April 27, 2016 - Glacier City Gazette

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VOLUME 1 / ISSUE 6
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 27, 2016
LOCALLY OWNED AND PRODUCED IN GIRDWOOD, ALASKA
The beauty of spring
Page 7
Proposition 9 passes
after recount
By Marc Donadieu
Glacier City Gazette
Proposition 9 passes by a three vote
margin after an Anchorage City Hall recount last Thursday. There were 411 yes
votes to 408 no votes on the proposition
that gives the Girdwood Board of Supervisors the power to tax for policing.
The initial count was 410 to 408, but the
recount added one yes vote to the final
tally. Based on notes taken at the Gird-
wood precinct during the April 5 municipal election, it is suspected a jammed
ballot was not counted. The result of the
vote will be certified at the next Assembly
meeting.
The narrow passage of Proposition 9
reflects a division within the community
over a policing solution after Alaska State
Troopers leaving their Girdwood post,
June 30. While the Girdwood Board of
See back page
Whittier waits while Girdwood
looks for policing solution
By Marc Donadieu
“It’s a gateway on to
the next thing; the organizing of the police,
coming to community
standards, writing the
contract and working out
details. That’s all ahead
of us.”
– Girdwood Supervisor Tommy O’Malley on
Proposition 9’s outcome
With Proposition 9
passed by three votes after
a recount, the Girdwood
Board of Supervisors has
power to tax for policing.
With the Girdwood community divided over its options, GBOS is faced with
the important question
of how best to proceed.
While board members recognize an effective policing solution requires more
community support, decisions must be made over
how to create a larger con-
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sensus before the Alaska
State Troopers leave their
Girdwood post on June 30.
Although Girdwood may
choose to form its own police force in the future, it
cannot do so from out of
nothing in just over two
months, leaving its options
limited. AST has shown
no interest in staying longer. Paying the Anchorage
Police Department is too
expensive due to its urban
policing model. Having no
police protection was decided against with the passage of Proposition 9.
The nearest community
that has shown interest
is Whittier. When Girdwood was shown four policing options at the Town
Hall meeting in November,
the clear preference by
those attending was to pair
with Whittier, which proposed a policing option estimated to cost $615,000 a
year for three years. There
is nothing set in stone that
Whittier and Girdwood
will negotiate a contract
for policing or come to an
agreement.
GBOS must present a
way forward to find a policing solution the community can agree on. Whittier
must wait for Girdwood to
initiate a negotiation process, if that is the direction
GBOS chooses. The clock
is ticking toward July 1
deadline.
Because Whittier and
Girdwood view the policing issue from different
perspectives, the Gazette
spoke with an official in
each community – Whittier Mayor Daniel Blair
and Girdwood Supervisor
and PSTF member Tommy
O’Malley.
O’Malley said that the
PSTF will review its mission during Monday’s
meeting on April 25 to
see what its role should be
since Proposition 9 passed.
He said the Safety Committee vetted every police
option, and after the vote,
See page 11
Lauren di Scipio Kinsner / Glacier City Gazette
A lynx gazes into the distance at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation
Center in Portage.
Changes coming to Girdwood
School bussing
By Selita Rios
Special to the Glacier City Gazette
Riding the school bus is as much part of
many children’s school experience as the
smell of freshly sharpened pencils and the
excitement of yearly school supply shopping. The sight of children waiting at their
bus stops, backpacks full and lunches packed
is a sure sign of fall.
For many Girdwood School students, that
experience is set to change.
The Anchorage School District has a
Transportation Fund that is facing a $2 million budget gap due to rapidly rising costs
and flat revenue. (This shortcoming is different from the General Fund, which is
dealing with an $11 million shortfall.) Rather than charge for bus service, ASD decided
to look into areas where services could be
reduced or changed in order to make up this
deficit.
Girdwood School students (with the exception of those living on Upper Crow
Creek or in Portage) are currently served
by two buses, #622, which serves students
from Indian to lower Crow Creek Road,
and #623, which transports students living
in the neighborhoods past the Glacier Creek
Bridge. Starting next school year, these two
Parker Bailey / Special to the Glacier City Gazette
Girdwood School bus number 622
makes a stop on a rainy morning.
routes will be served by only one bus. The
bus will pick up its first group of students
beginning at 7:24 a.m. and drop them off at
school at 8:06 a.m. Then the bus will continue along its route, with the second group
arriving at school at 8:25 a.m.
On Tuesday evening, Girdwood parents,
teachers and students met with Anchorage
School District officials in the Main Commons of the Girdwood School to discuss
the impending changes and the implications for students, families and the academic experience. Attendees at the meeting
raised numerous concerns about the new
See back page
Task Force approves Whittier police talks
By Marc Donadieu
At Monday night’s Public Safety Task Force
meeting, the seven members present voted
unanimously to begin police contract talks with
Whittier. With a three-vote margin passing
Proposition 9, granting Girdwood Board of Supervisors the power to tax for policing, the Task
Force decided to move forward with the process
of drafting a contract with Whittier. There was
also a presentation by Seldovia’s Police Chief Hal
Henning, who emphasized he was not offering a
contract but exploring possibilities for Girdwood
forming a police department.
