Six candidates are vying for two open seats on the Sitka Assembly. Sherri Blankenship is a longtime Sitkan and owner of Highliner Coffee. KCAW sat down with her to learn why she’s running for a seat on the assembly, and what issues she’d like to tackle, if elected.
KCAW: Why are you throwing your hat in the ring for the Sitka Assembly?
BLANKENSHIP: Well, I waited until the last minute, and I wanted to see if there was a strong voice for the business community that would throw their hat in. And I didn’t see that. So I decided that it was time that there was a voice that represented the business community and other industries as well, from tourism to fishing. And I feel that I represent that accurately.
KCAW: You’re talking about being part of this business community. If elected, what will you bring to the table?
BLANKENSHIP: I believe that I’ll bring to the table a sound mind and reason when it comes to all the different industries here in town that feed into the economy and understand the balance between growth and sustainability and making it livable, while at the same time making it have growth as well, and seeing how we all can survive and live and function together efficiently.
KCAW: What do you see as the largest issues facing Sitkans right now, and is there one that you would really try to tackle if elected?
BLANKENSHIP: That’s a question that is very difficult when it comes to Sitka, because everybody’s focusing on livability, pricing, inflation, all of those things that in the end, it really comes down to our economy, and also the housing issue is so hard to tackle right now. And if we had solutions, we would have already done it, I believe in some ways. And I have to be able to look at what those things are. You know, at this point in time, I’m ignorant on it, and I need some more time to educate myself before I over promise and under deliver. And that’s my worry, is that I’ll do that ahead of time. But I feel like having a strong economy, making sure that we don’t destabilize it, definitely helps with some of those things, as far as cost of goods and people having a strong living throughout the wintertime too.
KCAW: So you’re a born and raised Alaskan. What else do you think that Sitkans should know about you or your campaign?
BLANKENSHIP: I feel like I really understand Sitka in all facets. I’ve raised four children here. Two have grown and moved away. Two are still in school. I own several businesses in town, and I’ve lived here for 21 years. And I also have a group of employees that have all the same struggles that I’m always worried about and trying to deal with and help them and come up with solutions. And they’re year-round employees. And so that is near and dear to my heart. And [I’m] hoping that I can help facilitate a better way of life here.
KCAW: And is there anything else I should have asked you or you’d like to share?
BLANKENSHIP: As far as what I can do on the assembly? You know, at this point in time, I don’t really know how this assembly fully works, and I’m wanting to talk to everybody that I can, get my hands on information, and understand the inner workings. One of my priorities too is to understand what our legislative priorities are for our city, and getting to the bottom of what grant programs we are not accessing, what we need more for our city, and that is a concern of mine.
Sherri Blankenship is one of six candidates vying for two open seats on the Sitka Assembly. Three candidates are also in the running for two open seats on the school board. Sitka’s municipal election is Tuesday, October 7.
