Casey Kelly, KTOO – Juneau
Alaska’s United States Senators Mark Begich and Lisa Murkowski re-introduced legislation Tuesday to preserve the Coast Guard Cutter Storis for use as a maritime museum in Juneau.
The bill would transfer ownership of the Storis from the U.S. government to the nonprofit Storis Museum, headed up by a group of Juneau residents. Attorney Joe Geldhof is a member of the museum’s board of directors. He says the legislation is a big step toward bringing the ship to the Capitol City.
Congressman Don Young plans to introduce a companion bill in the U.S. House.
Similar legislation was included in early versions of last year’s Coast Guard Authorization bill. But it was removed shortly before the bill passed Congress. It’s not certain if this new legislation will be able to pass as a stand-alone measure, or if it too will become part of a larger bill.
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