Sitka’s Assembly will consider renewing its lease with the State of Alaska for the local airport when it meets tonight, but the controversial issue of parking fees will be discussed sometime in the future.
The assembly also will take up an appropriation for the final phase of the Sitka Seawalk, and decide whether to invest a substantial amount in software for the Human Resources Department in City Hall.
Sitka has been planning major improvements to Sitka’s airport terminal. Before it can receive $43 million in FAA grant funding for the project, the assembly will need to approve a new lease with the State of Alaska, which owns the land the airport sits on. The proposed lease would cost the city about $17,000 dollars each year for a 55-year term starting in July 2024. Parking fees have been proposed as one way to offset some of that cost. City Administrator John Leach wrote in a memo to the Assembly that while he recommends parking fees, any fees should be discussed separately, not be included in the main airport lease.
Funding the final section of the Sitka Seawalk is on tonight’s agenda. The $5-million dollar project would extend the Seawalk from the Library, around the base of the O’Connell Bridge, and past the Cable House to connect with Lincoln Street. The city’s portion of the cost is only $285,000, to be paid from the state head tax on cruise passengers, officially known as the Commercial Passenger Vessel Excise Tax. The Sitka Tribe has raised objections to the proposed route of the Seawalk near the bridge, and have encouraged planners to preserve an historic clam garden identified by archeologists in the area.
The city administration is asking the assembly for a supplemental appropriation of $205,000 to purchase a Human Resources Information System. In his memo, municipal administrator John Leach described the city’s current paper-based system as “time-consuming, error-prone, and frustrating. ” Funding for the purchase would come from the Information Technology fund.
Near the top of tonight’s agenda, Ben Hughey from Sitka Trailworks will deliver a report on Sitka’s Trail Plan, and the results of an extensive survey on trail use earlier this year.
KCAW will broadcast tonight’s meeting live following Alaska News Nightly, beginning at 6 p.m.
