Cruise ships dock in Skagway Harbor. (Photo by Emily Files / KHNS)
At the meeting on Thursday in Skagway, Mayor Andrew Cremata opened the discussion on a possible cap for cruise passengers and when such a cap should be presented to the electorate. While some attendees felt that discussing the idea might be beneficial, others feared it might send the wrong message to the cruise industry.
A cap would limit the number of passengers who could visit daily, which proponents say would preserve the natural experience of visiting remote Alaska. Mayor Cremata believes that the discussion of the cap with no cruise lines on the horizon can give the industry time to adjust to any decision made.
“So that we don’t have a discussion shortly before a season in which we are expecting 1.3 million passengers, we have it in a season that will not take place,” said Cremata.
Bruce Schindler, a Skagway resident, admitted that too much traffic would detract from the Skagway visitor experience, but wonders if the canopy is the right solution.
“Will the answer limit the number of people who come into the city or will the answer make this city more efficient at dealing with these people?” he asked.
Local business owner Mike Healy said while an upper limit was a good idea, without data-driven research to determine what that number should be, any number chosen would be arbitrary.
“There is such a thing as too many cruise passengers in Skagway and I think anyone can agree. However, choosing this number is pretty arbitrary with no data to backup, ”Healy said.
Not everyone agreed that this is the right time to discuss limiting future visitors. Councilor Orion Hanson firmly declined to even discuss whether to send voters a vote on the passenger cap, given the uncertainty surrounding future cruise traffic.
“I think talking about it is one thing,” he said. “The proposal to put this on a ballot is a very, very negative message to our main industry, tourism and cruise lines.”
Cremata’s response acknowledged that electoral action was unlikely this fall but supported the discussion of the issue. Others noted that Skagway isn’t the only community having this discussion, as the return of cruise ship traffic is on the minds of many port cities, not just Southeast Alaska.
