Thor Christianson

Age: 61

How many years have you lived in Sitka and in Alaska? 61 years

Occupation: EMS manager

Family: Married with two daughters

Have you previously run for public office? When and what office?

Yes, Sitka Assembly 5 terms, 98-2003, 2010-1013, 2019 to present.

 

Previous government or other relevant experience: 

Deputy Mayor and vice Dept. Mayor

 

Community involvement, past and present:

5 Terms on the assembly, Sitka Fire, Sitka Fine arts camp, KCAW, Sitka Cirque,

 

Why are you running for a seat on the Sitka Assembly this year? 

I have been on the Assembly for while now, but I still am excited about helping the people of Sitka. There are some things in the works that I want to see through or at least advance farther. I feel like I still have something to offer, and I find it rewarding to do my bit to make Sitka a great place to live!

 

What are your top priorities if elected? 
Not in any particular order. 1. Work to get more city owned land out for housing. We have some large parcels that could be improved and put on the market. The city has the ability to access funds from state and federal agencies to improve land that private contractors don’t. This has to potential to help make Sitka housing more affordable. 2. Work on the shortage of child care in Sitka. I’m working with some other assembly members on a proposal the we hope will help. 3. Continue pushing to get the haul out working for Sitka. 4. Continue to work toward a long term solution to the management of the Sitka Animal Shelter. I have been working with the stakeholders for months, and while we have gotten a MOU in place, we still need to have a long term agreement. It is much better now than it was though. 5. Continue to try and find a balance between the tourism industry and year round residents. This is emotional subject for many folks, but I believe that we can work together to reduce the impacts of tourism and still have a healthy industry.

 

 

Ballot Propositions  

Proposition 1: This fall, voters will consider a ballot initiative to amend the city’s Home Rule Charter and direct future surplus revenue from the Sitka Community Hospital Dedicated Fund toward new and revitalized athletic and recreational facilities. Do you support this proposal? Why or why not?

I do. However I also realize that it will be a number of years before there is any substantial amount of money in this fund.

Proposition 2: Sitkans will vote on a ballot measure this fall that would require future citizen initiatives to include economic impact studies, paid for by the initiative’s sponsor. Do you support this proposal? Why or why not?

This make me nervous. I am leery of anything that gets in the way of citizens having their say. I’m afraid that it will make it very hard for things to be put on the ballot, even if it is something that will pass easily. I understand why the sponsors came up with this, but I have faith in the people of Sitka making wise choices.

 

Tourism  

Last year, the Sitka Assembly approved a Memorandum of Understanding with the local cruise ship operator. Is that MOU working? Are there any changes you would propose? 

It is working better than I thought it would. I was very skeptical when this came up, for a number of reasons, but so far it seems to have helped. The ships are trying to stagger their times in port, and I know that some sailing have been changed to avoid super large passenger days. It is early days, but I’m cautiously optimistic.

 

What other steps should be taken, if any, by the Sitka Assembly to address Sitka’s tourism growth? Please explain.

We need to continue to work with the tourism industry to develop a “best practices” policy. This will help make sure that everyone is on the same page. We also need to be able to quickly respond to issues that crop up, and address them as needed. This is why the tourism coordinator position at the city is very important, so we need to get that office up and running sooner rather than later.

 

 

Budget

BUDGET: How do you propose funding city government (including enterprise funds, electricity, water, etc.)?

This is hard. So much of the increase in costs in our enterprise funds is out of our control. We all know inflation has come back after years of very low rates, but that is not all that is driving our rates. You would be hard pressed to find on of our enterprise funds that has not had a significant unfunded mandate by the state or the feds or both. I could see using some general funds to stabilize some of the funds, but this would mean something else would have to go unfunded.

 

School District

What’s your philosophy on school funding? Should we fund the Sitka School District to the maximum allowable by state law, or “the cap”? 

Yes

 

Housing

What tangible actions can the Sitka Assembly take to ease Sitka’s housing crisis?

 

Get more land on the market. See my answer above. Also, continue to look for creative ways to use the zoning code to make easier to build unconventional housing options.

Policy 

Describe one piece of legislation you would like to bring forward as an assembly member, and explain how you would fund it.


 I have a number. One is codify the Friends of the Sitka Animal Shelter being involved with the care and adoption of pets in Sitka. It would most likely be a mix of funding sources, adoption fees and city funds.

 

 

Listen to KCAW's interview with Thor Christianson
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