Dear Editor: I have been active in closing my store for good, which is bittersweet for me. I am closing due to an out-of-state landlord not extending my lease which put me on a trail of having to find another retail lease, and unfortunately we were unable to find any space at all. Due to this unfortunate circumstance we have to close our all-year store.
What’s even more unfortunate is I can not get any aid from the city of Sitka at all. I would like a suggestion for a pop-up or a place that might be for purchase. I am willing to put a shed or something up, but there is no space to my knowledge that is available.
Sitka seems to have a lot of our retail space taken up by people who do not even live here, which was apparent on the last cruise ship day when our customers asked us why so many businesses were boarded up and closed.
In addition, Sitkans deal with this ghost town feel all winter, making our town very unappealing. I feel it should not be this hard for a business owner to find a place to put their business in. It’s not about having the right location, but any location would be great for us. There is just nothing… Do we really need two fur shops in town? Do we really need two jewelry stores in town? Neither of these businesses contribute to our fundraising for our community projects or contribute to our local needs.
If I was to be elected on the Assembly, one of the first things I would tackle is our city’s commitment to our small business sector and how to improve our needs. Thank you,
Tracie Castle, Sitka
