The four leaders say removing campers from downtown district can be done in “a humane and compassionate” way by establishing a campsite elsewhere.
Local Government
Juneau’s legislators talk fiscal crisis with Assembly
Juneau’s state legislative delegation told a half-dozen members of the Juneau Assembly on Thursday morning that the state’s budget outlook isn’t rosy. Democratic Sen. Dennis Egan said there are real risks to middle-class public sector jobs under threat by budget cuts.
Ketchikan Assembly delays decision on taxing shipyard
A proposal to charge the Ketchikan Shipyard property tax or an equivalent payment in lieu of taxes was postponed by the Ketchikan Gateway Borough Assembly on Monday.
Ketchikan borough manager calls for 10% overall budget cut, to start
Ketchikan Gateway Borough’s new manager, Ruben Duran, told the Borough Assembly Friday that he has directed borough departments to cut general fund spending by 10 percent.
Police chief to give update on local crime
There will be a public meeting on local crime rates and crime prevention in the Assembly Chambers at City Hall on Tuesday night.
Southeast land exchange bill reintroduced in Congress
Alaska’s Congressional Delegation has reintroduced a bill that would trade federal land for land owned by Alaska Mental Health Trust – including Ketchikan’s Deer Mountain.
Kenai Borough invocation lawsuit moves to federal court
The Borough Assembly invocation lawsuit moved to federal court this week. The lawsuit, filed Dec. 14 in Anchorage Superior Court by the ACLU of Alaska, claims the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly’s invocation policy is discriminatory.
Unalaska Public Safety struggles to attract and retain cops
Staffing at Unalaska’s Department of Public Safety was the focus of Tuesday night’s City Council meeting. City Manager Dave Martinson said there simply aren’t enough police officers to cover the workload. In the last year, he said the department has denied 20 leave requests because of insufficient staffing.
Sitka’s Green Lake Dam back in service
On Jan. 7, the Green Lake dam was fully restored to service and Sitka is no longer using diesel fuel.
Juneau Assembly pushes sales tax exemption for cruise ships
The Juneau mayor’s tax initiative will certainly be welcomed by the cruise line industry which says its passengers pay nearly $8 million in sales tax while onshore in Juneau but has historically not paid sales tax for goods and services sold aboard its vessels.