By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
The Assembly at tonight’s meeting will consider repealing a chapter of Sitka General Code, “Landslide Area Management.”
The Assembly approved the new section in 2017, two years after landslides killed three Sitkans and damaged property.
It had unintended consequences, said Kevin Mosher, who was asked by Kevin Knox to co-sponsor the ordinance to repeal this section.
“It was affecting the housing market while not providing protections,” he said.
The ordinance is up for first reading at tonight’s meeting, 6 p.m. at Harrigan Centennial Hall. Remote attendance is available on cityofsitka.com.
This chapter of the code for “landslide area management” has requirements about construction in parts of town considered a restricted landslide area, including requirements for a geotechnical evaluation, Those include properties identified as “moderate” or “high” risk areas in any city-commissioned map or study.
Mosher said he, Knox and City Administrator John Leach met with stakeholders, including those in the insurance and banking fields, about some of the problems they were seeing as a result of this section of the code.
Knox said he had other reasons as well.
“There was a lot of finger pointing going on and blaming city hall for lenders and insurers not covering or providing resources in the housing market in Sitka,” he said. “The bulk of the reason they were not doing it was the maps produced by other entities - not the city. I want to take the ordinance off the table as the reason why, and look for the real reason they have for not lending money and providing insurance.”
The packet includes a number of studies from different entities.
Leach in his report to the Assembly summarizes the “present situation”:
“The large scale (Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys) map, even in its present draft form, is known to the Sitka housing and insurance industries. We have spoken with local lenders, residential insurance agents, and an appraiser, and all persons agreed that the uncertainty surrounding this map and certain language in the Municipal Code are creating problems in the housing markets.”
Leach said the result is that landslide insurance is being required by home financing agencies and in some cases insurance companies are unwilling to write policies because the large-scale DGGS map indicates “high levels of landslide potential.”
“The situation must be resolved before the effects of this uncertainty results in a permanent dampening of Sitka’s real estate market and perhaps negatively affecting property valuations,” Leach wrote.
He recommended repealing the entire section.
“There appears to be a rational basis for this as the existing code apparently has not proven to effectively satisfy the safety purpose while causing significant negative economic/development impacts,” he said. “Repealing this section will remove the city as a barrier to lending and insurance.
“Developers, homeowners, lenders, and insurers will base their decisions on independent research and analysis from reports not commissioned or solicited by the CBS. Currently, lenders and insurers are using large scale mapping inappropriately and applying it incorrectly contrary to the disclaimer on the reports,” Leach wrote.
Mayor Steven Eisenbeisz said he has read the information in the packet but hasn’t decided how he will vote on the issue.
“I’m looking forward to a robust discussion on both sides,” he said.
Assembly member Rebecca Himschoot said she hasn’t heard from many members of the public on the issue, except a contractor who was in favor of repealing the chapter. But she added that in reading the supporting documents in the packet she feels reassured by Shannon & Wilson consultant reports published last year about the low landslide risk for Sitka High, Keet Gooshi Heen, the landfill ballfields and the water tank off the Cross Trail. Shannon & Wilson is a geotechnical engineering and environmental consultancy firm, based in Seattle.
“When we’ve had really big rain, some families were concerned about sending kids to school,” Himschoot said. “And this report confirms there’s no need for worry.”
