The Sitka Assembly heard from city staff about their proposal for a secondary water source on Tuesday night (12-04-18). From left to right is Utility Director Bryan Bertacchi, Environmental Superintendent Shiloh Williams, City Clerk Sara Peterson, and Public Works Director Michael Harmon. (Emily Kwong/KCAW phto)

Sitka gets 100% of its drinking water from Blue Lake – unfiltered. If that sounds too good to be true, the City of Sitka worries it is and wants a secondary source of drinking water.

High turbidity events have city officials worried Sitka will lose its special filtration waiver. Combined with an upcoming federal inspection of the dam, the City is pushing the Sitka Assembly to approve the construction of a secondary water source. They presented their plan during a work session on Tuesday night (12-04-18)

Downloadable audio.

To understand why the City of Sitka is pushing for a secondary water source, we’re going to have to roll back the clock. To 2014. The project to expand the Blue Lake Dam was in full swing and for two months, Sitka was cut off from its potable water supply. The city built a backup system. They spent $4 million on a temporary filtration plant at Indian River.

The water met tightened federal regulations, but wasn’t great. Public Works Director Michael Harmon remembers the city got complaints about the color and the taste. “You’d hold it up and you’d smell rotten fish. It would look like apple juice or had a golden brown color to it,” Harmon told KCAW in a recent interview.

Now, a new set of conditions are pressuring the city to once again figure out a secondary water source. There’s two reasons for this. The first is a big inspection.

In 2019, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission will inspect the penstock tunnel system. Picture a mile of tunnel – 7 to 10 feet in diameter – far below the ground. “That penstock and tunnel provides city drinking water, it provides fire water, it provides electric power, water for NSRAA, and it’s also the source of bulk water when bulk water does get sold,” said Utility Director Bryan Bertacchi.

To keep Sitka’s FERC permit, Bertacchi has to drain the tunnel completely and close the intake gate. That’s the nail biter for him. The gate weighs 26,000 lbs. Were it to fail in some way, as happened at Green Lake in 2016, the community would lose its source of drinking water. A boil water notice would take effect. The impact for the local economy and public health would be significant.

Fixing a failed intake gate at Blue Lake would take two weeks minimum, which Bertacchi described as a “disaster” in the spring with tourism and fishing about to start. Winter is tough too. “If we did that test in the winter and something goes wrong, we’d need a very large crane that’s not available in this town. We’d have to get the crane all the way up Blue Lake Road to the dam,” he said.

To avoid this whole scenario when the penstock is unavailable – due to maintenance or emergencies – the city wants a secondary water source. That’s the first reason. The second reason has to do with water quality.

The city is always monitoring the turbidity of Blue Lake, a measure of the amount of particles in the water. Harmon is worried that turbidity has been too high for Sitka to keep its federal filtration avoidance waiver, allowing the community to forgo filtering Blue Lake Water. To keep the waiver, Sitka cannot exceed five high turbidity events in ten years. Since the dam was expanded, there have already been four – one as recently as last month.

“We’re seeing this new trend of turbidity events that’s leading us to believe we will likely lose our waiver in ten years – if we have four [high turbidity events] in four years,” Harmon said. He added, “That really homes us in on the best solution for secondary water is a filtration system and a permanent one. We can use it anytime a FERC inspection needs to happen. We can use it any time we’re having a turbidity event. We can turn it on and avoid losing service to the customer.

A schematic of the design for the secondary water source, which includes a river intake system that moves water from Sawmill Creek to a brand new filter plant. The system would bypass the penstock tunnel entirely, in the event it is closed for maintenance or emergency. (Schematic courtesy of CBS)

Harmon doesn’t want to use Indian River again. A permanent filtration plant there would cost $23 million due to . After doing a study up and down the road system, they decided the most cost efficient option would be a brand new filtration unit drawing water from Sawmill Creek. It would cost $18 million.

The previous Assembly largely supported this plan, approving application for a low interest loan from the state and raising water rates this year to pay for it. The current Assembly, however, has their doubts and expressed as much during a work session Tuesday night (12-04-18).

Assembly member Aaron Bean wanted to know, “Why the elevated turbidity?” Harmon said staff are investigating. “The most obvious one is the raising of the dam has changed the lake dynamics. We hope that that will stabilize over time,” Harmon said.

Calling in over the phone, Assembly member Richard Wein described the secondary water source is an “added cost” of raising the Blue Lake Dam and said that this project needed further vetting.

Assembly member Kevin Mosher worried about the project staying within the $18 million budget. City staff assured him it would and that the project would only grow more expensive with time through inflation, by about $1 million every year.

City attorney Brian Hanson said building the secondary water source now would mitigate risk in the future. “Whether or not you talk dollars or cents, that is a primary reason that you should go forward, but don’t forget the health and safety of our community. You can’t ignore that. And to delay I think has a considerable risk in that regard,” Hanson told the Assembly.

This notion – that Sitka needs a secondary water source sooner rather than later – seemed to shift the conversation. While seeing the logic of the project, Mosher wondered whether there would truly be enough money within the water fund to pay for it.

Right now, water rates are not expected to rise. But what if they have to to pay for this project? “We may not have as much as we think we’re going to have,” Mosher said. He wondered, “What’s going to happen if this project does go over and then we’re wanting more rate increases? I just really hope this project stays within budget.”

