Dear Editor: I am writing in support of the Vote YES on 1 Proposition at the May 28 election.
I am glad Small Town Soul of which I am a member could present our point at the recent town hall meeting where we were in one room with leaders and followers of Safeguard Sitka’s Future. Our group supports cruise tourism in Sitka! Most of our members are not engaged in social media where there was quite a witch hunt going on against us. We represent the community, and SSF a variety of business owners who have very concrete financial interests in the issue.
Their spokespersons were representing their, in my opinion, weak points for sacrificing the well-being of a whole community including a strong and diverse economy to benefit the bottom line of a few large and a group of small business owners. This is called privatization of the Commons.
There had been a lot of commenting on Sitka Chatters that was so aggressive and threatening that I stopped checking in with them. Our opponents spread intimidation towards normal citizens who don’t share their views. It explains why few with a different opinion want to engage with them. People are scared. We saw it at Harrigan Centennial Hall when their followers booed and clapped inappropriately, and some audience members left because of the disrespectful behavior.
Their speakers at this meeting basically told their own personal stories, and did not address things like overcrowding, health and environmental concerns, and losing our unique small town authenticity.
Blaming someone for not being professional because they use unfamiliar equipment is petty. The real lack of professionalism lies in the fact that Safeguard Sitka’s Future resists the fact that sales tax numbers compared over the years need to be corrected for inflation and other relevant factors in order to make a point.
We are a group of local volunteers, who are not backed by a for-profit industry that pays consultants and/or agencies to do the campaign work for them. Though they should be professional, they espouse false numbers. One can deduct that this is intentional to create a smoke screen hiding the absence of real arguments.
They are referring to their falsehood that Sitka is doomed without an unbearably high level of large cruise vessels bringing their passengers to a tiny place like ours. We know that many businesses cater to individual travelers and are, like we, negatively affected by over-tourism.
Nobody on their side mentions that the city and all their services are paid for with sales taxes of ALL economic sectors, not just cruise ships. The May 12 Sentinel reported that short-term rental bed tax remittance totaled $90,783. The total 2024 revenue was $1,515,057 exceeding 2023’s short-term rental revenue by 19 percent.
According to ALPHA the fish prices are recovering. This fact implies that in spite of normal ebbs and flows, our economy remains diverse and strong. The past few years have seen a significant increase in construction, hence city taxes, from many sources, but the new hospital, multiple housing complexes recently built, and airport renovation likely raised Sitka’s sales tax income.
The fact is that income from city sales taxes overall does not rise proportionately to cruise ship visitors, and in fact is falling after a peak.
All the negative environmental factors brought by large cruise ships need to be considered, including their impact on ocean water quality and therefore the fishing industry. The culpability of particular cruise lines and their ruthlessness of dumping illegally is mind-boggling.
Another fact is that the ownership of the cruise dock is opaque, to say the least. Sitka Dock Co. LLC is registered in Delaware, with 40 Percent of it hiding behind the company name Baranof Island Partners, also based in Delaware, co-owned by Royal Caribbean and Ceres Terminals. In other words, the current minority owners could stay waiting in the background until Mr. Chris McGraw and family are ready to retire and sell. This might lie in the future, but is definitely realistic. The fact is the cruise lines are here and are planning to stay. Mr. McGraw is their local front man. And the cruise line will not abandon its investments by pulling out all of their vessels. Remember, they come here for profit reasons, not to create revenues for schools and other entities and projects.
I recently took a picture on Lincoln St. Two men were installing a new business sign. The design of it reminds me of the typical cruise line style familiar in Ketchikan and other places they dominate. It felt like there’s another big cruise industry’s foothold in place.
We are hearing from contractors who were personally threatened to lose business because they dared signing the petition that led to this election. This is completely inappropriate, unless it’s ok to use threats and coercion to achieve business goals.
I am grateful to the Sentinel for giving me the opportunity to set the record straight. I appreciate the contributions of businesses, including the visitor industry, to many causes and aspects of the community. Sitkans have always been proud of supporting each other, and I sure hope that all citizens can find enough common ground to continue to do so. After all, we are a small group of people living year-round at the edge of a continent by the ocean, with a now active volcano looming over us. I respect everyone who makes their home here, and particularly those whose ancestors have always lived here. Don’t forget to vote YES on Prop 1.
Martina Kurzer, Sitka
