As a 54-year resident of Juneau I have seen the summer cruise industry grow from a single weekly 600-passenger ship May through August to the current influx of 1.6 million from April to October.
At various times in my life locals have tried to exert some sort of control or taxes on the cruise industry. Two have been successfully implemented, but many others have failed.
When the Marine Passenger Fee Program was started in 1999 the cruise industry and supporters promised doom and gloom for cruising in Juneau.
When the Ocean Ranger Program started in 2006 the cruise industry and supporters promised doom and gloom for the Alaska cruise industry.
Has the industry died because of those two successful efforts? I think it is self-evident that cruising to Juneau and Alaska is bigger than ever.
Don’t believe them now when they tell us that Ship-Free Saturdays will destroy the cruise industry. Don’t vote against it thinking that if the initiative passes cruising to Juneau will end. Vote against the initiative because you don’t want a weekly break from the hordes that invade our town, fill our sewers, catch our fish, harass our whales, pack our streets and cram our buses.
Rob Roys
Juneau