Mosher is narrating what some on the Assembly have described as a “rate death spiral,” which is exactly what happened with the Blue Lake Dam expansion. The project went over-budget. Rates went up to pay for it, but electric usage went down. The echoes of that deficit – which the city is actively working to close – are all over this conversation about a secondary water source in Sitka. But if there is common ground, it’s in the desire to provide clean drinking water and reliable electricity to Sitkans.

After the work session ended, everyone lingered to chat – Assembly members with City Staff – to unpack the pros and cons even further.

The previous Assembly put the decision-making power for this project in the hands of the current Assembly. On December 11th, they’ll vote on whether to enter into a Compliance Order by Consent with the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation – accepting that $18 million loan and moving ahead with the secondary water source. The vote will be on first and final reading. Should it pass, Bertacchi says he will ask FERC to delay their inspection until that secondary water source can be built.

DJ Robidou’s table and chairs are ready for viewing at Robertson’s Art Gallery. The other chairs are on display at Russell’s, the Goldsmith Gallery, and Silver Basin. (Photo courtesy of Brave Heart Volunteers)

Cozy up to a bowl of soup in a homemade bowl – and perhaps take home a chair!

Brave Heart Volunteers are holding their annual fundraiser on Thursday, December 6th at Harrigan Centennial Hall, displaying handmade bowls for sale. All proceeds go towards Brave Heart’s services, providing end-of-life care, grief and bereavement support groups,  and respite services.

Board members Michele Friedman and Sheri Mayo have also brought back the “Chair-ity event,” auctioning off six chairs and one Christmas tree that local artists have transformed into works of art. Doors open at 5:30 pm and the live auction begins at 6:30. The Sitka Blues Band will play. The event includes homemade soup, freshly baked bread, dessert, and a cash bar.

The chairs are on display in local businesses and the bidding is open now. Tickets will be available at the door and at Old Harbor Books starting November 21st. $15 for adults and $5 for children under 10 years old.

Japeth Rupp was working at a hunting store when he was offered a job to manage the fuel dock in Elfin Cove. The Rupp family moved this spring from Ogden, UT – population 87,000 – to a Southeast village on northern Chichagof Island with an approximate population of 12. (Emily Kwong/KCAW photo)

You can only reach Elfin Cove by boat when there’s enough water in the gut. That’s how secluded the Southeast village is, a fishing destination in the summer and a sleepy community about a dozen souls in the winter. But what is it like to be the only young family living there? KCAW’s Emily Kwong met Elfin Cove’s newest residents as the settle in for their first winter.

Downloadable audio.

Paige Crump is eight-years-old. She swings her arms as she walks, past the box of free stuff, the memorial to those lost at sea, and the pit where all the town’s garbage is burned. The boardwalk is slick with freshly fallen rain.

“Make sure to stay in the middle. If you stay in the middle, it’s not an ice skating rink. On the sides, it’s an ice skating rink,” she indicates, adding “Today, I splatted on my butt.”

Paige’s dad, Kelly Crump, is the owner of the Waters Edge Lodge and president of the Elfin Cove Community Association. But come fall, there’s a big exodus in Elfin Cove when the fishing lodges close and a lot of people go down south – including the Crumps.

Near the fishing grounds of Cross Sound, Elfin Cove is a sport fishing destination. The population magnifies in summer when the fishing lodges open and seasons residents return. The community is connected by board walks. (Emily Kwong/KCAW photo)

Elfin Cove isn’t bustling with young families like it used to be. There’s a museum in the building that once housed a school. But for Paige, who lives in Utah most of the year, spending her summers in Elfin Cove is a delight. The woods are her favorite part. “You can see river otter tracks and deer tracks, if you want. It’s an amazing adventure. And if you go into the woods at the start of the trail, you’ll find a swing!”

Paige and I are headed to the fuel dock. A young family has moved to town and will stay through the winter. It’s the biggest news story of the year here.

Paige introduces me to Japeth Rupp, who came to Elfin Cove this year to manage the fuel dock. Picture a gas station, but for boats. He sells candy – Hershey Bars, Snickers, Reese’s – and soda behind the counter. Rupp has a cheerful buoyancy to him, joking around with fisherman as they radio the dock to buy fuel.

Atroller comes by. It’s pouring rain now. Rupp works the dock in waders, a sarcastic grin on his face. “The water is beautiful. It’s so inviting. I want to swim in it,” he tells the customers. They laugh. The rain continues at a relentless pace.

Paige Crump’s parents are the President and Secretary of the Elfin Cove Community Association. But they don’t live here in the winter. Paige goes to school in Utah and the family returns in the summer to operate their fishing lodge. (Emily Kwong/KCAW photo)

Japeth fills up the tank and sends the boat on its way. He tells me that an entourage of fog has a way of settling in Elfin Cove and staying. “If you wanted to know what a raindrop felt like, move to Elfin Cove. You always feel like you’re in a cloud. If you’re not in the cloud, you’re falling out of the cloud or the cloud is just above you,” he says.

There’s a patch of cell service at this end of town, but otherwise, nothing but you and your thoughts – which is partially why the Rupps jumped at the chance to come to Elfin Cove.

