Alaska DNR approves scaled-down land transfer to AIDEA for industrial park near Houston

This map, published Nov. 10, 2026, shows the site of a land transfer from the Alaska Department of Natural Resources to the state-owned Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority. (DNR graphic)The Alaska Department of Natural Resources on Tuesday approved a scaled-down version of a controversial land transfer to a state-owned corporation, the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority. According to a final finding and decision published Tuesday afternoon, DNR has approved a plan that would give approximately 6,800 of land for free to the state-owned corporation. That’s less than the 19,500 acres that had been earmarked for transfer in a preliminary July decision. DNR further said it will impose conditions on the transfer, including the right for local residents to use roads and trails in the area. DNR will also include a reversion clause that returns the land to the state agency if AIDEA fails to develop it. “DNR has determined that it is appropriate to reduce the conveyance acreage from 19,500 to approximately 6,800 acres, and to modify the arrangement of the subject parcel in a manner that will maintain public access and use of these lands while also incorporating measures intended to mitigate the anticipated impacts of the conveyance,” it wrote in Tuesday’s decision. Explaining its interest in the area, AIDEA said in July that the land could be used for a logistics hub, advanced manufacturing and “scalable data centers,” but those plans were not certain. “AIDEA proposes to use the conveyed land to establish a multi-use industrial and energy development district for the public purpose and public interest of creating jobs, improving energy reliability, and diversifying the economy,” DNR wrote in Tuesday’s decision. In a statement Tuesday afternoon, AIDEA thanked DNR for the approval. “As stated previously, AIDEA has not identified a specific project or projects for this land, but any eventual proposed use will be consistent with our Constitutional and statutory mandates to serve the public interest,” said Andrew Jensen, communications and special projects manager for AIDEA. “AIDEA has said from the beginning it will prioritize working with local officials to identify opportunities for economic development, and AIDEA will continue to work with the local community members on the best use of this land. AIDEA remains committed to respecting existing public access as laid out in the DNR decision, along with the additional conditions in this decision,” Jensen said by email. AIDEA’s initial proposal received a storm of opposition from local residents who rely on trails and roads in the area and harvest timber in the region. Fishermen said they were concerned that development could disturb salmon streams. The Alaska Legislature held a pair of hearings investigating the legality of the transfer, and a former state legislator filed suit to block it. That suit is still pending. DNR received more than 2,300 public comments on the transfer, mostly in opposition. “Reducing the area to 6,800 acres allows the conveyance to alleviate many of the concerns raised during the public comment period,” the agency said in its final decision. It also said that public reaction caused it to reverse the elimination of the reversion clause, require the protection of salmon streams and mandate public access to roads and trails in the area. Tuesday’s decision opens a 20-day window for reconsideration, and if someone requests that DNR reconsider its decision, the agency has 30 days to act on that decision. Any further challenge would have to be filed in the state court system. This article has been updated.