Trail advocates have two opportunities to speak up for trails.
Assembly Resolution
The Fairbanks Borough Assembly will be addressing a resolution about the Alaska Long Trail at its January 23 meeting.
Resolution No. 2025 – 02 asks the Assembly to authorize the mayor to pursue a grant for local planning and design of the Alaska Long Trail segment between Fairbanks and Nenana. If the mayor is successful, then the Assembly would still need to accept the grant and approve matching funds, if there are any.
Whether you support the Alaska Long Trail or not, this project would help connect Fairbanks and Nenana via year-round trails. Right now trail connections between the two communities are limited to winter. Better year-round trails in the area would open up trail travel opportunities as well as use of the Tanana Valley State Forest for things such as hunting and berry picking.
See the Resolution HERE.
See the meeting agenda HERE (the resolution is item 16a).
How to Speak Up
You can testify at the meeting, call Assembly members, or email them
- To send an email or to call an Assembly person, find contact info HERE.
- You can also send an email to: assembly@fnsb.us
- To find out how to testify at meetings or other information go HERE.
Right now, the resolution is on the Consent Agenda. If no assemblyperson asks for it to be removed, it would be approved by other things on the Consent Agenda in one overall vote toward the beginning of the meeting. Items on the Consent Agenda do not get specific public comment periods. People can still comment under Citizens’ Comments at the beginning of the meeting. (However, if the resolution is taken out of the Consent Agenda, then you would have to wait to comment until it is addressed at the meeting.)
Ridgeview Subdivision Comments
Consider reviewing and commenting on the proposed Ridgeview Subdivision even if you aren’t interested in buying any of its lots or live in the area.
The proposed subdivision would include public use trails (including a portion of the proposed Alaska Long Trail) and open outdoor space. This could be a template for future developments. If we develop our land with public use trails and open outdoor space, we help preserve the reasons many of us love living in this area.
I am not opposed to development, but in the more than 30 years I have been here, I have seen many important trails and open spaces lost to development because they didn’t have legal protections. Land development, such as the proposed Ridgeview Subdivision, is one important way to find that balance between promoting development and retaining our quality of life.
The online open house is live. Access it HERE.
An in-person open house will take place at the Ester Volunteer Fire Department on Wednesday, Jan. 22 from 4:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner did a story on the proposed development. See it HERE.
Below are comments I submitted to the online open house.
I already have my own house in the borough with access to the trails and wild spaces, so I’m not interested in this sale. But I am very supportive of the concept. Developing borough land while preserving wild space and allowing access via trails is the direction our community should go with further development. As many studies have shown, exercise and spending time in nature help improve our physical and mental health. Having trails and wild spaces out your back door increases the chances you will take advantage of those resources and will reduce your need for driving to get those kind of experiences (thereby reducing traffic on the roads and pollution from cars and trucks).
Anything we can do to encourage people to get outside, and exercise will be good for the community. We should be helping people help themselves to live healthier and happier lives. It’s good for the whole community.
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