Elfin Cove is only accessible by float plane and boat. In winter, weather pending, the community sees two Alaska Seaplanes every week. (Emily Kwong/KCAW photo)

This time last year, the Rupps were living in Ogden, Utah. Japeth was working at a hunting store. “I spent so much time at work, at my previous job, either commuting in a car or being at work that I wasn’t really readily available for my wife and son. So that’s why we looked for this kind of a job,” he says.

 Japeth has worked in Alaska before, at a lodge in Excursion Inlet back in 2005. When his old boss Kelly Crump – Paige’s dad – called with a offer in Elfin Cove, the Rupps went for it. 

I meet Jennie, Japeth’s wife, and their one-year-old son Rockwell in their apartment. “Where we were [Ogden, UT], there’s just a lot of people and a lot of traffic,” Jennie tells me. That’s not my thing. So I was excited for this opportunity.

Both Jennie and Japeth grew up in small towns – Sheridan, MT and Morgan, Utah respectively. They craved a life where they could spend a majority of their days as a family together.

Japeth, Jennie, and their one-year-old son Rockwell Rupp. The family hopes to stay in Elfin Cove until Rockwell is of school age. (Emily Kwong/KCAW photo)

Rockwell, their one-year-old son, is a familiar face at the fuel dock. Jennie says visitors are pretty surprised to see a person so young in a town so small.  “I wish I could tell you how many random people have pictures of us, but I can’t! It’s like we’re in a museum and we’re one of the things that look at, a painting,” she says.

Locals keep an eye on them too, cautioning the couple early on to always keep Rockwell in a life jacket near the docks. Japeth remembers when first moved to Elfin Cove in April 2018. “You get all the stories about all the kids that have fallen in – right – and so you’re just kind of like, ‘Oh yeah, okay.’ He never fell in. Literally a week’s time span he fell in twice. Once he got over the cold factor, the shock, he would have rather swam than had us pick him out of the water.” Rockwell’s love of the water is on full display when I visit, calling it “wah-wah “.

Japeth says the family hopes to stay in Elfin Cove until Rockwell is of kindergarten age, then enroll him in a public school elsewhere to meet other kids. But for now, they’re buckling in for their first winter in Elfin Cove.

Kelly Crump is glad they took the offer. I find him across the hall – their apartments were right next door –  settled into a chair by the window.

Crump: There’s a lot of older people here. It’s going to change pretty soon. We’ve got to have new people come in to take their place. Great to have young families move in here.
KCAW: How long do you hope he stays?
Crump: That’s going to be interesting. If he can make it through this first winter, that’s a pretty big deal. And then we’ll just kind of go from there.

So far, so good. It’s December now and the Rupps are pretty much running Elfin Cove. Jennie manages all the planes and runs the Post Office. Japeth does pretty much everything else. In addition to his fuel dock duties, he’s taken over the general store, the generators, and many properties that would otherwise lie dormant during the quietest months of the year.

Elfin Cove in August. KCAW visited the community, as well as Pelican and Tenakee Springs, during a reporting trip around Chichagof Island. (Emily Kwong/KCAW photo)

The Assembly approved an $8,500 appropriation to enhance security and ADA-accessibility at the front desk of the utility office. Staff have reported a few instances of feeling threatened by members of the public. (Emily Kwong/KCAW photo)

The City of Sitka is preparing to negotiate with the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium over the potential sale of Sitka Community Hospital. Teams from the City and SEARHC will come to the table on December 6th and December 19th to begin joint negotiations. But first, they are carrying out a two-way due diligence process. Each hospital is requesting extensive amounts of information from the other to figure out what a deal might look like and eliminate any financial surprises.

Downloadable audio.

Consultant Sarah Cave described the due diligence process to the Assembly as a checklist. “SEARHC has requested a lot of information about Sitka Community, as Rob [CEO Rob Allen] has alluded to, but we have our own list of things that we think are critically important to learn about SEARHC,” Cave said.

Neither of these checklists have been released to the public. See the negotiation team’s timeline here: 11-27 CBS Assembly Update (FINAL 112018)

Aside from regular updates at the Sitka Assembly meetings, Cave said the negotiation team may offer brown bag lunches for community members to get more information. Their next update will be at the Assembly’s meetings on December 11th and December 20th.

Sitka Community Hospital CEO Rob Allen also gave a report, noting the strong financial performance of the hospital this year and heavy visitation. “Very busy month in October, after September kind of slowed down. Year to date, we’re at $1.35 million of income, which is $1 million ahead of budget. We’re having quite a few things hitting just right and this is due to changes we’ve made over the past couple years and being busy overall.

Allen added that hospital directors are absorbed in the due diligence process. The hospital has stopped the process of installing a new electronic health records system – called CERNER. The Sitka Community Hospital board voted to cancel that project last month.

On first reading, the Assembly also approved a permitting system for commercial boat work throughout Sitka’s Harbors. The hope is to create a more streamlined system at the Eliason Harbor Drive Down Ramp especially, which gets busy in summertime. An earlier version of the ordinance charged vessels $500 for the annual permit. This new version (Motion and Ord 2018-52S) has no fees.

