Arctic Games committee building momentum
The Juneau Arctic Winter Games Committee is building momentum for a push to submit a bid for the 2014 Arctic Winter Games.
Alaska was pushed up from 2016 to 2014 and only Juneau and Fairbanks have submitted letters of intent.
Kirk Duncan, co-chairman of the Juneau Arctic Winter Games Committee, spoke at Thursday's Juneau Chamber of Commerce lunch on what exactly the Arctic Winter Games are, how much it would cost, what infrastructure is needed and what the benefits are.
The Games are the world's largest northern international multi-sport cultural event. They started to give northern-latitude communities an opportunity to interact with the social counterparts, Duncan said. The games first started in Yellowknife in 1970. In 1990, Greenland and Russia began participating and others followed. Now, nine jurisdictions participate.
There are 20 sports played during the week-long event, along with cultural displays including throat singing and drum dancing. Duncan said another element is the social aspect of not only meeting other athletes from around the world, but also pin, flag and uniform trading, Duncan said.
About 2,000 young athletes and coaches take part in the Games. Schools would clear out classrooms to house the participants, Duncan said. Juneau would need to provide about 2,000 volunteers to help accommodate the sheer number of people coming into the city, he said.
Duncan said the Gold Medal basketball tournament happens at the same time, and if Juneau is awarded the Games the basketball tournament would be moved closer to President's Day weekend.
Duncan said this is an opportunity to bring the community of Juneau together.
"This is a fairly fractured community," he said. "This is about bringing the community together and fostering community pride."
However, a lot will need to be done in order to host the games, Duncan said. As far as infrastructure, Juneau will need additional ice. A rink built for the games would need to seat 1,500 people and would cost $7-10 million, Duncan said. The new ice facility would need to provide room for hockey, figure skating and curling, he said.
A new rink is currently referable to a temporary sheet of ice, Duncan said. So far, the Juneau Arctic Winter Games committee believes building another ice rink would be more beneficial than temporary ice, he said. Chamber members later asked if they were working with the schools, as it could benefit the district. Duncan said working with the district has been very positive. Duncan said the Arctic Winter Games committee wants new communities to host it so they can benefit from new infrastructure that will help the athletes.
Eaglecrest would need improvements so they can hold showshoeing and the biathlon. Duncan, general manager of Eaglecrest Ski Area, said these improvements would cost about $750,000.
Duncan said the benefit to these improvements and hosting the games include increased sales and hotel tax dollars, an opportunity to meet international officials and a chance to showcase Juneau for future events.
Duncan said at least one event will not take place if Juneau hosts the Games, and that's the half-pipe. Duncan said that would cost at least one-half million dollars to build, and would not be cost-effective since he believes there is virtually no interest in local use of it.
Another event that faces challenges is dog mushing. When Juneau put in a bid in 2006, the plan was to hold the event at Eagle Beach. That was not ideal. Location is still an issue this go-round, however Duncan believes the city is much more capable of hosting the games now.
"We have a lot of infrastructure we didn't in 2006," he said.
Duncan said the proposal to host the Games doesn't come without challenges. The biggest hurdle is the dollars. The cost of hosting the games alone is around $5 million, not to mention the costs involved in building new facilities.
Duncan said he doesn't have the entire funding scenario nailed down, however the lieutenant governor's office set aside $1 million for whatever city gets to host the Games. The legislature also added more funds into that number. Duncan said Kenai received $4.8 million in federal funds to host the Games in 2006. The committee can also solicit funds through local, state and national sponsorships and through private foundations, Duncan said.
Duncan estimates the actual expenses to the city of Juneau to be around $3 million, along with ongoing costs for the new facilities.
Duncan said those figures are going to be nailed down more tightly by September, when the City Assembly will decide whether to submit a bid to host the games. Duncan said they're going to ask the Arctic Winter Games selection committee to not award the games until July 1, 2011, not in March when they are usually awarded.
Another issue to be addressed is access. Duncan said they're working with Alaska Airlines, customs and Juneau International Airport to put a travel plan in place.
He said a strong network of volunteers will be needed, and he suggested those who can volunteer for the 2012 games in Whitehorse should, so Juneau can be better prepared.
A draft bid document will be completed by Sept. 13 for the city's Assembly Committee of the Whole meeting. COW will make a recommendation to the assembly.
The Juneau Arctic Winter Games committee has a slogan and logo developed now.
"The slogan, 'Poised for Excellence' is the idea that Juneau is ready to go and we can do the job well," he said. "Obviously we've got a long ways to go before we can say that."
The logo features a person reaching for the stars in front of a backdrop of mountains with the Arctic Winter Games rings above the person's head.
Duncan said the logo reflects on the slogan.
"They're stretching out, reaching for doing the games well," he said.
For more information on the Games check out www.arcticwintergames.org. For more information about Juneau's bid, visit www.awgjuneau.org.
• Contact Sarah Day at 523-2279 or sarah.day@juneauempire.com.