The Haines Economic Development Corporation will use its newest data set to help answer the question: Who are the people of Haines?
On Thursday, HEDC director Margaret Friedenauer presented the 2018 economic indicator report at the corporation’s annual meeting. The report is intended to give a snapshot of the Haines economy, including statistics on average wages, unemployment, demographics and economic security.
“Most of us live in a group of people that are like ourselves. We socialize with them, we communicate, we support each other, so our picture of what the community is what we know,” borough manager Debra Schnabel said after the presentation Thursday. “My hope is that this information is talked about and analyzed and shared more within the community in a way that helps us to appreciate the profile of the community as it really is, as opposed to what we think it is because of our own personal experience.”
Schnabel later told the CVN she believes the data has to be looked at as a whole to note varying “and perhaps even conflicting” stories that can be told when looking at only a small piece of the information.
For example, personal income in Haines is noted as high relative to federal and state per capita income and average among other Southeast Alaska communities at at average of $59,951 per year. Yet 39 percent of households bring in less than $50,000, which is above state average. Statistics show that 68 percent of Haines resident earn less than $100,000, while 32 percent earn more.
“What is the significance of the income gap?” Schnabel said. “What are the demographics of the higher income bracket, creating the higher per capita income? How does that demographic contribute to the economy? What significance does the apparent income gap have to those who make police decisions affecting the cost of living and tax levy?”
HEDC member Greg Schlachter said that the data points will hopefully help to drive conversations. He said if you listen to the talk around town about school enrollment, it sounds like the population is dying out when in fact there has been a 13-student increase over the last year. “It’s not great, but it’s not the trend that you hear around town,” Schlachter said.
Friedenauer said the data will help inform future strategic planning by giving decision makers a clear idea of where we are now.
“There’s always discussion about where the data should be, and I think its hard to know where the data should be without knowing where it is,” she said. “People say we used to have 350 kids back in the 80s. Is that still possible? Or what does that look like? Because that would be a 100-kid increase. It gives us an idea of how to gauge those discussions.”
HEDC president Heather Shade added that the organization hopes the borough assembly can use the report in decision making.