The Assembly also supported a state application to rename the a new body of water at the head of Redoubt Lake. “Luna Lake” was created during a 2013 landslide, in which Assembly member Kevin Knox and Maggie Gallin escaped, but their dog Luna was never found.

In budget appropriations, the Assembly approved $150,000 to keep working with hospital consultants Sarah Cave and Steve Huebner. They also approved $8,500 on first reading for enhanced security measures at the front desk of the utility office. The money would closing off the open end of the counter, adding security to the employee door, and installing security cameras, while also making the desk more ADA-accessible.

A memo in the Assembly packet (Motion Memo and Ord 2018-54) said there have been instances where members of the public are expressing anger towards actions of the Sitka Assembly or city administration. The memo says staff have “reported multiple instances of feeling threatened by members of the public.’

Many on the Assembly were concerned for the safety of city staff and like Assembly member Kevin Knox, called for civility. “We have to be able to have conversations with each other that are reasoned, but at least civil. For me, what is the sad part about this, is that people are threatening other people in their place of work,” Knox said.

Assembly member Richard Wein mentioned how Sitka was recently named one of the most beautiful cities in America by Conde Nast Traveler. “We are one of 20 most beautiful cities in the United States, but as the song goes, is beauty only skin deep? I think we really need to examine what is happening here in our town and come together over this,” Wein said.

Towards the end of the meeting, the Assembly entered executive session from 7:30 p.m. until 9:15 p.m. to discuss lawsuits facing the Sitka Police Department with outside counsel Michael Gotti and Megan Sandone. The lawsuits were filed by officers Ryan Silva and Mary Ferguson. No public statements nor motions were made in regular session.

Prior to this executive session, Kevin Mosher made a motion for City Administrator Keith Brady to not be in the room for a portion. City Attorney Brian Hanson did not think his dismissal was necessary, but the motion nonetheless passed by a vote of 4-3, with Gary Paxton, Steven Eisenbeisz, and Kevin Knox voting against. Brady was invited into the room at 8:05 p.m.

Then, from 9:20 p.m. until 10:54, the Assembly was in executive session to discuss communications with city attorney Brian Hanson and city administrator Keith Brady about hospital negotiations between SEARHC and Sitka Community. Also in the room were consultants Sarah Cave and Steve Huebner, as well as outside legal counsel Sandy Johnson and Chief Finance and Administrative Officer Jay Sweeney.

The Sitka Assembly meets at 6 p.m. in Harrigan Centennial Hall. Raven News will broadcast the meeting live. (KCAW Photo)

When the Sitka Assembly meets tonight (11-27-18), they’ll begin with an update on ongoing negotiations between Sitka Community Hospital and the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC). The two hospitals may align next year, with SEARHC buying Sitka Community.

See full agenda here: 181127_AssemblyAgenda

The negotiation teams from both hospitals are scheduled to meet behind closed doors on December 6th and December 19th. On second and final reading, the Assembly will consider appropriating an additional $150,000 to continue retaining consultants Sarah Cave and Steve Huebner to oversee that process on behalf of the city.

The Assembly will also review – on first reading – an ordinance that creates a permitting system for commercial boat work throughout Sitka’s Harbors. At their last meeting, the Assembly voted to remove permit fees. They will revisit this new version of the ordinance tonight.

The Assembly will also renew the liquor licenses for the Pioneer Bar and Channel Club, and consider an application to name a lake created by a landslide Luna Lake. Assembly member Kevin Knox outran that landslide with his partner Maggie Gallin, but their dog Luna was never found.

And finally, the Assembly will approve a $8,500 appropriation to enhance security and ensure ADA-accessibility at the front counter in the utility office. A memo said that in recent months, staff working behind the counter have felt threatened by members of the public dissatisfied with the actions of the Assembly or administration.

Raven News will join the meeting live in progress at 6 p.m. tonight, immediately following Alaska News Nightly.

Since opening in July 2017, the Tenakee History Museum has recorded over 700 visitors from 27 states and multiple countries. Most of the collection is paper archives, but the museum also houses historic domestic and non-domestic items dating back to 1899. Pictured here are Museum Director Beret Barnes, Curator Vicki Wisenbaugh, and intern Kate Duffy preparing to cut the ribbon. (Emily Kwong/KCAW photo)

Tenakee Springs, Alaska is a dirt road town with a 10 mile per hour speed limit. Time seems to slow down. Few interactions are in passing. Residents actually bathe together in a communal hot springs sheltered from the rain. And now, there’s a place where time comes to a complete standstill.  During a reporting trip around Chichagof Island, KCAW visited the new Tenakee Springs Museum housing the history of this storied southeast town.

Downloadable audio.

On a clear day in January 2012, Carlene Allred broke out a video camera to film the renovation of the Tenakee Springs Museum. Moving inside the building, she asks her husband, Kevin Allred, “What’s going on in here?” He cheerfully responds, “We’re renovating this liquor store and making it in to a museum.”

Kevin has figured out a way to heat the structure with geothermal energy. That’s right. The Tenakee Springs Museum is warmed entirely by the town’s naturally occurring hot springs. “The best source seems to be the excess heat that’s leftover from heating the changing room of the bathhouse,” Allred explains.

