The Wrangell Cooperative Association’s Tl’átk - Earth Branch is hoping to purchase a parcel of land next to the community garden from the borough to build a greenhouse. The greenhouse would provide fresh produce to the community year-round and create a space for people to learn about gardening and sustainable practices.
The planning and zoning commission and Economic Development Director Kate Thomas both recommended approving the land sale. The port commission will discuss the issue at its September meeting before passing it along to the borough assembly, which have final say on WCA’s request.
“A greenhouse can significantly contribute to Tl'átk - Earth Branch's food sovereignty and environmental stewardship goals by providing a controlled environment for growing crops,” wrote Tl’átk – Earth Branch Coordinator Alex Angerman in an email.
“This enables year-round cultivation, reduced reliance on external food sources, and preservation of traditional crops. The price and accessibility of produce on the island can often be very challenging. Additionally, the greenhouse can employ sustainable practices like efficient water use and organic methods, aligning with environmental stewardship values.”
The WCA was awarded a $450,000 grant for the project from the Tlingit & Haida Central Council in June. The money will be used to purchase the lot, develop the property and partially cover wages for Angerman and Tl’átk – Earth Branch Technician Kim Wickman to work in the greenhouse once it is ready to start growing crops.
The parcel is under an acre, but the exact size will be determined as the purchase request moves through the approval and survey processes.
The deadline for using the funds is October 2024, but Angerman anticipates that her department will need to extend that deadline. “It would be ideal to start building this year, but being realistic, I believe we would have to wait until spring of 2024 and spend this fall gathering supplies and nailing down a contractor,” she wrote.
Other Southeast communities like Skagway and Yakutat have also received funding from Tlingit & Haida for greenhouses.
Once the project is up and running, the WCA Tribal Council would determine how produce is distributed throughout the community, but the project is intended to “benefit the community as a whole,” not exclusively tribal members, Angerman wrote in a letter to the borough.
“It will be up to the council whether or not we open the greenhouse up for others to use,” she explained. “It may just become a place of education and the produce it provides will be for the community to enjoy or purchase.”
The greenhouse would not try to compete with greenhouses that already exist on the island. “The more food security our island has, the better,” she continued.
Eventually, she hopes to use the facility to educate the community about gardening and possibly even hire a third, part-time staff member to help out with greenhouse tasks. These developments, however, would be “much further down the road once the land and building has been established,” she wrote.
At its Aug. 10 meeting, the planning and zoning commission voted to recommend the greenhouse proposal to the borough assembly.
Commission Chair Terri Henson was the only opposing vote. “I just don’t feel comfortable selling off a chunk of city property that could possibly, in the future, not be to our benefit,” she said, and would prefer a lease or another kind of agreement.
Not purchasing the land “could be a discussion,” responded Angerman, but “the WCA was seeking ownership not only for the greenhouse, but also because of the traditional graves that sit at that property. … Wrangell is a landless tribe. The accumulation of any type of land is special to the WCA.”
Economic Development Director Kate Thomas explained that the borough doesn’t have its own plans to develop the site, in part due to its cultural significance for tribal members — there are indigenous gravesites located in the forested area behind the lot. She recommended the land sale because of “the proximity to the gravesites and the fact that the borough is never going to do anything there, in and above restoring it to a natural vegetative state.”
Commissioner Jillian Privett contended that the WCA would likely do a better job taking care of the property, especially since the borough isn’t using it. Commissioner Apryl Hutchinson agreed. A greenhouse “is going to … beautify the community and enhance the history,” she said. “I think … it’s a great opportunity for the city and WCA to work together.”
If the land purchase request is approved, Tl’átk – Earth Branch would perform maintenance at the gravesites in addition to constructing the greenhouse, Angerman explained. It may also put up signs at the cemetery.
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