A month-long online open house will be available too.
Please contact us with any comments or questions, and options or priorities for the study. Seth English-Young, WFL project manager at seth.english-young@dot.gov or 360-619-7803 or Kim Wetzel, PEL Study Public Involvement Lead at Kim.Wetzel@Jacobs.com.
Planning products produced during this PEL study may be adopted or incorporated by reference during a subsequent environmental review process.
Kim Varner Wetzel, AICP (she/her) | Jacobs | Environmental Planner
+01.907.440.1591 | kim.wetzel@jacobs.com
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