Tenakee Springs is a city tucked along Tenakee Inlet on Chichagof Island in Southeast, Alaska. The population hovers around 100. The public bathhouse is open every day for residents to bathe. (Emily Kwong/KCAW photo)

Years of hammering, sanding, and painting – sometimes to the sounds of ABBA – are compiled by Carlene in a 30-minute YouTube video. The renovation work was paid for through a combination of local dollars and a grant from the Alaska State Museum. 

The Allred’s weren’t in town when I visited Tenakee Springs. But their handiwork and others is evident in the schoolhouse red structure that is now home to the Tenakee Historical Collection. Carlene filmed the grand opening ceremony too, which is at the end of the YouTube video.

Curator Vicki Wisenbaugh held the ribbon at the grand opening alongside Director Beret Barnes, officially opening the museum on July 2, 2017. The ribbon was cut by intern Kate Duffy. Duffy spent eight weeks helping develop the layout for the museum. Ninety people attended, which is the vast majority of Tenakee’s population.

Today, Wisenbaugh and I are standing outside the museum. The door is ajar. They logged over 700 visitors between July 2017 and July 2018, some unexpected. At that very moment, a squirrel attempts to dart inside. “Eh. Don’t you go in there, bud!,” Wisenbaugh shouts. “We’ve had them in there before. It’s pretty exciting.” Luckily, the squirrel does a U-turn.

A vanity displays high heels and letters. (Emily Kwong/KCAW photo)

Inside the museum, you can faintly hear the sound of the ocean beneath the pilings. It’s one room and the oak cases are full. There’s fish hooks, seine twine, and a metal stencil to mark a package as “Captain Bing Brand Alaska Pink Salmon.” 

One glance and you’ll know that the history of Tenakee Springs is in fishing and canning. It’s a place for those who work on the water to heal their bodies in the bathhouse. The nearby Superior Packing Company closed long ago, but the remnants of that boom time are in the museum.

(Sound of clock chime)

Salmon and crab canneries operated in Tenakee Inlet beginning in 1916 and ceased operations in 1974. (Emily Kwong/KCAW photo)

For Wisenbaugh, the crown jewel of the collection is a case of stone tools and a spruce root basket from the Tlingit people who first inhabited this land. She points to a cooking stone. “You can see where the finger holds are. You can see where your hand would fit,” she says with awe in her voice.

The tools were found entirely by locals digging around their own property. This is truly the museum that Tenakee built. Officers and board members privately stored decades of donations from residents. And now, to their great relief, it’s mostly all in one place for the public to enjoy and build upon.

(Sound of rattling keys)

“One of our members brought over this cigar box full of old keys,” Wisenbaugh notes. The box of key is used to fundraise. How it works is you become a member of the museum, pick a key from the box, and hang it on a community board with your name.

“People spend a lot of time picking their key, children especially. And they’ll race in to show other kids,” Wisenbaugh says.  ‘This one’s mine, it’s got my name on it!’ It fascinates me how the kids love this place. Some of them come up with their own ideas of what things are.”

A cigar box of keys has become a fundraising tool for the Tenakee Museum, as members commit their support and claim a key. (Emily Kwong/KCAW photo)

Wisenbaugh is also quick to imagine the lives of the people who used these objects. She’s hard pressed to talk about the what the museum means to her in words, so does it with the collection.

At one point, she gleefully produces a vintage car horn, salvaged from a rotting car on the beach. Kevin Allred, the guy who built the heating system, got it to work again.

(Sound of 20th century car horn)

“I regret it doesn’t do OOO-AHHHH-OOO-AHH, but this is okay,” Wisenbaugh says. She loves the work of putting life back into objects long forgotten. History has an immediacy for her and comes right up close. She has to go soon to pick up her grandson, but not before showing me a letter from Dermot O’Toole, the namesake of the local library. He sent this letter to his mother in 1941.

“‘I happened to be tuning in to the radio at the house when I happened to learn that Japanese planes had bombed Pearl Harbor. For a moment, I thought it was just a hoax or play. Now we have settled down to the grim realization that it is actually a war and by all indications, it is going to be a long one.'”

With the museum open, Wisenbaugh nows wants to catalogue the collection. They’re running out for room to take more donations, but as she put it, “If it has anything to do with Tenakee and a good story behind it, we’ll take it.”

Tenakee Springs Fire Hall on a summer day. (Emily Kwong/KCAW photo)

Sen. Bert Stedman, R- Sitka, talks about the Alaska Permanent Fund on March 15, 2017. On Sunday (11-18-18), news broke that he was appointed Co-Chair of the Senate Finance Committee for the upcoming session. Stedman wants to see the spendable portion of the Permanent Fund protected through constitutional amendment and for the payout to be calculated as a percentage of market value. (Photo by Skip Gray/360 North)

The Alaska Senate has a new majority and a significant appointment for one Southeast lawmaker.

Sitka Senator Bert Stedman was appointed Co-Chair of the Senate Finance Committee, alongside Natasha von Imhof of Anchorage. Specifically, Stedman will manage the Senate’s process for developing the operating budget.

Stedman is no stranger to this role. He served as co-chair from 2007 to 2012 at a time of surpluses for Alaska. He returns to that post in a time of recession. Few Southeast lawmakers have held this position. They include Howard Bradshaw of Sitka, James Nolan from Wrangell, and Bill Ray of Juneau in the 1960s and 1970s.

