In the same issue of the paper is a photograph of traffic congestion on the northbound Glenn Highway. A bridge across Knik Arm would provide an alternate route for some of those commuters.
A larger issue, however, is the economic well-being of Anchorage. Anchorage is essentially built out, with very little developable land on which to expand. Future growth will likely move north to the Mat-Su valleys and with it will go the local economy, businesses and government offices.
A Knik Arm bridge will open up thousands of acres of land at Point MacKenzie, only miles from the Anchorage city center. While it is always hard for those who will lose property because of a public project, they will be fairly compensated. Bridges are often built to access new land. Anchorage needs more land. This project is a logical step in the development of a major city.
-- Vernon L. Roelfs
Eagle River
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