A new fire chief
The assembly Tuesday approved the hire of Zac Overmyer as the Haines Borough’s first full-time professional Fire Chief. The volunteer department has previously been headed by a volunteer chief.
Overmyer comes to the borough with firefighting experience around the state, including 11 years at the Chugiak Fire Department, borough manager Alekka Fullerton said Tuesday.
He also comes with rave reviews, according to Fullerton. The manager said references in Chugiak described Overmyer’s departure as a “huge loss” for their department, and said the borough’s interview committee — Julie Anderson, Cynthia Jones, Matt Boron, Mike Denker, Jimmy Yoakum, and herself — came away extremely impressed by Overmyer and his qualifications.
According to Overmyer’s resume, he also has experience in private security and EMS services for private security company Denali Universal Services and for NANA management services.
Overmyer will have an annual salary of $100,000, making him the fourth-highest paid borough employee. The volunteer chief position in recent years had paid only a small stipend, totalling under $10,000 for the year.
The position was originally budgeted this year to pay $90,000, something assembly member Mark Smith called attention to.
“I’m glad to have a quality human filling this position,” Smith said. “But 42% of the (borough’s annual operating budget) is personnel. This position was budgeted for $90,000, now it’s $100,000. Just reminding you, there is a price tag.”
It was a unanimous vote, including Smith, to approve the hire.
A new federal lobbyist
The borough assembly has approved a 5 month contract for lobbying firm Van Ness Feldman LLP to serve as the borough’s new federal lobbyist in Washington D.C.
According to assembly discussions this year, the firm will be mainly tasked with securing federal grant money for the Lutak Dock, the public safety building rebuild, and FEMA reimbursement for Porcupine Road repairs.
Assembly members Kevin Forster, Cheryl Stickler and Gabe Thomas voted in support of Van Ness Feldman over the other two candidates for the position. Thomas said his support stemmed from the firm’s regional knowledge.
The borough’s lead lobbyist on the Van Ness Feldman team, Andrew VanderJack, is originally from Craig.
Freeride World Tour
Manager Fullerton said Tuesday the contract bringing heli-skiing competition Freeride World Tour to town this March has been finished.
The contract calls for the borough to pay the corporation that runs the event $100,000, with a quarter of the payment coming in the form of in-kind donations, Fullerton said. It’s not clear right now how much the borough will have to pay for the in-kind donations. The tourism department, Fullerton said, is currently talking to other companies and entities that could donate services. Whatever is not covered by those contributions will have to be covered by the borough.
Turnagain responds to CVN, via the borough assembly
Lutak Dock contractor Turnagain Marine did not respond to a request for comment for a Chilkat Valley News article earlier this month that explored the role of steel prices in their latest contract offer to the borough. The company has not responded to repeated requests via phone and email for clarification or comment on any issue regarding the Lutak dock for more than a year.
Company vice president Tim Cunha, however, sent a letter to the borough administration after the article was published, clarifying two points.
Cunha in the letter said that the company had priced in 18 months of inflation risk for steel into their contract offer, totaling a 40% increase. That increase was calculated by taking the difference of steel prices now, and 18 months prior, in 2023.
Cunha also pushed back on a statement from Fullerton in the article in which she said Turnagain did not respond to her inquiries about details of steel usage, including which gauge steel the company was recommending. Cunha said he answered this inquiry. After the article was published, Fullerton clarified that she had intended to say owner-advisor R&M Consulting had not responded to her inquiry — not Turnagain.