KCAW spoke with Stedman about Alaska’s financial position. State savings has depleted to $2 billion. While many want to tap the Permanent Fund, Stedman thinks there should be a constitutional protection in place to cap withdrawals at a certain level.

KCAW: You’ve put forward a bill (SJR 9) to protect more of the Permanent Fund by the Constitution. Is that correct?

Stedman: Yes. My personal concern – I’m not speaking for the caucus or the finance table, but as your Senator – is we protect the Permanent Fund. In particular, the portion that is spendable by the legislature. We have to make it non-spendable. We have to either roll it into the corpus, which takes legislative action and the governor’s signature, or we convert it to a percent of market value and lock up the whole thing. That’s what I’d like to do, just  like we do with the Sitka Permanent Fund. It has to go to a vote of the people, other than the money that’s automatically taken out every year for the general fund.

KCAW: What needs to happen to ensure that Alaska can still issue PFD checks every year?

Stedman: You cannot have the legislature spend down their earnings reserve. And also if you don’t lock the structure of the permanent fund up in the constitution, the next legislature or the current one could just do what they want with their statutory authority. And that’s not acceptable looking over the past several years where the legislature spent about $14 billion in savings and haven’t fixed the problem.

Stedman expects Governor Dunleavy to also support protecting the permanent fund, but added that Alaska cannot cut its way to a balanced budget.

When asked about his strategy as Finance Co-Chair, Stedman said he wants to defend communities not on the road system while working cooperatively with the Governor’s office and the House. “So rather than have a Mexican standoff, which will be just a big mess, I plan on working with Governor-Elect Dunleavy on his direction in the magnitude he wants to go and make sure it’s fair across the state  and that we [Southeast] doesn’t take the brunt of it unfairly,” Stedman said.

As Governor, Dunleavy will have line-item veto power.

In representing Southeast, Stedman said his big priorities are maintaining the Alaska Marine Highway System and resolving issues within the SB 91, the bill to reform Alaska’s criminal justice system. Stedman voted against it, saying it was a bill “not ready for prime time”

There are noted differences between the new Governor and the Senate’s new finance committee co-chair. “Governor-Elect Dunleavy, coming from MatSu valley, was one of the most conservative legislators in the legislature. Senator Stedman is someone who is known as an individual in his political views. You might struggle if you were trying to characterize him beyond that he’s a Republican and from a very different of the state, coming from the coast,” said Andrew Kitchenmann, state government and politics reporter for KTOO and Alaska Public Media.

Stedman may be one of the few voices from Coastal Alaska with a committee chairmanship. Kitchenmann added, “Based on what we think that the leadership of the House is going to look like and what we know the leadership of the Senate has been announced as, [Stedman] might be the only Coastal politician among the most senior leadership. The exception is Kodiak Senator Gary Stevens, who will serve as the Legislative Council Chair.

Leadership for the Alaska House is up in the air. A close race in Fairbanks sees Republican Bart Lebon five votes ahead of Democrat Kathryn Dodge, which — if Lebon’s lead holds — would give Republicans control of the house. The final count for that race will be on Wednesday (11-21-18) and a recount may also happen.

The future of the Walker Administration’s Climate Action Leadership Team is in limbo with the election of Mike Dunleavy. DEC Commissioner Larry Hartig speaks to other members of the team on the University of Alaska Fairbanks Campus, April 12, 2018. (Photo courtesy of David Lienemann / Office of Governor Bill Walker)

With the election of a new governor in Mike Dunleavy comes many unknowns for Alaska and among them is his administration’s future plans for climate change action. Several Sitkans were involved with a statewide Climate Action Leadership Team (CALT) this summer, organized by Governor Bill Walker. Their plan now hangs in limbo.

Downloadable audio.

In September, a group of Alaskans handed Governor Bill Walker a 37-page playbook of policy ideas for climate change. Some ideas were focused on reducing the state’s carbon footprint, others sought to help villages with eroding coastlines. They even suggested researching a state carbon tax. And their document begins with a declaration that says, “the state has an obligation to take bold action.”

Read their Climate Policy and Climate Action Plan

Compare that to the words of now Governor-Elect Mike Dunleavy during the debates. He was asked, “The Arctic is warming twice as fast as the rest of the planet. As a state whose economy relies on fossil fuels, how do you balance that with the need to reduce carbon emissions?”

Dunleavy responded by saying, “Alaska is not really a smoke stack state. Our contribution to climate change is probably minimal. We need to make sure Alaskans are going to work. We use technology where we can to reduce emissions. But our contribution to climate change to minimal.” Dunleavy concluded that Alaska need not act.

Those remarks have many on the leadership team fretting about the future of their climate change plan. Lisa Busch is the Director of the Sitka Sound Science Center and one of two Sitkans on the 21-person team appointed by Governor Bill Walker. He created the team through Administrative Order 289.

Busch sees their work as a call to action across every sector of the economy and every level of government. “It really is just a start of our state trying to be a leader in the nation for decreasing gas emissions,” Busch said.