Girdwood’s Community Center was filled with
robust discussion from residents and guests over
how to proceed regarding policing after the Alaska State Troopers pull out of their Girdwood post
on June 30. The audience was greeted with an
announcement by Supervisor Tommy O’Malley
that before the meeting their taxes had been
raised by GBOS.
“We did indeed pass a tax revenue of .59,”
O’Malley said, “which is half of what we asked for
a year of police protection. It’s estimated that po-
lice protection contract will be about $612,000.
We passed a motion to raise our taxes by .59,
which is half because we’re just paying for half of
a year for police.”
Costs still to be determined involve inter-governmental charges, municipal lawyers reviewing the contract, office rent and 911 dispatchers.
Money to pay for the extra costs outside of the
contract will come from the Undesignated Fund.
In addition, the responsibility of Public Safety
oversight was combined with Utilities, which is
See page 2
Page 2
Dear Girdwoodians
Dear Girdwoodians,
Since 2011, the seventh and eighth grade students from
Girdwood School have had the opportunity to travel to
Washington, D.C. for a week in the spring. These biennial
trips, as you can imagine, are a high point of the students’
Girdwood School career.
The next tour to Washington, D.C., which will include a
quick trip to New York City, is scheduled for May of 2017.
The first fundraiser for this May 2017 trip was the Donut/Coffee/Cookies Sale held on Election Day in the foyer
of the Community Center. We want to thank the Girdwood voters for their generosity; nearly $1,500 was raised.
April 27, 2016 | Volume 1, Issue 6
>> IN THIS ISSUE
We also want to thank the businesses who donated to
the fundraiser: Java Haus, The Grind, Carr’s Huffman,
Crow Creek Mercantile, and the Girdwood Subway.
Several voters asked if “flocking” will be returning. As
this is a summer-before-a-D.C. trip tradition, flamingo
flocking will reappear once school is out. Watch for the
pat (that’s what a flock of flamingos is called) to come to a
yard near you!
Thank you again, Girdwood. We greatly appreciate
your support.
Sincerely,
The May 2017 D.C./N.Y. Students
Turnagain Arm Pit BBQ
Sometimes the student
becomes the master.
Page 4
Frozen in Time
A look back at the week
that was...
Page 5
Last run of the season
Page 7
Girdwood Clean Up
It’s time for a little spring
cleaning, both inside and ...
Page 8
FVCS
The anticipation is complete and all the good...
Page 9
Hope Author
Woman In The Locker
Room by Maggie Holeman
Page 10
Glass Doctor
Your vehicle is not truly
Alaskan until...
Page 11
Benjamin Fletcher / Special to the Glacier City Gazette
Task Force approves Whittier police talks
Continued from front page
currently overseen by Supervisor Sam
Daniel.
If a contract between Girdwood
and Whittier over paired policing
can be negotiated, it would still have
to pass through the GBOS and Whittier City Council. Both communities
will have the chance to thoroughly
vet the contract and its fiscal aspects
to ensure it is appropriate for the
needs of each.
The PSTF will reinstitute two
committees that had been recently
disbanded. The Information Committee will gauge community opinion, offer current details about the
process and answer questions. The
Contract Committee will handle the
negation process for a police contract with Whittier, with an emphasis on the proper amount of policing
and one that fits in with Girdwood’s
culture and safety priorities. A contract would have to pass municipal
oversight as well.
“Any contract has to go through
the purchasing department,” Daniel
said. “It has to pass muster with the
attorney’s office and liability. This is
not going to be a real fast process. It
is one, that if Whittier were chosen
as the vendor, that we would scrutinize very hard for the budget, for the
staffing levels as well as making sure
there is local control, and the local
control is the formation of a Public
Safety Committee.”
O’Malley announced the formation of Public Safety Committee.
Members will be initially selected
and appointed by GBOS. If you are
interested in serving on the Public
Safety Committee, please submit a
resume and cover letter explaining
your background and interest in the
position as soon as possible. In the
future, committee members will be
elected.
The appearance of Seldovia Police
Chief Hal Henning at the meeting
© 2016 Roaming Wolverine Media, LLC
We cover the communities of Rainbow,
Indian, Bird Creek, Crow Creek, Girdwood,
Portage, Whittier, Moose Pass, Cooper
Landing, Hope and South Anchorage.
came as a surprise. He is the chief of
the one-person police department in
Seldovia, which is off the road system
and across Kachemak Bay from Homer. He said his intention was not to offer a policing contract from Seldovia.
