It serves as a gateway for the Far North Bicentennial Park, a hugely popular undeveloped park in the heart of Anchorage. In the summer, downhill and cross country skiing give way to mountain biking, running, horseback riding, orienteering, birdwatching and just hiking in the woods. Community councils give you and your neighbors an easy and effective way to control events in your area. Dozens of sections in the municipal code call for involvement of community councils. Councils are to receive notice of land use applications, Heritage Land Bank proposals, road development, tax foreclosure properties, and other matters.
Some councils formally elect the members of local road service areas.
There are 37 community councils in Anchorage. About 28 hold regular meetings and send out monthly newsletters. Those with regular meetings get attendance ranging from a loyal few to several hundred if a controversial issue is at stake. Community councils are made up of your neighbors who care about the community. The meetings are generally presentations focussing on current topics followed by informal discussions .