Alaska governor frames spending plan for much-debated bridge projects

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Alaska's governor outlined a plan Thursday to spend almost $200 million on two bridge projects, including one dubbed the "Bridge to Nowhere" that triggered sharp criticism across the nation.

Congress recently dropped its earmarks for the bridges in Ketchikan and Anchorage, but let the state keep the money and left it up to state officials to figure out how to spend it.

Gov. Frank Murkowski in a budget proposal Thursday said he wants to use $91 million for the Ketchikan project in the fiscal year beginning in July.

The two-bridge project would connect the town's airport to Revillagigedo Island, where most of the 13,000 residents of the Ketchikan Gateway Borough live.

The airport is separated from its users by a quarter-mile-wide channel of water, forcing travelers to catch either a ferry or a water taxi.

Angry critics have said the $223 million earmarked for the project would be better spent on hurricane rebuilding efforts. Total cost estimates for the project have ranged as high as $315 million.

Under the governor's plan, another $93.6 million would be spent during the fiscal year on a span linking Anchorage and the borough of Matanuska-Susitna.

A total of $229 million has been earmarked for the project, and construction cost estimates have ranged from $400 million to $600 million.

"These projects obviously are going to move more slowly as a result of the congressional action," the governor said. "But I intend to move them along as fast as I can."

Under Murkowski's proposal, the state also would kick in at least $18 million toward the two projects.

State Rep. Ethan Berkowitz, a Democratic candidate for governor, called Murkowski's plan an aimless expenditure, not a solution.

"Ninety million buys you enough bridge to leave you hanging," he said. "Once you commit to a project, you need to see it to the end. This governor has shown he has a problem keeping promises."

Supporters of the Ketchikan project called Murkowski's plan a good start. The governor "did the right thing" to allocate funds as intended by Alaska's congressional delegation, said Ketchikan Mayor Bob Weinstein.