He explained his previous experience
starting a police department on short
notice and offered to consult with
Girdwood if it is developing a new
police department. He said he would
inform Seldovia officials of potential Girdwood interest, but the Task
Force did not request a proposal.
Supervisor Daniel explained. “We
have a potential, other alternative
[Seldovia] that we wanted to give the
Task Force an opportunity to hear,”
he said. “I’ve got to say that they’ve
[Whittier] moved forward in a good
faith effort. If Whittier were to leave
the scene, and whatever Mr. Henning and Seldovia has to offer didn’t
come forward, we would be up the
creek without a proverbial paddle as
far as having service in Girdwood.”
Published the second and fourth
Wednesdays of the month
Email:
marc@glaciercitygazette.net
Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 1903
Girdwood, Alaska 99587
+ Hope & Girdwood Clinic News – p. 6
+ Whittier Challenges Unified Plan – p. 8
+ Obituary for Don Conrad – p. 9
*The next issue’s
deadline to submit
Letters to the Editor
and Events for the
Community Calendar
is May 7.
Marc Donadieu – Publisher/Editor-in-Chief
Matthew Bailey – Graphic Designer/Webmaster
Lauren di Scipio Kinsner – Staff Writer/Photographer
Marlene Buccione – Chief Photographer
SK Malone – Staff Writer/Hope News
P.M. Fadden – Staff Writer
Volume 1, Issue 6 | April 27, 2016
Page 3
Chess in the park
Bird Point Bore Tide
DATE
TIDE HEIGHT
May 5
May 6
May 7
May 8
May 9
May 10
-2.6
-3.9
-4.9
-4.9
-4.2
-2.9
TIME
4:15 p.m.
5:05 p.m.
5:52 p.m.
6:37 p.m.
6:20 p.m.
8:03 p.m.
On these days the bore tide is
expected to be most prominent.
Marc Donadieu / Glacier City Gazette
Tommy O’Malley repurposed 5-gallon plastic buckets into chess pieces by removing the handles, cutting a hole in the bottom and painting them. The chess board is at Girdwood Town
Square and the buckets were donated by local business owners Michael Flynn, Jud Crosby,
and Spike and Suzanne Farley.
Live Music
SILVERTIP
Shows start at 8 p.m.
April 29
April 30
April 29
April 30
May 2
May 6
May 7
May 13
May 14
Tony Restivo and Jon Dykstra play Live at The Dive at Chair 5.
Todd Grebe
Brian McKay
Todd Grebe
Brian McKay
Open Mic Night
with Mike Oviatt
T. Harvey Combo
Jon Dykstra
Steve Norwood
Xtratuf Cowboys
Chair 5
Shows start at 10 p.m.
April 28
May 5
Xtratuf Cowboys
Tyson James and
the Strangs
165 Hightower Rd.
Girdwood, AK 99587
(907) 783-2594
To Go orders welcome
9 a.m. to midnight
Jeremy Cerutti, Tim Haren and Melissa Mitchell perform at the Silvertip on a Friday night.
Wednesday thru Monday
Breakfast served all day
Page 4
Notes from the Hinterland: Behold the Boar Tide
By Lauren di Scipio Kinsner
Sometimes the student becomes the master. Such it is with Jack Goodsell, owner of
the Turnagain Arm Pit BBQ in Indian Valley, home of the best barbeque around.
Since the dawn of humans, low, slow
heat has been applied to raw meat to create
a tender, delicious meal. Ancient sites such
as Stonehenge reveal evidence of regular,
organized feasts, featuring barbeque-style
roasts prepared for a well-fed population.
Smoked meats not only taste better, but
last longer, enabling humans to preserve
food--clearly an advantage in the primitive
world. Barbecue is part of all cultures and
all cultures have their favorite methods.
It is more than just seasoning and cooking, and chances are the kind of barbecue
you like and the methods used to cook that
food offer clues about where you are from.
If you love barbeque don’t miss the Turnagain Arm Pit BBQ.
What began in a trailer containing a
commercial kitchen with smokers in the
back evolved into a popular drive-throughwindow eatery with outside seating affectionately called “the shack.” Whenever the
Alaska Railroad train rolled by, the conductor would blow the whistle to the folks
eating on the deck, and they would enthusiastically wave back at him and those on
the train. In 2013, a second location that is
open year-round was started in Anchorage
on Old Seward Highway.
This spring, Jack and his wife, Carla,
purchased the historic Turnagain House
and are recreating a new--and improved-Turnagain Arm Pit BBQ in Indian Valley.
They are in the final stage of a complete
renovation, inside and outside, including
a new deck where the lucky customers can
enjoy one of the most spectacular views to
be found along the Arm.
After a 30-year career as a Neonatal Respiratory Therapist dedicated to caring for
premature babies, Jack focused on a lifelong passion for cooking authentic southern BBQ. His family and friends knew then
what we now know: that he could smoke a
darn good brisket.
