LUTHERAN QUILTERS – Members of the Quilts for Comfort Group stand between pews draped with some of the 205 quilts they made, in the Sitka Lutheran Church Tuesday. The group made the quilts for five local non-profits and one in Anchorage. The remaining quilts are sent to Lutheran World Relief which distributes them to places around the world in need, such as Ukraine, as part of Personal Care Kits. Pictured are, from left, Helen Cunningham, Kathleen Brandt,Vicki Swanson, Paulla Hardy, Kim Hunter, Linda Swanson and Sue Fleming. (Sentinel Photo by James Poulson)
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Daily Sitka Sentinel
Assembly Rejects Lincoln Street Plan
By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
The Assembly at its regular meeting Tuesday “put the brakes on” – for at least a year – a major repaving project on Lincoln Street, saying more public input is needed on what is arguably Sitka’s “most important street.”
“Has enough public comment and participation happened, that we’ve determined this is what we want?” asked Assembly member Steven Eisenbeisz.
“I would like to put the brakes on this project for at least a year,” Richard Wein said. “Some of the design elements are problematic.”
“It’s the most important street in town and we need to get it right,” Mayor Gary Paxton said.
The public works department held three public meetings and open houses on the project and got Police and Fire Commission approval on a plan that called not only for “grind and overlay” of the street, but improving access for those with disabilities and improving safety for pedestrians and motorists.
The design included “bulb-outs” at several points in order to improve pedestrian safety, maximize parking and comply with ADA standards. One major feature was a “plaza” in front of St. Michael’s Cathedral with raised crosswalks on both sides.
The plan also called for turning American and Barracks into one-way streets and adding ADA-compliant parking spaces.
Public Works staff members said they had talked to “key stakeholders,” and incorporated public comments as much as the budget would allow.
“This is very much a product of public meetings,” Public Works Director Michael Harmon said. “We’re trying to be listeners and do-ers. This is the most we could do (given the budget).”
Senior Engineer Dave Longtin said many of the concerns expressed by the public were about parking, and that a majority of those he spoke to were in favor of the plan as presented.
In general the Public Works staff wanted to go forward with the project that has been in the works for more than a year, but they said it’s more important that the plan has public and Assembly support.
“We don’t want to do (this) until people are excited,” Harmon said.
Some Assembly members said the project as presented was not what they envisioned when it was first introduced. The Assembly did not put the project up for a vote, but when it became apparent that there was no consensus in favor, the Public Works staff said they would continue their work – including meetings with Lincoln Street residents and businesses and the rest of the public – for another year before presenting it again.
There were no public comments on the project at the Assembly meeting.
The regular Assembly meeting was preceded by a one-hour work session on strategic plans related to economic development, and ended with three executive sessions related to the SEARHC/Sitka Community Hospital affiliation project, and a lawsuit against the city filed by a taxi driver.
Halibut Point Marine
Speaking under Persons to be Heard, Richard Wein said he heard at the Monday meeting of the Gary Paxton Industrial Park board that Halibut Point Marine may wind up its boat haulout service in two years.
Wein said the Assembly needs to provide direction on how the community can respond to the potential loss of this service to the commercial fishing fleet.
Without a publicly available haulout and boatyard, Sitka may see commercial fishermen relocating to Hoonah, Wrangell and Ketchikan, which have those facilities, he said.
“It needs to be spoken about in town,” Wein said. “We need to develop a direction ...”
Chris McGraw, manager of HPM, clarified today that he has talked to interim administrator Dave Miller and Public Works director Michael Harmon about the growth in cruise ship traffic into Sitka, specifically the increase in ships coming to his deepwater dock.
“I noted that the increase in cruise ship traffic has not diminished the number of vessels that the haulout is able to service,” he said via text message. “However, I did note that the increased ship traffic has put a strain on our facility, and if ship numbers continue to increase it is likely that we will expand our cruise facilities which will likely affect our ability to continue to adequately service Sitka’s large number of vessels.”
He said that for years the GPIP board has been talking about getting a marine service center at the old mill site, and said he believes “the city should actively pursue this so that Sitka’s commercial fleet isn’t affected by our decreased haulout capacity.”
McGraw said he doesn’t know how long it will be before he will be unable to continue the haulout business, since his decisions will depend on ship deployment.
“I know 2020 deployment and it won’t affect our haulout operation,” he said, and added he won’t know the schedule for 2021 until this coming winter.
Decision/Direction
Water Line Repair
The Assembly narrowly approved spending up to $400,000 for emergency repairs to a failing section of the city’s main water transmission line. Immediate action is needed to “avoid uncontrolled flows increasing to the point it could wash out SMC, significantly increasing the cost of the work and jeopardizing this vital state-maintained transportation corridor as well as water service to town,” city staff wrote in a memo to the Assembly.
