Daily Sitka Sentinel

Assembly Says No To Virus Ordinance

By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer

The Assembly narrowly turned down an emergency ordinance Tuesday that would have imposed restrictions and requirements intended to prevent and reduce the spread of COVID-19.

The vote was 4-3 in favor of the ordinance but five votes were needed to pass. Emergency ordinances require one reading.

Co-sponsors Kevin Knox and Crystal Duncan were joined by Thor Christianson and Rebecca Himschoot voting in favor. Kevin Mosher, Valorie Nelson and Mayor Steven Eisenbeisz voted against it.

Several testified on the issue but fewer than have spoken on various other face mask legislative measures in the past. The Assembly also received a number of emails for and against.

Sitka has seen an uptick in cases since the middle of October. On Nov. 3, Sitka went from “moderate” to “high” alert on its dashboard after the cases per day average went above 1. The ordinance cites the closure of school buildings (except Baranof Elementary) due to higher cases, as a strain on the economy and a harm to students’ “educational growth, socialization and future success.”

The ordinance would have reduced capacity at bars and restaurants, and required face masks for staff and customers, except when eating or drinking; and imposed rules for large gatherings. Among the sections is a prohibition on gatherings of more than 50, and restrictions for indoor gatherings stating “all persons must follow physical distancing protocols, including remaining six feet apart. While singing or projecting one’s voice, those persons must be 10 feet apart.”

A few who spoke in favor said they didn’t think it was the best answer, but felt Sitka needs to do what it can to reduce the spread of COVID. Co-sponsor Knox said in a way he was “trying to sell a product I don’t want myself.”

“The notion that any one of these tools is going to eradicate the situation we’re in is disingenuous, a little bit,” he said, but added he saw this as an effort in “harm reduction.”

Others said the ordinance might not be perfect, but would be a step in the right direction to getting case numbers back under control, and is one of only a few tools at the Assembly’s disposal to that end. Sitka is currently around 4.57 cases a day, based on a 14-day rolling average.

Duncan said her intent was to strike a “balance” and create an ordinance that would fit the community, using the best information available. She and others praised many in the business community for taking difficult steps to protect Sitkans and keep the number of cases down.

“The thing about this pandemic, is we’re not going to make perfect decisions,” she said, noting the number of emails she had received on the issue. “Something has to be done, and I’m not quite sure what it is ... we’re not going for a shutdown with this ordinance. This is an emergency limited ordinance to try to get our numbers under control. People want to go back to normal and we’re just not there yet.”

Responding to the comments that Sitka’s case numbers were not too high, Christianson said Sitka’s case numbers were actually twice those of Juneau, and seven times Ketchikan’s rate.

“We’re not an island of tranquility we were a few weeks ago,” he said. Of the ordinance, he said, “We’re just trying to bring the numbers down.” 

But several who testified against, including some Assembly members, questioned whether passing the ordinance would make a difference in behavior, questioned the benefits of masks, and said they felt the ordinance imposed on their personal liberties. A few cited the importance of face-to-face meetings, and group gatherings, at this stressful time, and others felt the ordinance could be improved.

About 10 members of the public spoke against the ordinance before the Assembly weighed in. Two spoke in favor at the meeting, stressing the need to send a strong unified message from the Assembly in an era of mixed messages, the serious risks of COVID, protection of the health care workers, the strain on the healthcare system and resources, and the need to respond to the public health emergency through stronger measures.

Assembly members said they received a number of emails for and against. Himschoot said she’s seeing a lot of voluntary compliance with the mask recommendations in recent weeks. In general, she said, she was torn on whether to vote in favor. 

“I don’t like the idea of this ordinance even a little bit,” Himschoot said. “But I also don’t feel like I can miss the opportunity to support something or anything that might keep people safer.”

Mosher said he felt the ordinance took a “sledgehammer” instead of a “balanced” approach, and felt voluntary compliance to recommendations would work better than the ordinance.

“We can make the situation worse than the actual problem,” he said. 

“This seems like a targeted ordinance just to target bars, restaurants, churches,” Nelson said. “I do see a lot of problems with civil rights being violated, due process. ... this is not the answer.”

Eisenbeisz said he felt he was in a no-win situation. While he saw the purpose of the ordinance, he felt the public “lacked the appetite” for it at this time. He encouraged voluntary compliance with precautions.

“I fear that putting an ordinance that has punitive implications is only going to help divide us,” the mayor said. “Those who are on the edge of wearing masks and socially distancing simply won’t, just to spite the ordinance. I feel that those who want higher protections if this does not pass are only going to continue to call for them, and possibly rightly so ... ”

In other COVID-related issues on Tuesday’s agenda, the Assembly continued the declaration of a disaster emergency, in response to COVID-19, and a request for state and federal help. City Administrator John Leach declared the disaster emergency on March 15, 2020. The Assembly approved the resolution 6-0. (Nelson left the meeting before the item came up.)

On one of the final items, Leach updated the Assembly on progress in distributing the $14 million in the city’s share of federal CARES Act relief.

He said in Phase II of the distribution program for businesses, some 173 for-profit businesses had applied. Of them, 106 had been reviewed, and 14 so far found to be ineligible.

Leach estimated the city had received $3.6 million in requests from for-profits, and a total of $480,000 in requests (from 18 nonprofits). The Assembly approved $3 million in this round of funding.

“We’re looking at about $4 million in requests for a $3 million budget,” Leach said. “We put in the application ... that we retained the right to scale the grants accordingly to make sure we stay within the budget.”

Leach said in other CARES Act programs:

- 326 applications had been received for housing help at the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation.

- the city sent a subrecipient agreement to Sitka Tribe of Alaska, for extension of a food program, with $50,000 intended for support for the homeless population.

Leach said in his report at the end of the meeting that he wanted to thank businesses that have been cooperating with COVID mitigation efforts, and talked about the EOC discussions about the vaccine distribution program when it becomes available, as early as next month.

On another COVID related issue, Leach discussed the rollout of the “COVID-Conscious Business Program,” a program that exists in other communities.

“Tomorrow we’ll hit it hard and start talking about how we’re going to push this out, but we’re going to try to get our businesses in town to work through a certification process to where they can be certified as ‘COVID-conscious.’” Leach said. “We will put them on our website so people will know where to go and patronize businesses that are following good mitigation efforts.”

The meeting ran to the mandatory ending time at 10:30 p.m., but the Assembly finished all items on the agenda.

The Sentinel will cover the remaining items in Friday’s edition, including rejection of a response to a request for proposals for a land development plan in the Whitcomb Heights subdivision; approval of funds for a sewer pump project on Brady Street and an upgrade at the police department; proclamation of Small Business Saturday; and reports from Fish and Game, the Chamber of Commerce, Visit Sitka and Garry White, director of the Sitka Economic Development Association.

In the final moments of the meeting, Leach also updated the Assembly about his work on the homeporting of a Coast Guard fast response cutter in Sitka.

“I sent a letter to the delegation, I’ve gotten some questions back from the governor’s office, and from Congressman (Don) Young’s office about the Coast Guard (fast response cutter) siting here, and the timeline on that,” Leach said. “So they are asking questions on that. As far as I know, and the word I’ve gotten back from the Coast Guard is that they are still moving forward with those FRCs coming to both Sitka and Seward, so I’m trying to nail down that timeline.”

Eisenbeisz was the only Assembly member physically present at Harrigan Centennial Hall, with the rest attending through Zoom videoconference. Also in the room were City Clerk Sara Peterson, Leach and City Attorney Brian Hanson, other city staff and several members of the public.