Jack honed his craft apprenticing with
the legendary Mike Mills of 17th St. BBQ.
And after a trip north on the Alaska Highway, he and his wife Carla opened the Turnagain Arm Pit in 2010, and established the
best place to satisfy the cravings of hungry
customers for authentic Southern BBQ.
Each year, he and a member of his loyal
staff return to learn from Mike and other
Pit Masters.
The new location is an ideal setting for
what has become one of Alaska’s favorite
places to eat. One account has the building originally located in Portage, moved
by the State of Alaska after surviving the
1964 earthquake to its present location in
Indian Valley. In the mid 1960’s, what is
now the saloon was a post office and gas
station.
The atmosphere and charm within do
not disappoint, with the saloon, three
wood-trimmed dining rooms, a beautiful
stone hearth fireplace, a woodstove, bits
of local history adorning the walls and million-dollar views of Turnagain Arm and
the Chugach National Forest. After a day
of cycling, fishing, hiking or a scenic drive,
it is a great place to land for a meal.
“We have had lots of neighbors stop by
to wish us well, “ said Jack Goodsell, amid
the bustle of renovation work. “They are
excited about the new location. It will be a
bit different atmosphere, with an enhanced
menu, but with the same food that people
already know and love. Along with the new
deck to enjoy the views and sunshine, this
location also offers the neighborhood a
place to come in out of the rain and enjoy
a good meal with friends in a comfortable
setting”.
Goodsell said that the place will be biker
and bicycle friendly and that he, Carla and
the staff are proud to provide the perfect
place for people to eat, drink and socialize,
rain or shine.
Turnagain Arm Pit BBQ features original recipe sauces and rubs. In addition to
the traditional BBQ fare, the new menu
will include fresh fish and oysters, fish and
chips and other items prepared with the
same quality ingredients and served with
the excellent care that fans have come to
expect from Jack and his crew. Try the
Boar Tide signature sandwich of 1/3 of a
pound of pulled pork with a bacon plank
and the secret recipe smoked beans with a
cold beer or glass of wine.
Open May through September/October,
the restaurant is planning to offer holiday
smoked hams, sausage and turkeys. The
location is available for private parties and
catering during the off-season.
Eating meat slowly cooked with fire is
a primal connection to our ancestors and
more than one vegetarian has been seduced
by a succulent smoked brisket. Barbeque
Jack and Carla Goodsell.
Photo courtesy of Jack Goodsell
Wade Willis of H Watt & Scott, Inc. works on the new deck outside the
new home of the Turnagain Arm Pit BBQ.
may be the one thing we can all come together on or disagree upon. But wherever
your favorite barbeque may be, in our neck
of the woods, the Turnagain Arm Pit BBQ
is king.
The Turnagain Arm Pit BBQ is located
at Mile 103, Seward Highway, Indian, and
in Anchorage at 3637 Old Seward Highway, which is open year-round. Hours are
11 a.m. to 8 p.m. (907) 202-8010
Alyeska Resort is now hiring
for the 2016 Summer Season!
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For your new home, or next remodeling project,
build with someone who will give you quality
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(907) 382-6465
schubertgeneralcontracting.com
Positions include Food & Beverage, Spa Massage Therapist,
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Alyeska Resort Job Fair
Saturday, April 30th 9 am - 1 pm
Kahiltna Court Banquet Room – 3rd floor of the hotel
On-site Hiring Managers
Apply online at AlyeskaResort.com
For more information please contact
Alyeska Resort Human Resources at 907-754-2137
HSKP, Busser, Cook, Hostess, Front Desk Agent,
Reservation Agent eligible for end of the season bonus
Page 5
FROZEN IN TIME: A look back at the week that was…
By P.M. Fadden
Monday, April 25 – A nod to man’s best friend when, on this date in 1938, a Seeing Eye
dog is employed for the first time.
Tuesday, April 26 – Student protestors seize Ohio State University’s administration
building, 1968.
Wednesday, April 27 – The judicial writ of Habeas Corpus, or ‘produce the body’, is
suspended by President Abraham Lincoln, 1861.
Thursday, April 28 – Her Majesty’s Ship, Bounty, sails into naval and literary lore when
her crew mutinies against Captain William Bligh, 1789.
Friday, April 29 – New Jersey son, Gideon Sundback of Hoboken patents the all-purpose
zipper, 1913.
Saturday, 30 – The then fledgling nation, the United States of America doubles in girth
courtesy of the Louisiana Purchase, a land deal with France valued at $15 million USD, 1803.
I
Sunday, May 1 – Alaskan Proud: Secretary of the Interior
Franklin K. Lane announced the 1914 selection of the Susitna
Route for the government railroad. The rails would extend
from Seward on the coast to Fairbanks.
