Lutak Dock
Lutak Dock has been a week-after-week topic for the assembly this year, particularly with looming mediation in the borough’s dispute with contractor Turnagain Marine. That process was supposed to begin this month, but the borough has now changed course.
Interim borough manager Alekka Fullerton announced Tuesday night that the borough and Turnagain have agreed to delay mediation, and instead return to the drawing board to find a dock concept that works for both parties.
Borough officials said rising costs – of the dock, and of litigation – motivated the change. Fullerton said since January, when the assembly voted to continue pursuing the existing dock design, rising costs have made fitting that design within the borough’s $20 million federal grant “unachievable.”
As for litigation, Fullerton and assembly members said it would be better to steer clear, so long as there were other options available. Fullerton described the mediation process as “a point of no return,” and assembly member Gabe Thomas said that in mediation, “both sides usually lose.”
Fullerton pointed to a third factor – the ongoing deterioration of the current dock facility – as another reason to find a design that could be built, rather than litigated.
Borough staff, including clerk Mike Denker, harbormaster Henry Pollan and facilities director Brad Jensen, will now begin discussing concept ideas with Turnagain representatives. Fullerton referred to the process as a “brainstorm,” and made clear the discussion would not include specific engineering and design work.
If both parties can agree on a concept, it will then go to the assembly, the Ports and Harbors Committee, and planning commission for public comment, Fullerton said.
“We want this to be something that is vetted by the public, something the public can get behind,” Fullerton said, adding that she hopes a concept could come forward “in the next few weeks.”
If talks stall, it will be back to the previous state of affairs, with mediation back on the menu.
Assembly Compensation
The CVN reported last week that assembly members are allowed by code to opt into borough employee health insurance. Some current and former assembly members said they had not known about that provision. For this week’s meeting, assembly member Mark Smith introduced a motion to remove assembly compensation altogether from code — not just the health insurance possibility.
“Elected officials in small rural communities in America serve as volunteers — not employees,” Smith wrote in the motion. “A quality public volunteer/elected official is someone who performs services for civic, charitable, or humanitarian reasons without promise, expectation, or receipt of compensation.”
The assembly voted to take the topic up for consideration, with public hearings on May 27 and June 10. Only assembly member Craig Loomis voted against considering Smith’s motion. Assembly member Kevin Forster was absent and did not vote.
There will not be thorough assembly discussion on the issue until the public hearings are done, but there was plenty of public comment, including from former assembly member Ben Aultman-Moore, who spoke against the pay cut, saying that it would reduce assembly diversity and access to democracy for all.
“People with the least amount of time and money bear the greatest burden to serve,” Aultman-Moore told the assembly. “The real budget buster this year was (the senior tax exemption), and cutting assembly pay will not make a dent in that deficit. What it will do is … (put) more wealthy and retired people on the dais doing what’s better for wealthy and retired people.”
The only comment supporting a pay cut was from Kimberly Rosado, who said it would show the assembly’s commitment to reducing spending and taxation.
Assembly members each make roughly $4,500 per year and the mayor’s stipend is $15,000. The total cut would be worth just over $42,000, roughly 0.0007% of the borough’s total projected expenditures for the upcoming year.
5G agreement
A proposed AT&T 5G tower downtown has drawn opposition from community members who believe 5G radio waves pose a serious health risk.
Opponents are particularly concerned about this tower’s location next to the school, where they say children are particularly vulnerable. On Tuesday night, the assembly took a preliminary stance siding with these concerns, voting to send an official letter registering opposition to the tower that will cite both health concerns, and the height of the proposed tower, at 115 feet.
A diverse coalition has formed opposing the tower, with mayor Tom Morphet and assembly member Mark Smith leading the charge on the letter writing. S
mith listed a number of individuals who he said were also “informed of the health risks,” including Gershon Cohen — who spoke to the assembly last week on the issue — and interim manager Fullerton.
While it’s unclear what power the letter will have to change AT&T’s mind, Smith said he will be introducing legislation to essentially ban new cell towers in the townsite.
Those opposing the tower on health grounds are swimming against the current of scientific and regulatory consensus, which says 5G waves are not powerful enough to cause cancer.
It’s unclear how big the anti-5G population is in town, though they have made their voices heard in public forums throughout the past year when new cell towers have come up for approval.
In deciding on any legislation addressing the issue, borough officials will be in the difficult position of weighing public outcry against the judgement of higher-level governing bodies and scientific research.
Further discussion on the issue is likely to happen at Thursday’s planning commission meeting.
A defense of the pool
Public comment Tuesday, which lasted more than an hour, featured another motivated group: borough pool users. The group in support of the pool was three rows deep in-person, with more online, and rose one after another to the lectern to advocate for fully funding the pool in next year’s budget.
The pool will be closing this week, two weeks earlier than planned, with Fullerton citing cost overruns. There is no set date for reopening.
The primary concern Tuesday was safety, with multiple residents highlighting the learn-to-swim program as a vital safety program for a waterfront community. Retired teacher Ellen Larson described how before the construction of the pool, she would have to take the fifth-grade class to Juneau every year to teach basic swimming skills.
Some talked about the importance of the pool to families — “take a look in the pool on a rainy day, and see how many screaming kids and grateful parents there are,” said Liz Landes — and fitness/rehab for all, including those with mobility challenges. Multiple speakers also said they would not have moved their families to Haines if not for the pool.
There’s a brewing fight in upcoming budget talks over what constitutes a worthwhile service for the borough to fund.
During non-profit funding talks, one point of criticism of some non-profits was a failure to draw from a wide enough swath of the community. Maybe because of this, pool users were eager to explain how the pool brought together people from all different corners of the borough.
“We’re all there for different reasons,” Haines Dolphins coach Sydney Wray said. “People of all backgrounds and beliefs use the pool and consider it part of their routine. The pool unites us.”
The wave of public comment came with an 89-signature petition to the assembly to fund the pool for 11 months of operation next year.