Administrations past and present has been making subtle changes since 2007. That’s when then-Governor Sarah Palin created a climate change sub-cabinet that continues to meet. Busch was pretty delighted to discover that.

“The state agencies have been working on this stuff for a while. Since 2014, the state has a no-idling policy for state vehicles. They are thinking about resiliency and sustainability in every new road construction project. They are studying alternative fuels for the state vehicle fleet. They’re already doing quite a bit,” Busch said.

The Climate Cabinet that took all of the team’s climate change recommendations into consideration and issued an Early Actions Plan — cherry picking stuff the state can do right now. Their priorities included tasking ADF&G to create a cooperative analysis that identifies “potential impacts to Alaska fisheries from climate change and ocean acidification.”

But the election has changed all that. Walker is out. Will this climate action plan — and the team that wrote it — continue under Governor-Elect Dunleavy? His transition team isn’t sure. Spokesperson Sarah Erkmann Ward wrote in an e-mail to KCAW that the Governor-elect is busy building his administration and that it was “too early to know.” Prior to the election, he told KTOO, “I think we have a lot of issues that, in my opinion, are quite frankly and bluntly more important than the climate task force.”

Young people who have studied the plan certainly hope it continues. Zofia Danielson of Sitka and Carly Dennis of Anchorage attended a climate action dialogue for young people this summer. In that room, consensus seemed possible.

Danielson felt the plan could be worded even more strongly. “We should turn those shoulds in the climate plan – the language that wasn’t quite as strong as it should be – to musts,” she said.

Dennis was pleased to see the state reaching out to young people for input. She noted, “The youth voice is really important in that obviously, because young people are going to be the ones most affected by climate change.”

Since following the debates, Dennis has been concerned with Dunleavy’s attitude towards climate change science and action. She wrote in an e-mail to KCAW, “His complete disregard for climate change as a legitimate threat to our state shows a real disconnect with Alaskans.”

Those on the Climate Action Leadership Team have not met since the election and are in the dark about whether their work will continue beyond this year.

The other Sitkan on the team is Linda Behnken of the Alaska Longline Fishermen’s Association. Her world is one where ocean acidification and rising temperatures are harming fish — and fishermen. I asked her what the worse case scenario was for the next administration.

Behnken: Is that we ignore what’s happening and allow the situation to get worse and not acknowledge the significance of these impacts.

KCAW: What would you do if [Dunleavy] were to reverse the administrative order and dissolve the team [Climate Action Leadership Team]?

Behnken: Well, I think all of us here in Alaska have an individual responsibility to addressing climate strategy through whatever strategy is fit with us, whether it’s the local level, state level, or national level. I certainly will.

Best case scenario, Behnken said, is that after Dunleavy is takes the oath of office in December, the Climate Action Leadership Team stays in place and continues their work.

The city’s Planning Department estimates they will receive upwards of 625 applications for property tax exemptions from senior citizens and disabled veterans. Assessor Wendy Lawrence is performing a spot audit of the program that has angered some seniors. (Emily Kwong/KCAW photo)

When Sitka’s senior sales tax exemption came back, not all elements of the program were the same. Senior citizens gave the Assembly an earful about this last night (11-08-18). The group voted to restore the program back to the way it was before. The Assembly also learned more about the city’s audit of the senior citizen/disabled veteran property tax exemption program. Assessor Wendy Lawrence expects 25% of Sitka residences will apply.

Downloadable audio.

Since it was reinstated, city administration has been trying to curtail abuse of the senior sales tax exemption. Administrator Keith Brady has directed businesses to ask for IDs to prove a person is 65 or older and to refuse the exemptions to  non-senior spouses. Citizen Beverly Brill was livid at that, reading a list of “R” words she wanted the Assembly to remember. “The letter R – read – the letter R – reinstate. It’s pretty simple to me,” Brill said.

Administrator Keith Brady was straightforward in expressing his desire to put new policies in place for the old program, which was loosely enforced. He wanted three months to develop a database or some other kind of system to ensure eligibility. “It wouldn’t be probably that dissimilar from the old program. I think there’s certain things that needed to be tightened up. That’s the reason for it. Could we go back, yes?,” he said. “Going back” is exactly what the Assembly wanted, voting unanimously  – 6 to 0 – to restore the program as it was. Assembly member Steven Eisenbeisz was absent.

Speaking of seniors, the Assembly also gained clarity on the city’s effort to audit those who receive a property tax exemption. Sitka Assessor Wendy Lawrence fielded questions from the Assembly about the process.

Every four years, the City of Sitka performs an audit of a property tax exemption program for senior citizens and disabled veterans (known as “SCDVPTE”). But, the routine audit didn’t happen last year. At that time, Lawrence told the Assembly, her department was occupied with converting Sitka to a computer-assisted mass appraisal system. So this year, she chose to do a spot audit and send a letter to a random 10% of participants. Sixty nine households were notified they had to re-apply for the program and would receive monthly knocks on the door to verify they were living in their senior property exempted residences.

While the Assembly did not contest the City’s pursuit of an audit, several took issue with the process. Valorie Nelson was one of them. “The burden of the seniors that they’re sending this out to – to only give them until December 1st to reply – it’s not enough time, especially if they’re out of town for the holidays,” she said.

