After a half-hour of Haines Borough Assembly deliberation over whether to appoint Mayor Jan Hill as acting manager, Hill called an abrupt recess, then reconvened the meeting and moved ahead toward the next agenda item. Working from a recommendation from the assembly’s personnel committee, assembly member Mike Case made a motion Tuesday to have Hill serve as acting manager from […]
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Assemblyman takes up museum name change
A tense exchange at Tuesday’s Haines Borough Assembly meeting revealed there may be more to the Sheldon Museum and Cultural Center’s name change than has been publicly discussed. Assembly member Margaret Friedenauer broached the issue, asking if the name had officially changed. According to the museum’s minutes from the Oct. 14 meeting, the museum’s board voted 5-1 […]
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Hill to serve as manager?
After about 45 minutes behind closed doors, the Haines Borough Assembly’s Personnel Committee voted 3-2 to recommend Mayor Jan Hill serve as acting manager through Dec. 31. Manager David Sosa’s last day on the job is Dec. 4. Committee members Diana Lapham and Mike Case, as well as Sosa, voted in favor of offering the position to Hill. Lapham nominated […]
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Questions raised on hiring lobbyist
Nearly six months after approving a budget that included $45,000 for a state lobbyist, the Haines Borough has posted an advertisement for a firm or individual to represent the municipality’s interests and influence the Alaska Legislature. But two borough assembly members are questioning the wisdom of the expenditure in an era of diminished state spending. Assembly member […]
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Assembly OKs Sosa exit plan
The Haines Borough Assembly on Tuesday unanimously approved outgoing manager David Sosa’s request to be let out of his three-year contract “without prejudice.” That means he won’t be penalized for not providing 60-day notice, as required by his contract. Sosa will cash out 29 days of leave he has accrued since he started on the job in […]
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Nonprofit funding cut again
Haines Borough Assembly funding for local nonprofits dropped again this year, from $94,300 last year to $76,100 approved at Tuesday’s meeting. Manager David Sosa, Mayor Jan Hill and assembly members Diana Lapham, Mike Case and Ron Jackson scored 10 applications as part of the borough’s annual nonprofit funding process. The matrices used for scoring measure how the nonprofit […]
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Sosa looks back on performance
Cites policy-making, staff support as legacy In an interview this week, outgoing Haines Borough manager David Sosa said his biggest accomplishments were working with staff to update policies and procedures, paying more attention to employee reviews and evaluations, and working with the assembly to identify local and legislative priorities. Sosa offered an analysis of his 19 months […]
Posted inNews, Alaska Marine Highway System
Assembly splits on ferry letter wording
By Karen Garcia Haines Borough Assembly members wrestled with words Tuesday, as some claimed a letter to the state about ferry service reductions was too timid. The letter, drafted by Marine Transportation Advisory Board chair Robert Venables and tourism director Leslie Ross, contains language about the borough’s “sincere understanding” of the state’s current fiscal situation and […]
Posted inNews, Police
Minor offenses group chosen
Haines Borough Mayor Jan Hill revealed her selections for the newly-created minor offenses committee Tuesday, choosing four members of the public from a pool of about 10 applicants. Don Turner Jr., Bill Thomas, Deborah Vogt and Mike Denker will sit on the ad-hoc committee charged with tackling the minor offenses ordinance that has vexed the assembly for the past […]
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Eagle preserve council tepid on Chilkat River protection
A Chilkat Indian Village proposal to pursue top-level protections for the Chilkat River received a lukewarm response from the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve Advisory Council this week. Tribal council president Jones Hotch Jr. asked the council to support a resolution requesting the river be designated as an Outstanding National Resource Water, which protects waters of exceptional […]