It appears that tour operators who bring visitors to Wrangell’s Petroglyph Beach will be required to pay a $350 annual fee to the state plus $6 per person starting next year.
The fee for commercial use of a state park or historic site has been a provision in Alaska law since the 1980s but apparently never enforced for the Petroglyph Beach State Historic Site, which was designated in 2000.
The fee structure was updated in 2021.
The State Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation realized it had not issued any commercial-use permits or collected fees for Petroglyph Beach after someone complained to the state this summer about increasing visitor traffic at the site amid concerns that it could lead to beach erosion and damage the ancient carvings, Kate Thomas, borough economic development director, explained last week.
“Since the public complaint, the borough has learned of a state regulation requiring commercial-use permits for tours conducted in all state parks,” Thomas reported to the borough’s economic development board.
“Staff have been working with the state regarding how we can educate operators, evaluate impact concerns and determine whether there is a need to establish additional stipulations as a requirement of the permit,” she reported for the Thursday, Sept. 7, board meeting.
The state owns the six-acre waterfront parcel on the northwest end of Wrangell Island, about a mile north of the ferry terminal. It is managed under a 1998 land-use agreement with the borough, which says the state is responsible for any major repairs while the borough handles trash pickup and light maintenance.
The stone carvings at the beach are estimated at 1,000 to 8,000 years old.
The petroglyphs, City Museum and Chief Shakes House are the town’s major land-based visitor attractions, Thomas said. Wrangell’s Petroglyph Beach has the highest concentration of petroglyphs in Southeast.
“Local commercial tour operators have received a preliminary notice of the requirement to obtain a permit,” Thomas added. “In conjunction with this effort, staff are working with state employees on the review and revision of the land-use agreement between the borough and state.”
The annual permit is $350, with a $100 application fee. Commercial users are required to file an end-of-the-year report and pay $6 per client who visited the site during the year.
Consultation with the Wrangell Cooperative Association is required under the 1998 agreement, and Thomas said the borough is sharing the latest developments with WCA administrators.
The beach is easily accessible from Evergreen Avenue, though an increasing number of visitors are arriving aboard small boats run by tour operators, coming ashore and walking up the beach. The site includes a viewing platform and interpretive signs overlooking the beach, and steps leading down to the beach.
Visitors can make rubbings on replicas of several carvings displayed on the platform.
Any limits on water access to the site could direct more traffic to the street access, causing traffic and parking problems, Thomas said.
The newly collected fees will add up for smaller operators, said Thomas, who added that she has asked the state to take an educational approach to enforcing the fees rather than a punitive approach.
A state parks official did not respond to a Sentinel request for more information in time for this week’s newspaper deadline.
Thomas expects it will be next year before the state starts requiring commercial users to obtain permits and pay the fees “since this year is almost over.”
The fact that tour operators were not getting their permits and paying the fees was not intentional, she said, but was due to lack of information. The state had never made an effort to publicize the permit requirement in Wrangell.
Petroglyph Beach is “out-of-sight, out-of-mind” for state parks officials, she said.
Thomas said the site could have benefitted from improvements had the state been collecting the fees and devoted the money to work at Petroglyph Beach. “The borough has a vested interest in improving access and amenities at the site due to its cultural and economic value,” she reported to the economic development board.
“The state seems very open to changing the approach of how that site is managed via partnerships,” she said.
“They are willing to entertain anything,” she said in an interview the day after the meeting.
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