Alaska Gov. Bill Walker will address a joint meeting of the Haines Borough Assembly and Haines Chamber of Commerce starting 11:30 a.m. Friday at the Chilkat Center.
Haines Borough Mayor Jan Hill said Walker will have about 20 minutes to make his comments about three main topics: “the state of the state,” including the state budget deficit, a proposed makeover of the Alaska Marine Highway and Juneau access.
Walker is expected to take up to an hour hearing from the public and answering questions.
“We hope to get some good answers,” Hill said.
Walker is coming to town at the Chamber’s invitation. Hill said she also sent a formal email request about two weeks ago inviting Walker to visit Haines and Skagway before making a decision on the Juneau road. Walker, who stopped most of the state’s large construction projects after taking office, recently rekindled discussion of a Lynn Canal road.
“It’s been a while since we talked about the road as a community,” Hill said. “We need to stay current on it.”
She said the main goal is that Walker, the decision-maker for the Juneau Access Project, gets to hear from the communities that will be impacted by the project.
Hill said she also asked Walker in person to come visit the communities when she saw him several times this summer.
“Any time we can get with the governor and our own community, we value that,” Hill said.
When asked what messages she would take to the governor on cuts to state offices in Haines, Hill said she and borough manager Bill Seward will meet with Walker after the public event to bring up “…other things that are critically important to the community,” such as cuts to the forestry office. “We have a list going already,” she said.
Gov. Walker will also visit Skagway the same day.