These dates in history are happily brought to you by the Glacier City Gazette in the hopes
that the current week is just as noteworthy. Cheers.
Baird Peak sits across Portage Lake from the Bear Valley side.
(c) Nick R. Gribble; Supplied by The Public Catalogue Foundation
Page 6
Hope Clinic talking points
By Rochelle Morris and Dorinda Carner
There are two Board members from Hope who represent the interests of the Hope community. The Girdwood
Health Clinic received two grants from HRSA. (The Federal Health Resources and Service Administration). The
first grant was $1,048,667 to provide health services for
Turnagain Arm, and the second grant was $90,500 for
providing outreach and enrollment assistance to service
area residents.
GHCI has been operating a clinic in Hope on a limited basis for over three years. Over the last year, the
Hope clinic hours were reduced, and provider visits were
a maximum of once per month. Services offered at the
Hope site were limited. Training in many areas was not
given to the local paramedic and EMT staffing the clinic.
Equipment orally offered or installed was either nonexistent or broken.
We requested a Board member from Girdwood attend
our Hope, Inc. meeting to give a status report of what
they had in mind for Hope’s future. In the September
meeting, they were put on the agenda but did not attend.
There was a promise by a Board member to attend the
next meeting to be held in January. No Girdwood Board
member attended.
In a Talking Points memo from Kerry Dorius, as Executive Director, it was noted “the funds (of their million
dollar grant award) would be used to improve the level of
care that the clinic provides to the residents of the entire
Turnagain area. …funds will also be used to keep accurate
records of how both the Girdwood and the Hope clinic
are performing. …These records will be used when we
(GCHI) apply for renewal of our grant in 2 more years.”
On March 17, a Board meeting was held, where by
the expenses of the Hope Clinic were discussed. The expenses included computer upgrades, phone bills, Internet
bills, propane heating and rent. Hope Board members
requested an itemized list and to be shown the propane
bills. During the previous summer when expenses were
tight, GCHI requested and received a substantial rent reduction.
It was also pointed out that monies and other donations for the Hope Clinic were not separated out from
those given for the Girdwood Clinic, so checks donated
to help the Hope Clinic were given to Girdwood personnel for deposit.
In mid March, Girdwood Clinic staff came to Hope to
upgrade computer equipment to provide efficient network sharing of medical records and information. One
propane bill was shown to the Hope Board Members.
The propane heating bills were being charged at a higher
rate. As a result, the GCHI is eligible for a credit of approximately $1.25 per gallon.
On March 28, two Board members came to Hope and
met with the Board members representing Hope. It was
stated GHCI now has enough staff to be able to bring ser-
vices to Hope and perhaps provide a clinician once per
week.
Apparently an executive committee meeting was held
to discuss the Hope Clinic, and a decision was made without a Hope Board member present who has no vested interest in the clinic building. About two weeks later on
April 12, two Board members came to Hope and met
with the Hope Board Representatives to say the Hope
satellite clinic would be closed permanently. This notice
was given without warning to the Hope Board members
and to the Hope community.
A Hope community member circulated a petition
throughout the community to request the reinstatement
of local medical services. Despite people out of town and
the short notice, there were approximately 60 signatures
gathered. The Hope Board members tried to have this issue put on the agenda as an action item on the upcoming
Board meeting so the Board can make an official commitment to the Hope community.
The Board cited the reasons for closing the Hope clinic
as:
1. They cannot afford to keep the Hope clinic open,
and they are having trouble keeping the Girdwood clinic open. They will have to raise approximately $75,000
above the grant in order to maintain their local operation.
2. There is a lack of staff, despite two local nurses who
would like to work in the Hope clinic.
3. The Hope clinic did not sustain itself. The revenue
from the billable patients seen at the Hope clinic was not
included in any report showing expenses.
4. The provider came to Hope only once per month if
there were a minimum number of patients with appointments - 6. Those billable patients apparently cannot be
identified as being seen in the Hope clinic.
5. The CHC grant did not provide any coverage for the
Hope clinic. GHCI could not pay the salary of their provider coming to Hope out of the CHC grant.
The Board told us that if Hope wanted to have local
medical services reinstated, we would be required to:
1. Find a place to deliver services. The Hope community is exploring a different site.
2. Develop and administer a Needs Assessment showing what kind of services the Hope community would
like to have. (The statistics showing the types of services
already delivered over the last three years are not sufficient.)
3. Find a way to pay for the services.
A call to the HRSA Project Manager was made. He
very kindly answered our questions. He confirmed the
demographics of Hope residents were not included in the
current CHC grant money. He also confirmed that Hope
residents were free to pursue assistance from other CHC
grantees or do a stand-alone service.
It is up to Hope residents to decide whether we should
pursue seeking reinstatement with the Girdwood Health
Clinic or seek other avenues.
