Local officials, military personnel and businesses are scrambling to figure out basic details and get ready for an influx of visitors ahead of President Donald Trump’s visit Friday for a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Anchorage, where the two will discuss the war in Ukraine.
Citing unnamed White House sources, multiple news outlets are reporting the meeting will be held at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson.
Mayor Suzanne LaFrance said the Municipality of Anchorage is coordinating with officials from JBER and the state of Alaska to facilitate the visit.
“We’re actively preparing based on the information we have right now,” LaFrance said in a statement Wednesday. “Currently, we do not anticipate widespread disruption to schools, transportation, or other Municipal services.”
Trump announced the meeting on social media last Friday. It will coincide with, among other things, the height of Alaska’s tourism season as well as large-scale military exercises across parts of the state.
“Where are they going to stay? The hotels are full. It’s tourist season,” said Terri Russi, who manages the Historic Anchorage Hotel downtown.
Since news broke about the summit, Russi and others in the hospitality industry have been deluged with inquiries and booking requests.
“I was called last Saturday to find a room for somebody for a week who’s coming for this event. It’s not possible,” she said.
Presidential visits and high-level events are not unheard of for Anchorage. Typically, though, if a president comes through, it is for a short refueling stop at JBER. Less common are major affairs like 2015’s GLACIER Conference, which fit into then-President Barack Obama’s three-day visit to different parts of Alaska, which saw not only heads of state and their extensive retinues but also hundreds of additional diplomats and policymakers. Plans for that event took shape over several months.
Rachel Barinbaum, vice president of the company that owns the Wildbirch Hotel in downtown Anchorage, said they are not hosting any major U.S. or Russian politicians.
“We don’t have massive room blocks going for the participants at the summit or anything like that,” Barinbaum said.
Instead, the inquiries they’re getting are from other government officials and members of the press traveling to town to cover the meeting on base.
“We are getting tons of requests. We are very full, but we are obviously trying to accommodate folks where we can. We do have some media outlets that are planning to use some of our event space and decks for broadcasting on Friday,” she said. “We’ve certainly been contacted by a lot of people, whether it’s government or media … but lots of interest, for sure.”
With many accommodations booked long before Friday’s meeting was announced, by Wednesday there were very, very few rooms listed on hotel booking websites or short-term rental services like Airbnb. The ones shown to be available were charging high prices. As of Wednesday morning, a single room at the downtown Hilton the day of the summit was quoted at $658. A two-bedroom suite at the Sheraton on Fifth Avenue was listed for $1,515. A few hours later, neither hotel listed any open rooms.
“It’s been pretty tight, to be honest with you,” said Jack Bonney, vice president of communications with Visit Anchorage, which functions as the city’s tourism bureau.
The organization released a list of tips for visitors, residents and businesses ahead of the Trump-Putin meeting, including websites to check for road and flight delays connected to the event.
Bonney said most of the requests handled by Visit Anchorage have been for media coming to cover the event, not just places for their crews to stay but also potential locations for camera shots that showcase Alaska. Given the infrastructure in Anchorage to handle large groups of visitors, he said, resources are strained but still managing to keep up with the influx.
“There’s a little more carrying capacity than folks realize,” Bonney said. “We found a lot of solutions for folks in small groups.”
So far, it doesn’t look like there will be many drastic disruptions for most people in the municipality who have no connection to the geopolitical hoopla at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson.
On base, though, things could be quite different. The president will arrive just as two overlapping military exercises, Northern Edge and Arctic Edge, are underway at JBER, both of which involve more troops, equipment and aircraft than are normally on hand. Public affairs officials in charge of the military installation and units stationed there have not released details about potential adjustments to those exercises, base access or operations, referring questions about the summit to the White House.
Pilots and the flying public should not experience major disruptions connected to the event. The Federal Aviation Administration posted details of the temporary flight restriction, or TFR, that will be in place across a 30-mile radius around Anchorage from 9:15 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. Friday. Commercial and private flights can still take off and land, but have to be extra diligent filing flight plans and communicating with air traffic controllers. Cargo planes and airline jets will still be able to land at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport during the flight restrictions, and small planes carrying passengers out of Lake Hood or Merrill Field can operate as planned.
“The TRF will not impact the majority of commercial passenger traffic or commercial cargo traffic at Anchorage International Airport,” said Shannon McCarthy with the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities.
The FAA and North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD, are encouraging aviators to check Notice to Airmen messages before taking flight Friday.
“If required, NORAD fighter aircraft will respond to aircraft not following proper procedures within the TFR, a scenario we encourage all pilots to avoid,” according to a public service announcement Wednesday from Alaskan NORAD Region’s public affairs office.
Transportation and municipal officials have not yet said whether they will close roads to accommodate motorcades moving either Putin or Trump through town.
McCarthy said that the Department of Transportation and Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport “are anticipating VIP movement at Anchorage airports.” Any motorcade going from Ted Stevens on the west side of town to JBER along the northern edge of the city would need to drive over public roadways.
As if the week was not already busy enough, Anchorage kids are set to start the school year on Thursday and Friday.
The Anchorage School District told students and families that lessons will continue as planned, but for schools close to JBER, “there may be minor traffic disruptions depending on how things play out once both presidents arrive,” according to a message from the district Wednesday.
“You may also notice increased security presence or air activity in the area throughout the day Friday, but the overall impact to your school is expected to be minimal,” the message continued.
Daily News reporter Alex DeMarban contributed.
