Juneau officials are moving the Parks and Rec maintenance crew into the Marie Drake building. This downtown relocation, expected to finish by late August 2026, shifts staff from Douglas Island to a more central location.
A $150,000 shift from Douglas Island to downtown
The relocation of 13 staff members and their equipment from the Mount Jumbo gym on Douglas Island to the Marie Drake building represents a strategic shift for Juneau's municipal operations. According to the report, the city has allocated a $150,000 budget to facilitate this transition. This funding will cover the movement of workspaces and the conversion of existing interior spaces, such as turning the building's cafeteria into a large shop area and retrofitting classrooms into offices.
By moving these operations closer to other municipal departments,the city aims to improve overall administrative efficiency. This move follows the city taking ownerrship of the downtown building in the summer of 2024,marking a new chapter for a facility that has remained largely underutilized for the past two years.
Avoiding the multimillion-dollar asbestos trap
Nate Abbott,the facilities maintenance superintendent, noted that the project must proceed with caution to avoid significant financial blowback from asbestos. While the city plans to repurpose the interior, Abbott explained that major structural changes—such as building or removing walls—could trigger expensive remediation requirements. This cautious approach explains why previous proposals to move entire City Hall operations to the Marie Drake building were abandoned, as the Juneau Assembly feared the skyrocketing costs associated with such renovations.
The city has already navigated similar fiscal hurdles; last year, the Assembly rejected a plan to move City Hall employees to the building due to a multimillion-dollar price tag. By opting for a smaller-scale maintenance move instead, Juneau is attempting to revitalize the asset without the prohibitive expenses of a full-scale office overhaul.
New pickleball and preschool programs at the Marie Drake gym
Beyond maintenance operations, the Marie Drake building's gymnasium will see a resurgence in community activity. Lauren Verrelli,the deputy director of the Parks and Rec department, stated that the facility will now host programs previously held at Mount Jumbo, including preschool open gym sessions and pickleball. This shift aims to provide more centrally located access for residents, supported by a new gravel parking area being developed on the building's exterior.
While the school's beloved planetarium will remain unaffected, the increased foot traffic in the gymnasium is expected to serve local user groups more effectively. The department's goal is to leverage the more central location to expand public programming in the coming years.
Will the school district's presence conflict with city maintenance?
While the move promises efficiency, several questions remain regarding the long-term integration of these services. The source focuses primarily on the city's perspective, leaving it unclear how the presence of the maintenance division will interact with the building's existing occupants, specifically the Juneau School District's Yaaḵoosgē Daakahídi and Montessori Borealis programs. It also remains to be seen if the $150,000 investment will be sufficient to prevent the unforeseen costs Abbott warned about if structural issues are discovered during the retrofitting process.
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