Juneau ends agreement for Eaglecrest gondola project, after costs snowball

Published 11:00 am Wednesday, May 20, 2026

The Juneau assembly has voted to end the revenue-sharing agreement related to the gondola project at Eaglecrest Ski Area, as well as repay the $10 million investment plus interest.

The assembly voted on the two ordinances Monday (May 18), following public comment from several community members. Only assembly member Nano Brooks voted against both ordinances.

The first ordinance called on the assembly to terminate the Revised Revenue Sharing Agreement with Goldbelt Inc., noting that the project is not feasible to complete with public funds due to significant cost increases.

On April 1, the finance committee had directed the assembly to terminate the agreement.

That came about a month after Eaglecrest’s board of directors announced at a Juneau joint assembly finance committee meeting on March 4 that the new gondola may cost $27 million to install. With the $10.9 million Eaglecrest has already spent, it could be a total cost of $37 million.

The city can terminate the agreement provided that notice is given and the $10 million capital contribution, along with just short of three years of interest at 7%, is repaid in accordance with the agreement.

Brooks said he would like to see a little more time given before voting to terminate the agreement.

“I know that the interest will gain during that time but we have the possibility of not depleting our funds and having a little bit of grace for these tough times and this current year,” he said.

However, assembly member Christine Woll said she doesn’t know why the City and Borough of Juneau would do that when interest is accumulating, but she added that talks should continue with Goldbelt about the future of Eaglecrest.

“The only way we get there in my mind is we end this agreement and we try again if that is the will of both parties.”

The second ordinance was to allow the city to repay Goldbelt’s $10-million investment plus interest, which would add up to $12.2 million. The money to repay Goldbelt would be deappropriated funds from the Eaglecrest Gondola CIP and $9.5 million in unrestricted general funds.

Assembly member Alicia Hughes-Skandijs said the city should go back and review this project “when we are fully clear and free” to study what went wrong and when it went wrong to avoid situations like this in the future.

Hughes-Skandijs noted she originally voted against the gondola project. But when it passed, she said the project became a collective decision and she tried to do what she could to make it work.

“Given the magnitude of a mistake this was, I feel like I have to say this just as someone who sits in a position where we spend public funds and we earn or lose public trust that sincerely I am sorry things went this way,” she said.

“I think it’s really important that we study this after it is over, so we know that we’re not going to make a mistake of the same size.”

Mayor Beth Weldon noted she was one of the people to originally vote in favor of the gondola project, in what was a 5-4 vote.

“We grasped at the straw trying to save Eaglecrest, so call us gullible, call us naive, but that’s what we were trying to do.”

It was back in 2022 that the City and Borough of Juneau assembly approved the purchase of a gondola from an Austrian ski area for the city-owned Eaglecrest Ski Area. It was supposed to be a $2-million purchase.

The gondola was pitched as a step toward increased revenue for the ski area and could be part of a move toward year-round operations.

However, since then the gondola project has faced continuous controversy: shipping costs increased from the initial $845,000 to $1.1 million; the gondola needed more parts than expected, at least doubling the cost between $4 million and $4.5 million; whether or not cruise ship passengers would be willing to spend $171.50 to ride the gondola; and delays that would allow Goldbelt to back out of the deal.

Part of the deal with Goldbelt allowed the Juneau-based Native corporation to get between 10% and 25% of the gondola’s gross revenue for at least 25 years, with Goldbelt able to extend the agreement if the company has not received at least $20 million during that period.

The gondola was supposed to be completed and operational by 2026.