ALASKAN SPECIAL
50% off for all Alaskans • June 1-15
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A beautiful cabin and a
five course dinner for two
FOR ONLY $125
Book it Now! (907) 782-3142 • bearcreek@alaska.net
Girdwood Health Clinic
responds to Hope
To the Glacier City Gazette,
This letter is in response to the letter from two members of
the Hope community who previously served as Board members for Girdwood Community Health, Inc. (GHCI). There
are some points in their letter that require some clarification.
It is true that the physical building in Hope that we leased
to provide health care services has been closed. On April 8 we
received an immediate resignation from our only employee
in Hope and could not financially justify the decision to rent
a building that would be empty. We feel it should also be disclosed that Rochelle Morris, one of the authors of the letter, is
also the landlord of the building.
The HRSA grant award to GHCI includes no operating expenses for any location. Operating costs are covered through
our earned revenue and fundraising efforts. Our only staff
member in Hope was a paramedic who was not able to provide any billable services. We provided her training for the
use of our software and our system but do not have a large
training budget. Any staff who wants to expand certification
and licensure should pursue that at their own expense as we
are not in a position to offer that kind of financial benefit.
We would encourage anyone with a medical background who
lives in Hope to send their resumes to our Executive Director
so that she is aware of their skills and their desire for employment if the opportunity is available.
The Hope clinic costs GHCI roughly $30,000 a year annually to operate, and in 2015 brought in just over $5000 in patient revenue. In the first quarter of 2016, we have only documented 11 patient visits in Hope. A non-profit is a business,
and it’s a business that must make sound financial decisions
and work within a plan to be sustainable. It is the responsibility of the Board of Directors to be sure that the non-profit is
healthy and sustainable.
The GHCI Board has reached out on several occasions to
the Hope Board members to ask for their assistance in finding alternative ways to provide healthcare services to Hope in
a way that is financially viable. We also asked for assistance
in providing a needs assessment survey to the community to
find out services the community needs and what the barriers are to receiving those services. Their decision to resign
from our Board is unfortunate for their community. It is our
desire to find people in Hope who are willing to work with
us, within our financial limitations, to find ways to provide
services to their community.
There are points in the letter provided that are misleading
or incorrect, but we feel it wouldn’t be productive to address
them line by line. We have provided the best service that we
could in Hope. We provided staff training. We attempted to
attend community meetings even given only a day’s notice,
we have properly accounted for any donations received in
Hope. We maintain financial records on expenses and revenues for Hope that are available to Board members upon
request. We upgraded equipment and systems in Hope, and
billable services from Hope patients are documented in our
electronic medical records.
We understand Hope is dealing with the fallout of our difficult financial decision, which is an unfortunate situation
many communities in Alaska are facing because of budgetary
cutbacks and reductions in service. Our doors are always open
to Hope, and we continue to seek out community members
who wish to have respectful, productive and creative dialog
about their needs and how they might be met. Thank you for
the opportunity to provide our response.
GHCI Board of Directors Executive Committee
GHCI Executive Director
Girdwood Health Clinic Update
After a one-week closure for interior renovations, the
clinic is now open for normal business hours. Stop by and
see our freshly painted walls, new flooring and renovated
office space. The exterior updates are scheduled to be finished next month. We continue to do our best to serve the
Turnagain Arm area during this time. Thanks again for
your patience.
Join us Friday, May 13th as we participate in the Alaska
Visitor Industry Charity Walk. Walk with us along the
downtown Anchorage 5k route starting and finishing at
the Dena’ina Center. It’s a ‘graze to raise’ event is full of
treats and prizes donated by local restaurants and businesses. There will be lots of music, dancing and fun for kids.
You can make a difference by registering to walk, donating to GHC, or pledging a walker for the Girdwood Health
Clinic team. See Raceroster.com for more details!
Page 7
Photos by Marc Donadieu / Glacier City Gazette
With spring beginning in the Turnagain Arm region,
there is no shortage of scenery with the shifting season. The top photos are of Virgin Creek and blueberries budding in Girdwood. The wild turkey was seen in
Indian near Indian Valley Meats. The remaining photos come from Portage Valley, which offers amazing
sights throughout the year in a dynamic landscape.
Grab your camera and get outdoors.
Page 8
Whittier challenges Unified Plan for hazardous spills
By Marc Donadieu
The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation and Alaska Regional Response Team recently proposed significant changes to the Unified Plan, a response
document addressing cleanup for hazardous substances
like oil. Changes were announced on March 25, with the
public comment period closing on April 29. The narrow
commentary window leaves affected and interested parties
little time to react.
Whittier City Council members were displeased with
both the brief response period offered and the significant
plan changes that would prevent local officials from participating in the process and keep information contained.
