It was an evening of farewells and greetings in Sitka’s assembly chambers Tuesday night, as the reins of local government were transferred to the winners of last week’s municipal elections.
It was also an occasion to greet newly-arrived permanent city hires, and welcome some enthusiastic, temporary residents.
Colleen Ingman (l) administers the oath of office to new Assembly member Tristan Guevin. Another new assembly member, Steven Eisenbeisz, was out of town. (KCAW photo/Robert Woolsey)
In a swan song lasting nearly 10-minutes, Esquiro reflected on the values he brought to the assembly, and hoped incoming members would carry forward.
“One of the words that comes to mind is sustainability. It’s not just a word, but a concept. It’s a concept that I hold dearly. I have never spent a dime of my own that I didn’t already have.”
Esquiro was often a “no” vote if he felt the municipal government was spending imprudently. He urged the assembly to weigh carefully wants versus needs, and he had specific advice regarding a proposed land disposal at Gary Paxton Industrial Park.
“One of the things that’s on your minds right now, and I think is going to be for a while, is what to do with the waterfront property we have left. Whatever you do, don’t sell it for a dime less than fair market value.”
Silver Bay Seafoods has offered to buy most of the remaining waterfront property at the Park, utilizing part to expand its processing operations, and part to develop a vessel haul-out in partnership with Halibut Point Marine. Esquiro’s sentiments were echoed toward the end of the meeting by former Port and Harbors Commission member Alexander Allison, under persons to be heard.
“There are now city-owned haul-outs in Hoonah, Wrangell, and Petersburg — and business is booming.”
Allison felt public ownership was the only way to guarantee a permanent haul-out facility.
Once Esquiro stepped down, and following a brief recess, municipal clerk Colleen Ingman stepped forward to administer the oath of office to Mim McConnell, who will serve another two years as mayor, and to Tristan Guevin, who is joining the assembly for three years.
Guevin: …and that I will faithfully discharge my duties…
Ingman: … as an assembly member of the City and Borough of Sitka…
Guevin: … as an assembly member of the City and Borough of Sitka…
Ingman: … to the best of your abilities…
Guevin: … to the best of my abilities.
Ingman: Congratulations! (Applause)
Guevin was the second-place finisher in last week’s municipal election. Top vote-getter Steven Eisenbeisz remains out-of-town on a hunting trip.
In addition to these formal greetings, the assembly also welcomed some new arrivals informally.
Jeff Comer is the new CEO of Sitka Community Hospital. In his first appearance before the assembly he said he wanted take action at the hospital in three areas: Physician recruitment in Obstetrics, the Emergency Room, and Orthopedics; moving the hospital “into the community” by offering Physical Therapy services at the Hames Center, for example; and expanding telemedicine, which he said would broaden the hospital’s range of services.
“Cardiology, Dermatology, Endocrinology, Psychiatry, Pediatrics. It will also give us the opportunity to bring an intensive care unit to Sitka Community Hospital.”
Currently, only Mt. Edgecumbe has an ICU in town.
Robb Farmer is the new director of Kettleson Library. He told the assembly that he’s been in Sitka for about two weeks. His department, however, is in a temporary location — but he’s making the best of it.
“It’s an exciting time with the expansion. Currently we are settled in to the Kettleson-at-the-Stratton, and our collection is there, our programming is there, and we want to see everyone in the community there.”
Administrator Mark Gorman commented that Kettleson-at-the-Stratton sounded like “a charming little town in England.” Mayor McConnell quipped “or a pub.”
In addition to holding a Masters of Library Science degree, Farmer is also an attorney. Gorman suggested that library patrons with overdue fines should take note of that fact.
Finally, the assembly greeted five foreign exchange students spending the school year in Sitka. All girls, the five are from Moldova, Albania, Bangladesh, Germany, and Russia.
All gave short speeches to the assembly in excellent English. But Russian student Amina Kudzyeva said what all exchange students must think when they learn they’re headed to remote island community in Alaska.
“When I heard that I was going to Alaska I was freaking out (laughter) because I didn’t know there was a place without snow.”
No snow yet, anyway.
