Posted inLetters

No deadline for passage of ordinance

The Haines Borough Assembly is scheduled to vote on the minor offenses ordinance at its Sept. 22 meeting. The borough manager is recommending passage of this ordinance. Assembly members Diana Lapham, Joanne Waterman, Ron Jackson and Mayor Jan Hill have voted to withhold further public hearings on this ordinance. There is no mandate in Supreme Court Order No. 1797. Furthermore, there is no […]

Posted inNews

Minor offenses ordinance trips up assembly

After nearly two hours of discussion, eight votes and considerable flip-flopping, the Haines Borough Assembly this week decided to postpone a vote on adoption of the controversial minor offenses ordinance until its Sept. 22 meeting. Eight members of the public testified against adoption at Tuesday’s meeting, reiterating concerns they have repeatedly brought to the attention of the […]

Posted inNews

Borough to censor police study

The Haines Borough has received a draft of the $22,000 study of its police department, but the document won’t be released to the public until it can be scrubbed of certain details. Manager David Sosa said he and interim police chief Robert Griffiths reviewed the draft, compiled by the Soldotna-based company Russell Consulting LLC. “There were some […]

Posted inNews

Assembly OKs $12 million budget including lobbyist, tax increase

Although two of its six members were absent Tuesday, the Haines Borough Assembly passed the municipality’s roughly $12 million spending plan for the upcoming fiscal year. Assembly members George Campbell, Diana Lapham, Dave Berry and Mike Case voted in favor of the budget ordinance. Assembly members Joanne Waterman and Ron Jackson were absent. The budget includes $45,000 for a […]

Posted inNews

Assembly committee IDs money for HARK

The Haines Borough Finance Committee this week recommended the assembly fund the Haines Animal Rescue Kennel animal control contract at $45,250 using savings from the townsite service area fund. The recommendation would mean using $29,050 from the townsite service area’s roughly $1.3 million fund balance to bridge the gap between manager David Sosa’s proposed funding level of […]

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Assembly delegates harbor analysis to Ports and Harbors panel

After the Haines Borough Assembly last week charged the Finance Committee with conducting an economic analysis of the Small Boat Harbor expansion project, the committee this week passed the task to the Port and Harbor Advisory Committee. Community and economic development director Bill Mandeville, working with harbormaster Shawn Bell, put together a rough operating budget for the […]

Posted inNews

Assembly wants alternatives to cutting HARK

Dog lovers, don’t despair yet. The Haines Borough Assembly on Tuesday passed a motion directing borough staff to investigate different ways the municipality could fund the Haines Animal Rescue Kennel at the $45,000 level. Current cuts proposed by manager David Sosa would slash HARK’s contract from $47,800 to $16,200. Sosa’s plan would cut the contract and move dog-catching […]