Council members expressed concern over having enough
time to adequately address the complex issues involved
with the proposed changes. The city of Homer, Cook Inlet
Regional Citizens Advisory Council and PWSRCAC asked
for extensions on the public comment period, and all three
organizations were denied.
Lisa Matlock, Outreach Coordinator for the Prince William Sound Regional Citizens Advisory Committee, gave a
presentation explaining the proposed changes in the event
of a hazardous spill. She explained the purpose of the or-
ganization.
“We promote the environmentally safe transportation
of oil from the Valdez Freight Terminal with the tankers
in and out of Prince William Sound,” Matlock said. “We
have membership on our board all the way from Cordova
to Valdez.”
Part of Matlock’s presentation was to ask that the council pass a resolution asking for a longer public comment
period to have adequate time to review the complexity
and possible consequences of the proposed changes. Tribal
organizations, local governments and other stakeholders
affected by a spill are part of the Unified Plan’s Regional
Stakeholder Committee. The proposed plan separates
these groups, limits access to regional command and plans
and restricts access to information during the response.
“In the old plan, there was very clear information that
the Regional Stakeholder Committee would receive. They
received the Incident Action Plan for how they are going
to respond to that spill. That is no longer clearly available
to either group in this new plan. It also limits access to the
Unified Command.”
Formerly, stakeholders could meet once a day with a Liaison Officer if an oil spill were affecting them and provide
information to the command. The new plan does not provide clear access to Unified Command.
“It’s specifically in the plan,” Matlock said. “It’s the responsible party’s liaison officer who will make the choice
about whether or not citizens get access. It means it’s the
liaison officer who is working directly for the oil company
who will decide how much information either group may
get and how much access either group will get.”
Council member Peter Denmark brought up the possibility of writing a letter of opposition instead of passing
a resolution requesting more time. City Manager Mark
Lynch reminded the council of the limited time to comment and brought up the difficulty of scheduling a special
meeting on short notice to address the matter. Denmark
was not charitable in his remarks about the way the changes to the Unified Plan were being conducted, and suggested
the shortcomings be listed in a letter of opposition.
“We can also note the lack of public comment period,”
Denmark said. “Given the recent lack of transparency
and access to the local community, just oppose the idea in
whole.”
Later in the meeting, Resolution #14-2016 Oil and Hazardous Discharge Unified Plan requested an extension to
response period. While the resolution passed unanimously, council members also agreed to wait for a denial of the
extension of public comments before passing a new resolution opposing the changes to the Unified Plan.
GIRDWOOD SPRING CLEAN UP
Leah M. Vanden Busch / Special to the Glacier City Gazette
Volunteers from the Lions Club ferry trash across
Glacier Creek during the 2015 Girdwood Clean Up.
Leah M. Vanden Busch
It’s time for a little spring cleaning, both
inside and outside of your home. Join us
on Saturday May 7 to help clean up Girdwood’s creeks and streets. Come to Lions
Club Park any time between 10 a.m. and
2 p.m. to pick up trash bags and gloves before venturing out to collect litter throughout the community. When your trash bags
are full, drop them back off at the park and
warm up with a BBQ lunch provided for
volunteers. The most dedicated trash collectors will be awarded with one of the
many prizes generously donated by our local businesses.
The Girdwood Clean Up Day is a collaborative effort combining an annual creek
clean up event organized by the Anchorage Waterways Council and the citywide
clean up organized by the Municipality of
Anchorage and Anchorage School District.
Last year, about 30 volunteers collected
enough trash to fill two pick-up trucks to
the brim! Since all of Girdwood’s creeks
flow directly into Turnagain Arm, it’s imperative that we clean up the trash in the
ditches and on the streets before it adds
to the garbage accumulating in the Gulf
of Alaska and along Alaska coastlines. We
hope to see you on Saturday, May 7 from
10-2 at Lions Club Park to help beautify
Girdwood.
Girdwood, Alaska
Page 9
Four Valleys Community School
Briana Sullivan
The anticipation is complete and all the
good guesses will be examined. Official
snow measurement was taken for the Alyeska Snow Classic on April 17, 2016. The
reading on the Alyeska Snow Classic Measuring Stick was 3.29 feet (three feet, two
tenths, nine hundredths). This contrast is a
significant from the inaugural measurement
of 8.20 feet in 2013 and 1.80 feet in 2014!
Guesses were submitted March 1-31 for
a measuring date of April 17. Contestants
guessed by purchasing tickets at $2.50 each
and entered them into an Alyeska Snow
Classic container. Fifty percent of the money raised will support FVCS and the remaining 50% will be distributed to the winner(s),
who will be announced before May 17,
2016. You know who you are: Thank you
to all those who joined the fun, played the
game and supported FVCS.
Tennis smashed into April with tennis
camps and clinics for all ages. The Girdwood
School gym’s spacious courts provided plenty of learning opportunity and skill development before the arrival of May. Coached by
professional Aaron Haines, the adult tennis
clinic brought out some active locals who
were definitely enjoying being on the court.