The vote in favor of the budget ordinance was 4-3, with Eisenbeisz, Paxton, Kevin Mosher and Kevin Knox in favor. Wein, Aaron Bean and Valorie Nelson voted against.
The break was discovered in April near the Indian River Bridge, and the leak “appears to have stabilized in the last several weeks,” Harmon said. But he said the risk of a total failure is too great to delay the project. Potentially it could wash out a section of a major highway and shut off water to the whole city.
The Assembly debated whether it was appropriate to bypass the required competitive bid process, which is allowed in emergency situations “in the best interest of the city.”
They also discussed whether this constituted an actual “emergency.” Before he was dismissed as administrator, Keith Brady determined that the leak does constitute an emergency and Miller – as interim administrator – said he agrees.
“I think we’re following (provisions in the code) and I think it’s a project that needs to be done,” Miller told the Assembly.
Nelson said she believed city staff used this provision of the code in the past to avoid calling for competitive bids and that local contractors she’s spoken to agree with her.
“We have these procurement rules for a reason,” she said.
Harmon agreed, but added: “Our code is difficult to work with in emergency situations,” and the decision to go forward with an emergency repair was made by a team on the city staff, not one or two individuals.
Miller said today it isn’t clear how the project will proceed, but that he’s meeting with Harmon to discuss options. While funding for the project was approved, Assembly members proposed a number of options for moving forward, including a “creative bid” process, or following bidding requirements under the code for non-emergency situations.
Miller commented today that although the break appears to have stabilized, “that could change in a heartbeat.”
“We want to confirm what the Assembly agreed to last night,” Miller said, noting that all that was approved was authority to spend up to $400,000 to make the repairs.
No-Name Mountain Master Plan
The Assembly voted 4-2 to spend $165,000 on the No Name Mountain Master Plan.
Eisenbeisz, Knox, Mosher and Paxton voted in favor. Wein and Nelson voted against, and Bean had left the meeting by the time the vote was taken.
The plan was discussed at the work session prior to the regular meeting. It has been assigned to the Planning Commission.
Nelson said other plans and studies for the area already exist, and she didn’t see the benefit of creating another document that may not be used.
Consulting engineering firm Jones and Jones has been selected for the project and is to work with the Planning Commission, and city staff on the next steps, which includes a scope of work.
The purpose of the master plan is to develop a plan for opening up land for residential, commercial and industrial zoning.
Paxton said the plan is a long-range one, but should allow for economic development and more housing in the future.
Mosher said he foresees a process that will include the public weighing in on what they want to see in the No Name Mountain area.
“This is not the end; this is the beginning,” he said.
The first step of the Action Plan is: “Hire a Planning Director.”
Other Business
On other items, the Assembly:
– heard ambulance calls climbed sharply in the last five weeks. Miller, who’s also Sitka Fire Department chief, announced the fire hall’s Super Saturday event will be held July 27. Miller, as interim administrator, also announced the upcoming Crescent Harbor renovation project, which needs to be completed before herring season next spring.
– under city staff reports, heard from City Attorney Brian Hanson that while the legal staff has been working numerous hours on such issues as the Sitka Community Hospital/SEARHC affiliation and lawsuits against the city, it has also received a large number of public records requests.
– met in executive session for less than an hour to discuss legal matters related to the SEARHC affiliation project and an appeal of a hearing officer’s decision on a lawsuit filed by a taxi driver. No votes were taken, and no updates were given.
– approved renewals of marijuana cultivation and concentration licenses for AKO Farms at 1210 Beardslee Way.
– heard an announcement from the clerk that the filing period for two open Assembly seats (those held by Knox and Bean) and School Board (held by President Jenn McNichol) will open Monday.
– approved funding for security cameras in the harbors and a heat pump at the police department.
– approved the Assembly Position Subcommittee recommendations to hire a library page, library assistant, a part-time on call library assistant, and an intern engineer and office assistant at the fire hall.
The Sentinel will report in a future edition on the Assembly’s decision to approve on first reading the Floodplain Management Plan ordinance. The vote was 5-1, with Eisenbeisz voting against. The Assembly also agreed that property owners added to or removed from the hazard zone need to be notified.
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20 YEARS AGO
March 2004
Advertisement: Tea-Licious Tea House & Bakery 315 Lincoln Street Grand Opening! Freshly Baked Scones, Cakes & Pastries Innovative Salads, Soups & Sandwiches Harney & Sons Tea. Lunch * Afternoon Tea * Supper.
50 YEARS AGO
March 1974
Photo caption: National Republican Chairman George Bush takes a drink of water offered by Jan Craddick, Sitka delegate, during the Republican convention held here. Mrs. Craddick explained to Bush that the water was from Indian River, which means, according to local legend, that he will return.