By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
The Assembly passed on first reading Tuesday an ordinance for supplemental appropriations related to closing Lincoln Street for up to 71 days this summer.
Voting yes were Rebecca Himschoot, Kevin Knox, Thor Christianson, Crystal Duncan and Kevin Mosher. Mayor Steven Eisenbeisz voted no, saying he’s against the closures.
The budget ordinance will be up for final reading March 8.
The closure relates to the expected 71 days when 3,000 or more cruise ship visitors are in town. It’s not known yet how full the cruise ships will be, and how that would affect the closure schedule.
The plan calls for using the cruiseship passenger excise tax to help with the cost. To that end, the budget ordinance includes $50,000 in contracted purchased services for a cost allocation study to determine the impact of visitors on services and facilities. Other communities have done this, City Administrator John Leach told the Assembly.
“How each cruise passenger affects every aspect of the city,” Leach said. “It could be how much they affect lights being on .... it could include municipal solid waste. It could include our streets.”
The city also will work with the cruise lines organization and the city’s auditors on spending plans for the excise tax proceeds.
Eisenbeisz summarized: “By doing this study we’re going to be able to use cruise ship passenger head tax money to cover our costs of those cruise ship passengers. It’s not going to come out of the general fund, it’s not going to come out of our pockets. It’s going to (come out of) head tax money already provided.”
Other expenses include:
- $11,794 in temporary wages in the police department for a maritime safety officer.
- $1,500 for parking enforcement vehicle usage.
- $23,588 for Centennial Hall tourism operations manager in Centennial Hall.
- $30,000 for communications management and support at Centennial Hall.
- $23,588 for seasonal streets crew.
- $60,000 for signs and barricades, and $3,000 for radios.
- $25,000 related to the central garage funds.
- $25,000 in parking enforcement.
The total of $186,213 in extra costs is expected to come out of the Cruiseship Passenger Excise Tax fund.
Eisenbeisz asked for more public outreach on closure plans.
Christianson said Sitka should be flexible on factors, such as the hours or the threshold number of passengers that trigger the closure.
Himschoot asked whether the increased usage of utilities would result in cost reductions for residents.
Leach said, “That’s the ultimate goal ... when the tourist burden is placed on the systems, if we can cover the expense of some of those systems with that cruise passenger excise tax. The intent would be we could lower the burden on citizens.”
“And at a minimum, we’re not subsidizing the cruise visitors here on the backs of ratepayers because they’re at least paying their own way,” Himschoot said.
