I returned to Juneau after three years of retirement to enjoy the Fourth of July activities and hear the latest political news. I know the state is suffering, but to take the seniors’ tax exemptions away? (Then spend $600,000 in sales taxes towards the Whale Island.)
I, for one, could not afford to live in Juneau after retirement, and now it looks as if it’s about to get worse for others.
So the city is building an island near the Douglas bridge for $10-plus million to house the whale. And the cruise ship association is suing. OK, maybe the City and Borough of Juneau can make Juneau waterfront look like Acapulco in a few years and a few more hundred million dollars, but I wish I had been here to expound on an idea I have had for years: a Juneau Pictorial Museum. It certainly could have been accomplished for a whole lot less than the whale sculpture, and maybe housed in one of the empty buildings downtown. Or maybe the city could have built something along the docks to house it with that cruise ship tax.
Everyone from Juneau could contribute photos from the turn of the century through present day. Then, special photos could be blown up and placed on the walls of the museum, while other photos, including collages, could be placed under glass.
And if we charged a reasonable price like $5 per person or $10 for a season pass for locals, it could actually bring in revenue and it would “conserve” the history of Juneau through its own residents, unlike the whale that will make a great photo backdrop.
I would delight in dragging my out-of-state guests into the museum to see photos that I might contribute and reminisce with them on what it was like growing up in Juneau.
Not every good idea needs millions of dollars to make it happen. I hope in the future that this idea comes to fruition.
Alice Tidwell,
Oregon