Nelson made a motion to push the audit back until January 1st, but that would throw off the schedule for Sitka’s whole assessment process. State assessor Marty McGee – calling in over the phone – said the city might receive a letter of major error. The Assembly didn’t want to risk that and voted Nelson’s motion down 5-1. 

Lawrence said most of the homes that received the letter have re-applied. Her department has identified four that were no longer eligible. She plans to complete the audit’s property inspections by December 14th, which is also the deadline by which senior citizens must re-apply for the program. Lawrence estimates she will have 625 applications this year. That means 25% of Sitka residential properties could forgo paying property taxes on the first $150,000 of their property’s value. For the city, this amounts to a loss of $500,000 in tax revenue. 

In other business, the Sitka Assembly approved imposing a permitting process for businesses to do work throughout the harbor system. They moved to eliminate, however, the $500 fee. They passed the ordinance by a vote of 5-1 with Kevin Knox voting against. Since that is a material change, the ordinance will need a second reading to take effect.

At the beginning of the meeting, the Assembly learned that the city’s first joint negotiation with SEARHC will take place on December 6th. They appropriated an additional $150,000 to pay consultants Sarah Cave and Steve Huebner to continue their work to find an affiliation partner for Sitka Community Hospital. Assembly member Richard Wein pointed out that the city will have appropriated a total of $400,000 to pay for these consultants. Mayor Gary Paxton felt it was money well spent. “We’re going to spend $400,000 negotiating one of the most important things in the history of Sitka, by golly,” Paxton said.

Paxton also read a proclamation in honor of Veterans Day and another recognizing November as Native American Heritage month.

Mayor Gary Paxton read a proclamation recognizing November as Native American Heritage Month. Beside him is Tribal Council Chairwoman KathyHope Erickson and STA General Manager Lisa Gassman. STA’s Social Services Department recently received a high honors award from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government for a child protection program with the lowest child removal rate in the state. (Emily Kwong/KCAW photo)

At the end of the meeting, the Assembly heard from Sitka Police officers Mary Ferguson and Ryan Silva. Both have filed suit against the city, the police department, and Police Chief Jeff Ankerfelt, who was in the room during their comments. Silva is alleging improper procurement practices and retaliation for speaking up. Ferguson is alleging sexual harassment and gender discrimination. 

Both Silva and Ferguson said their employee pictures have been removed from the wall of the police department and their names taken off the schedule. After being on paid administrative leave, Silva said he was nervous about returning to work. “Although I’ve been ordered back to work, I feel anxiety – and frankly quite scared – of what the commander will do to retaliate against me,” Silva said.

As for Ferguson, she said city administrator Keith Brady should not partake in the Assembly’s executive sessions concerning her lawsuit since he is named as a defendant. “I feel that is forgotten that I am a city employee, as well as a citizen, and that I should be protected too. I am realizing the reasons why nobody wants to come forward about anything. I’m asking you, my elected officials, to review my complaint. I am asking you to read, review and discuss the full Geariety report,” Ferguson said. Sitka Tribe of Alaska General Manager Lisa Gassman sat beside her.

Kimberly Geariety is the investigator hired by the city to look into Ferguson’s EEOC complaint. Ferguson has not seen the Geariety report and the Assembly was persuaded by her comments to read it. City attorney Brian Hanson said Assembly members could view it in his office. The Assembly will next meet on Saturday, November 17th for a visioning session for the year ahead.

The Sitka Assembly meets at 6 p.m. in Harrigan Centennial Hall. Raven News will broadcast the meeting live. (KCAW Photo)

Issues of concern to Sitka’s seniors are a main topic for discussion at the Sitka Assembly meeting tonight. 

See full agenda here: 181108_agenda

The Assembly will discuss the senior property tax exemption, as well as how the senior sales tax exemption program has been reinstated by the city. Administration has been directing businesses to apply the tax break only to those 65 years and older. However, Sitka General Code originally applied the exemption to both eligible senior citizens and their spouses – no matter the spouses age. 

The Assembly will also take a final vote on establishing a permitting process for commercial marine work at the Eliason Harbor drive down dock and receive an update from the city’s negotiation team talking to SEARHC about selling Sitka Community Hospital.

The team includes City Administrator Keith Brady, City Attorney Brian Hanson, Chief Finance and Administrative Officer Jay Sweeney, Sitka Community Hospital CEO Rob Allen, Sitka Community Hospital physician Dr. Roger Golub, consultants Sarah Cave and Steve Huebner, and outside legal counsel Sandy Johnson.

Their update will include information about the due diligence process with SEARHC and a list of significant questions to be addressed in negotiations.

The Assembly also plans to issue a proclamation honoring November 11th as Veterans Day and recognizing November 2018 as Native American Heritage Month.

The Assembly will appoint David Birky and Joseph Younack to the Local Emergency Planning Commision, in addition to reappointing Gayle Hammons. They’ll also appoint Neil Akana to the Police and Fire Commission. The Assembly must also decide whether to reschedule their late December meeting – set for Christmas Day – to December 20th.

Their meeting is taking place on a Thursday because several Assembly members will be out of town next week attending the Alaskas Municipal League Conference. Raven Radio will broadcast the meeting live at 6 p.m. immediately following Alaska News Nightly.