Residents interested in running for Haines Borough Assembly or school board must declare their candidacy and file the appropriate paperwork by July 26. Two assembly seats and two school board seats, all with three-year terms, are available. One school board seat with a two-year term will also be open. Assembly member Norm Smith, whose seat is opening up, said this week “there is no […]
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Assembly to decide on employee raises
The Haines Borough Assembly will decide July 23 whether to approve a package of raises and health insurance compensation for unionized borough workers which would increase the budget by about $151,000 in the current fiscal year. The cost of the contract would increase over each of the following two years. The Local 71 Union ratified the three-year […]
Posted inNews
Museum chief hired
The Haines Borough Assembly approved a new director for the Sheldon Museum Tuesday. John Hairr, currently site manager for the House in the Horseshoe State Historic Society, will assume his duties in August, said Jim Heaton, president of the the museum’s board of trustees. “He’s well educated,” said Jim Shook, vice president of the Board of Trustees, […]
Posted inElections, News
Borough adopts roster-style ballot
Elections for positions on the Haines Borough Assembly and school board will no longer pit candidate vs. candidate for specific seats. Mayor Stephanie Scott broke a 3-3 tie Tuesday to establish a roster-style ballot, eliminating the current system in which candidates vie for designated, individual seats. Assembly members Debra Schnabel, Joanne Waterman and Norm Smith supported the change; Dave Berry, Steve Vick and Jerry Lapp were opposed. “This system simply […]
Posted inNews, Haines Borough
Borough eyes legislative office
Haines may soon be offering its residents a faster, more effective way of connecting with legislators and gaining up-to-date information about the goings-on in the state government. The Haines Borough Assembly passed a resolution Tuesday requesting the Legislative Affairs Council work with the borough to establish a legislative information office (LIO) in the Haines library. An LIO […]
Posted inNews, Elections
Election ballot likely to change
The push to change local election procedures continues with the Haines Borough Assembly still split down the middle on whether to switch from a seat system to a roster-style ballot. Mayor Stephanie Scott has repeatedly broken ties between the assembly members on whether to advance the ordinance which would make the change. Members Debra Schnabel, Joanne Waterman and Norm Smith have consistently voted for […]
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Borough to estimate cost of buried wires
During a special meeting convened Friday, the Haines Borough Assembly directed manager Mark Earnest to research cost estimates for burying power lines near the intersection of Front Street and the Old Haines Highway. Assembly members Norm Smith, Joanne Waterman and Steve Vick called the special meeting to discuss what Smith called the “power pole debacle.” Alaska Power and Telephone recently relocated several large power […]
Posted inNews, Elections
Redistricting on assembly agenda
Haines Borough Mayor Stephanie Scott said this week she will ask the assembly whether it wants to weigh in on where Haines should fall in new redistricting plans. The Alaska Redistricting Board is currently holding map work sessions to redraw district boundaries ruled unconstitutional by the Alaska Supreme Court. Initially lumped in with Juneau, Skagway and Gustavus, Haines […]
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Residents react to Connelly Lake decision
Residents and organizations in Haines have debated the merits and drawbacks of Alaska Power and Telephone’s proposed hydroelectric project at Connelly Lake for at least three years. When the utility announced last week it would stop pursuing the project for the time being and surrender its preliminary permit, some celebrated and others fretted: Jerry Lapp (Haines Borough […]
Posted inNews
Budget: $12.2 million, reduction in tax rates
On a 4-2 vote, the Haines Borough Assembly approved its $12.2 million spending plan for the coming year Tuesday, including a reduction in the property tax rate inside and outside the townsite. Townsite landowners will pay 10.17 mills under the new budget, down from 10.79 mills last year. The base property tax rate outside the townsite was […]