For 20 years, Rick Goodfellow ran Ghost Excursions of Anchorage. In his trademark high hat, he led teams of largely vacationers by downtown, telling ghost tales and educating native historical past.
However now the enterprise is closed. Attempt to name and get extra info on the tour, you’ll hear a recording of Goodfellow sadly stating, “Circumstances downtown simply aren’t conducive to a useful, joyful, secure tour.”
Goodfellow mentioned the choice to shutter his tour operation didn’t come simple. The ultimate straw occurred final August, he mentioned, when a youngster adopted and harassed his tour for a couple of half hour.
“That final August expertise, I noticed, it’s gotten worse, it’s going to proceed to worsen,” Goodfellow mentioned. “Would I need to come on this tour? What am I doing right here?”
Because the pandemic, downtown Anchorage has struggled to take care of its vibrancy. Whereas advocates say new investments will assist revitalize the realm, enterprise house owners level to a variety of issues they’re having proper now: crime, homelessness and the financial system. A number of say they’re combating to remain afloat, and others like Goodfellow have shuttered their operations fully.
Goodfellow mentioned he’s lived in Anchorage for the reason that Fifties, and seems like he doesn’t acknowledge downtown anymore.
“Most individuals behave as they consider different folks anticipate them to behave,” Goodfellow mentioned. “And they’ll push the foundations somewhat till they get slapped. For no matter cause, downtown Anchorage has develop into very permissive.”
He’s not the one downtown enterprise proprietor who’s feeling harassed.
Stan Selman co-owns the longtime restaurant Membership Paris along with his brother Scott. A number of companies on their block have closed lately.
Stan mentioned their restaurant has needed to deal with an increase in break-ins and public nuisances from people who find themselves homeless.
“I had 4 women stroll within the restaurant, dressed to the nines,” he mentioned. “Very first thing out of this girl’s mouth, ‘Any individual shit in your doorway.’ How are we presupposed to manhandle that?”
Scott Selman mentioned he’s not simply involved for his and his patrons’ security — it’s additionally costing them cash. He mentioned somebody tried breaking into the restaurant a month in the past by smashing a entrance window with a big rock.
“Thankfully our butchers had been right here and heard him and so they ran off,” Scott mentioned.
“Virtually gave them a coronary heart assault,” Stan added.
“That’s a couple of $2,000 invoice to interchange that cup,” Scott continued. “They usually’re simply brazen.”
The Selmans say extra must be accomplished to search out shelter and housing for people who find themselves homeless, some who’ve pitched tents in a grassy lot downtown or who’re sleeping on sidewalks.
Radhika Krishna understands these issues. She’s the manager director of the Anchorage Downtown Partnership, a nonprofit that helps keep downtown’s infrastructure in addition to assist native companies. She mentioned homelessness is high of thoughts for town and her group.
“We’re all making an attempt to work in the direction of as a metropolis, simply having a cohesive plan on housing and homelessness, which spans the whole spectrum from emergency shelter to new residential growth,” Krishna mentioned. “That’s one thing that everyone knows that we’d like.”
She mentioned the Anchorage Police Division just lately reinstituted a downtown foot patrol to enhance public security.
Scott Selman mentioned he’s additionally anxious concerning the state of downtown’s financial system. Regardless of his restaurant providing advantages and higher-than-average wages, he mentioned, it’s exhausting to search out and maintain employees.
“Wages have gone up, prices have gone up,” he mentioned. “It’s exhausting to interrupt even, truly.”
Regardless of these issues, Krishna mentioned her outlook for the way forward for downtown is brilliant. The nonprofit just lately put collectively its first downtown report, and she or he mentioned there’s lots to be enthusiastic about.
“From all the information we put collectively on this report, it seems to be like we now have extra new growth downtown now than we’ve had within the final decade or two,” Krishna mentioned. “And it seems to be like there are extra retail companies opening downtown than closing.”
She spoke of the development of name new residential rental models and the upcoming transfer of the power firm Santos to the massive former KeyBank constructing as indicators of a extra vibrant downtown. She additionally highlighted packages just like the downtown tax abatement coverage, renovations to present companies and sidewalks, and growth of town’s path system.
“These items will change the face of downtown,” Krishna mentioned. “These will carry main new tenants and so they’ll create higher entry to downtown by our trails and sidewalks. And I feel it’s going to look fully completely different than it did 15 years in the past.”
Krishna mentioned it’ll be a number of years earlier than the investments to downtown develop into noticeable, however she hopes the general public sees the progress already underway.
