A controversial Dec. 8 planning commission meeting motivated a citizen and borough assembly member to seek turning the commission into an elected body rather than an appointed one.
The call for change, which could occur through a ballot initiative or by assembly decision, came a few days after the seven-member commission, operating with only five members, voted 3-2 to permit a heliport at 24 Mile Haines Highway and recommended filling two vacant seats with incumbent commissioners over two professional engineers.
Assembly member Tyler Huling said she would advocate for making the commission elected, and resident Tom Morphet said he planned to circulate a petition calling for a special election seeking the same change. He said he wanted the vote to occur within six weeks and for it to be binding.
“The only way to make them accountable is to make their seats directly connected to the voters,” Morphet said. “There are members there who quite frankly can’t get elected. And if they can’t get elected, they sure as hell shouldn’t be appointed.”
Currently the commission reviews applications and holds an internal election to recommend new members for appointment by the Mayor and approval by the assembly.
The commission last week recommended appointing Diana Lapham, who is currently commission chair and serves on three other borough advisory boards, and Rob Goldberg, who has been on the commission for about two decades.
Travis Eckhoff, an Alaska Department of Transportation technical engineer, placed third in the commission’s ranking of applicants; Eben Sargent, a mechanical engineer, placed fourth. And Bill Jurewitz, a retired doctor, placed fifth.
Haines Borough Mayor Douglas Olerud told the assembly Tuesday he might not follow the commission’s recommendation for filling the two vacant seats but he hadn’t made up his mind yet about whom he would appoint. Some residents in the past have argued that having appointed boards and commissions lowers a barrier for residents interested in serving and makes it easier to fill vacancies.
The planning commission’s 3-2 heliport vote also prompted assembly member Debra Schnabel to advocate for requiring at least four affirmative votes for the body to take action, and the assembly voted 4-0 to direct borough staff to draft an ordinance that, if adopted at a later date, would enact such a change.
Code requires at least four votes for assembly action but only a majority of a quorum for boards and commissions. (Code defines a quorum for boards and commissions as the majority of voting members of a board or commission; for the planning commission that’s four members.)
“If we have the ability of three people in the community who serve on a seven-member board to make a decision, we have a severe problem,” Schnabel said. “It is not reasonable to allow a body of such consequence (as the planning commission) to act with three (affirmative votes).”
Earlier this fall the planning commission elected Richard Clement and Margarette Jones. Last month the Mayor appointed and the assembly confirmed Clement, and on Tuesday the Mayor appointed and the assembly approved Jones.
All Haines Borough advisory boards are appointed bodies. Petersburg is the only community in Southeast that elects their planning commission members. Haines assembly members in the past have discussed making boards elected but haven’t taken action.
Morphet circulated a petition in 2018 that got on the ballot a question about whether or not voters wanted to elect members of the planning commission, port and harbor advisory committee, public safety commission and tourism advisory board. The initiative failed 592 votes to 277.
*This story previously reported that other Southeast communities like Petersburg elect planning commission members. According to a CVN survey of nine Southeast communities (Sitka, Juneau, Petersburg, Skagway, Angoon, Hoonah, Wrangell, Ketchikan and Craig) only Petersburg elects their planning commission members.