ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — The ownership of a bridge leading to a planned new agricultural district west of Nenana is under dispute, with an Alaska Native tribe this week blocking the bridge to keep out construction crews.
The Nenana Native Association, which has ended the blockade, asserts it owns the sparsely used bridge over the Nenana River, and can limit access to the area, the Anchorage Daily News reported. The mayor of Nenana, Joshua Verhagen, says the city owns the bridge and public right-of-way.
State officials said they're looking into the ownership question.
The bridge provides a gateway to an area where Alaska Natives say they have long hunted, fished and trapped. It also provides access to the agriculture district. Construction crews this week were expected to begin working on improvements to an existing road.
The tribe has lodged concerns with efforts to open land to farming under the so-called Nenana-Totchaket Agricultural Project that the state and community of Nenana have pursued for years.
The bridge was completed in 2020 with $9 million in federal funding secured by the tribe, after Nenana launched construction with $6 million in state support.
Caroline Ketzler, first chief of the Nenana Native Association, said the state had not communicated properly with the tribe about the project.
“It deals directly with our food security as a village, that’s where we do a lot of hunting and gathering and we always have,” Ketzler said. “We want to do as much as possible to keep that land and that fragile ecosystem still functioning.”
Verhagen said the city supports the agricultural project because it could lead to more food security as farmers raise crops and livestock.
Ketzler acknowledged the tribe’s views over time have changed about that project and that it has grown opposed to further development in the area. She said the tribe is not pulling its opposition to the road extension at this time.
The blockade began Monday and ended late Tuesday after state transportation department officials met with the tribe. Ketzler described the meeting as productive. Organizers said the plan was to block only road crews and that none tried to travel through during the protest.
Danielle Tessen, a department spokesperson, said there was discussion about forming a team of officials from the state, road contractor and the tribe to improve communication, with other interested parties welcome to join. She said the large project requires extra communication.
The Associated Press
