Plans to connect Anchorage and Point Mackenzie are still very much up in the air.

The $600 million Knik Arm Bridge project was discussed at the Anchorage Assembly Tuesday night. Critics point to not only the cost but also its impact to the Government Hill neighborhood.

Controversy about the project's plans to be on Anchorage's Long Range Transportation Agenda is brewing. However, disagreement on one of the assembly member's involvement on the decision is no longer in question.

Chris Birch works for an engineering company that is interested in a potential bid on the project. Tuesday night the assembly decided that Birch's role is not a conflict of interest, and he will be included on the vote of whether this project will be included in the transportation plan.

At Tuesday night's assembly meeting, many gathered to testify their thoughts on the project. While support still stands, many found the project unfavorable and hope that other possibilities may be considered to be used with the chunk of change set aside for the project.

The Alaska Public Interest Research Group is trying to take action with the municipal government, state legislators, and the federal government if need be. It fears that Alaskans will be stuck with the remainder of the project's bills. Since other projects have done exactly that.

AKPIRG points to the Whittier Tunnel as an example. Mayor Mark Begich, who is pushing for the project, says many of the hurdles can be overcome.

“People are now not sure what this will cost. Will it be done on time? Who will pay for it? What's the impact to the Anchorage community that abut[s] it? That's now becoming the debate, where in the past the debate was, ‘Just give us access to the north Mat-Su,’” Begich said.

Begich also said, “I think part of it is there's a lot of competing interest. When this project was first brought forward, it was brought forward with the idea that the federal government would fund almost all of it, predominantly all of it. Now people are concerned that because federal government doesn't look like they're going to put anymore money toward it, that it may impact some of the money we receive for our interior infrastructure.”

You still have a chance to voice your opinion at the next public hearing with the Anchorage Assembly in two weeks. On that night the Assembly could go ahead and make a decision on whether the project should be in the long-range transportation plan.