Aleutians East Borough's busy contruction season: Alaska's down under projects focus on infrastructure.

• Author: Lavrakas, Dimitra
• Position: CONSTRUCTION

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Winter's over and the whap of electric hammers and the beep of construction vehicles backing up sound out across Alaska. Sexy big construction projects like hospitals and hotels have given way this year to ones that support communities in a basic way--it's infrastructure, infrastructure, infrastructure. Some are driven by compliance with federal mandates, others by a desire to make communities more self-reliant.

Often overlooked by the rest of the state, the Aleutians East Borough is actually a hot bed of activity: wastewater treatment, roads, boat harbor and a new airport or airport improvements are in the works.

"We have projects happening in all of our communities," says Sharon Boyette, Aleutians East Bay administrator.

Communities include Cold Bay, Sand Point, King Cove, False Pass, Akutan and Nelson Lagoon.

Construction commenced last year on what is perhaps the most breathtaking harbor in all of Alaska. Akutan Harbor will not only serve the tiny village of less than 100 souls whose homes are connected by boardwalks, but also the large Bering Sea fishery and with it the island's economic engine the Trident Seafood fish processing plant. The largest such facility in North America, during the fishing season about 1,1000 workers filter in and out.

The $31 million project is being funded with the help of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Aleutians East Borough.

"After completion of the project, it will be turned over to the city and the city will maintain and operate it," Boyette says. "We retain ownership."

Last summer, approximately 500,000 cubic yards of material was excavated from the basin and work on the side slopes and grass seeding restored vegetation to the disturbed soil.

The port of twelve acres nestled in a sea of grass and surrounded by volcanic cones will provide mooring for up to 57 large fishing vessels and uplands for local commercial fishermen and marine-related industries, serve as a place of refuge for disabled craft, and link the community to a wider transportation network that includes a new airport.

Penn Air's World War II era Grumman Goose G21-A, an amphibian plane that carries up to nine passengers or 1,900 pounds of cargo, now serves the island's air needs. But it will soon disappear from the skies over the Aleutians after completion of a new $77 million airport on the even tinier island of Akun and will link to Akutan by hovercraft. The project is scheduled to be completed by the end of...