Construction of the Float A system in the harbor at Akutan, in the Aleutians East Borough, 35 miles from Unalaska/Dutch Harbor, has been completed.
The 16-foot-wide by 560-foot-long float system will be able to accommodate up to 10 vessels up to 165 feet in length and two vessels up to 125 feet in length, the borough reported in its online “In the Loop” newsletter on July 29.
Materials for the $3 million project were barged into Akutan during the first week of July and on July 20 Pacific Pile & Marine completed the installation.
Funding for the $3.4 million project was acquired in a climate of limited funding both at the state and federal level, the borough noted.
At first, the borough attempted to get funds from the State Harbor Facility Grant Program for three years in order to do the entire float system, but then due to constraints on funds from the U.S. Economic Development Administration, the borough opted to proceed with Float A, the larger of the two float systems.
Funding for Float A included $1 million from the EDA, $1 million from the borough, $750,000 from the Aleutian Pribilof Island Community Development Association, $750,000 from the city of Akutan and $300,000 from the state of Alaska.
Construction of Akutan’s 12-acre harbor was completed in the fall of 2012, with funds provided by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the borough. The city contributed land, rights-of-way and in-kind services.
Akutan, with a population of over 1,000 people, is home to a Trident Seafoods plant that processes crab, halibut, surimi and other species harvested from the Bering Sea.
