Letter Response
Dear Editor: I was chilled by Michelle Putz’s Oct. 5 letter to the editor. Not because the former Assembly member’s heart wasn’t in the right place, but rather by the cluelessness displayed and that anyone thinks “green business” can have a significant effect on Sitka’s financial disaster. Even now the public doesn’t understand the extent of Sitka’s colossal debt but we do know it’s in excess of $100,000,000. The lack of transparency and of a plan is why I opposed Proposition 1. In effect we were told, “Don’t worry about the economic monsters on the other side of the screen, Dorothy. Just give us more money.” It’s as if the city was afraid to admit the terrible facts.
It was the former Assembly’s (on which Michelle served along with outgoing Mayor Mim McConnell and Mayor-elect Matt Hunter) “green blindness” coupled with a unreasoning fear of a 1-cent-per-kilowatt-hour diesel surcharge that panicked that Assembly into an open ended commitment to a not fully funded $180,000,000 hydro project. Open-ended because at the time we didn’t know how much we’d ultimately be paying or for how long. By the way, you can buy a lot of diesel for $180,000,000.
For the record I don’t blame the current administrator for this. Our economic ship was sunk the moment the 2012 Assembly voted (7-0) for the Blue Lake project. So in answer to Michelle’s request for suggestions to help deal with Sitka’s financial crisis, here’s mine: when the Assembly hires a new city administrator included in the required skill set should be significant background in municipal bankruptcies.
Matt Donohoe, Sitka
