Haines Borough Assembly members and residents this week responded to Mayor Jan Hill’s statement describing the community as the most “hateful and vindictive” as she has seen it during her lifetime. Hill’s prepared statement, which she read at Tuesday’s assembly meeting, criticized citizen behavior and allegations. “In all my life here, through good times and bad, I […]
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Year marked by citizen involvement
Heightened citizen participation marked 2015, a year in which residents challenged municipal leaders on a range of issues, and seemingly small matters spawned prolonged debates. Harbor expansion plans and a proposed minor offenses ordinance touched off months of give-and-take, but residents also raised questions about borough meeting procedures, funding for studies of helicopter noise and […]
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Executive sessions close door on public
In the past month, the Haines Borough Assembly and its committees have met four times in closed-door sessions. According to a public notice, the assembly’s Personnel Committee may go into another executive session Friday to discuss interim manager applications, bringing that number to five. Some assembly members have questioned the practice or expressed concern about the lack […]
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Ryan among 7 manager hopefuls
Haines Borough public facilities director Brad Ryan is among seven candidates who submitted applications for the interim manager position by the Dec. 4 deadline. In his cover letter, Ryan asked the assembly to reject the idea of hiring an executive search firm to recruit its next permanent manager. “I would like to conclude by urging […]
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Committee reshuffled
The Haines Borough Personnel Committee is playing musical chairs following a realization that the committee can only have three assembly members – not four – according to borough code. The make-up of the committee came under scrutiny after a recent vote to recommend Mayor Jan Hill serve as acting manager for a month. An examination of code revealed the committee […]
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Cozzi will serve as acting manager
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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Leaders to consider procedure changes
The Haines Borough Assembly is slated to introduce an ordinance Tuesday that would change the person responsible for preparation of the agenda from the Mayor to the clerk. It also attempts to more closely align code and policy on how items get on the agenda, striking some language from the borough’s Agenda Request Form that states “placement on a […]
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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 […]