The drills, action, and game were likely felt
the next day!
Little Smashers Indoor Tennis camp and
Tennis I began April 4 and filled quickly.
The kids had a great time and positive experience with a new sport. Over 10 years
have passed since FVCS was able to offer
this sport. All in great timing too, as many
of these youth are likely more amped and
prepared for the brand-new tennis court in
town park this summer.
Build-your-own-Hanging Flower basket class hosted by Forget Me Not Nursery
had a blossoming turnout last week on both
Thursday and Friday evenings. About 25
people participated around the Earth Day,
sharing perhaps an annual tradition and
feel-good spring activity.
While spring is blooming before our eyes
and the weeks before July will be here too
soon, it’s not too early to think about Forest
Fair. Forest Fair Pin Painting created colorful designs, with brushes sweeping away and
many participants tapping into their creative side Friday, April 22. Don’t worry. If
you missed the fun, community, artsy event
because four more classes remain. Forest
Fair Pin Painting Class through May 20
takes place Fridays at the Challenge Alaska
Building from 6-9 p.m. Help paint those
famous Forest Fair pins. No experience is
necessary, plus there is no fee for this class
thanks to the Forest Fair Committee. Donations are accepted but not required. Register
at fourvalleys.org.
Alyeska Junior Ski Patrol Program finished second successful year
For five consecutive Sundays, 15 Girdwood youth, aged 10-14, geared up to shadow Alyeska professional and volunteer Ski
Patrol through the Alyeska Junior Ski Patrol
program. This program was made possible
by FVCS, Alyeska Resort and the Alyeska
Ski Patrol.
Patroller Bryan Epley was a leader of
the program, who took time to elaborate
on 2016’s program. The Alyeska Ski Patrol
is made up of professional and volunteer
members who work closely with one another to staff the Resort.
“The National Ski Patrol Young Adult Patrol program is designed for teenagers, ages
15-18,” Epley said. “Several members of the
Alyeska Ski Patrol, both professional and
volunteer, have children who are too young
for the Young Adult Patrol program, but
who demonstrated an interest in patrolling.”
That got patroller Scott Hickox thinking,
who was the brainchild of the Alyeska Jr.
Ski Patrol program. Hickox is also a junior
high teacher at the Girdwood K-8 School
who worked closely with Patrol management and FVCS to administer the program.
Patroller Ben Kohler, along with Hickox,
developed the daily plan, aided by about a
dozen pro and volunteer patrollers, executing countless volunteer hours to make this
class possible both seasons. The registration
process was strictly first come first serve,
available through FVCS. During the first
year, the students worked closely with one
another and this year students helped with
some of the instruction.
“Our original thought was that the kids
be about 10-14 years old,” shared Epley, and
it turned out this year that’s what they had.
2015’s program filled the 10 spaces available
and this year 15 youth participated, again
filling the classes’ cap quickly. The 5th-7th
graders were “given a broad exposure to
patrolling and their compressed days were
somewhat reflective of a typical day of patrolling,” said Epley. “They learned moun-
Briana Sullivan / Special to the Glacier City Gazette
Participants in Build-your-own-Basket design unique hanging planters at the annual class hosted by Forget Me Not Nursery last week.
tain geography, morning work run responsibilities and tasks, knot tying, how to use
avalanche transceivers and probes in single
and double burial scenarios, and basic first
aid.”
The program is very exciting albeit expensive to operate, mostly due to insurance.
“It is my hope that we develop some future
professional and volunteer patrollers and
instill a lifelong passion for patrolling and
volunteering one’s time and energy in the
community. Every participant has expressed
an interest in returning next year,” asserted
Epley.
The great group of kids and leaders made
the program fun said Jr. Ski Patrollers Emily Hickox and Isabel Lukes. “We liked doing
the dog demos with the Resort’s avalanche
rescue dogs, doing the beacon searches, and
skiing fresh pow!”
Both young ladies also liked the backboarding exercises and are looking forward
to doing it again next year.
FVCS Executive Director Catherine
McDermott expressed gratitude, saying,
“Thank you for all who volunteered and
participated; truly a great group of kids and
leaders!”
Visit our Facebook page to see photos
of the beautiful pieces participants created
at Paint Night for Kids, basketball action
photos and to sign up for the next one. Our
summer schedule is loaded with camps and
activities for youth of all kinds so visit our
website to see what fun is going on in Girdwood. Plan your summer today.
An Obituary for Don Conrad
By John Gallup
Word spread today in Girdwood of the death of Don Conrad. His name might not be too familiar to anybody arriving
in Girdwood in the last 15 years or so, but for those of us a
little older, he was a legend.
He was my first boss in Girdwood. I had parked my camper
right next to the Alyeska Pool in early November 1972 and
went up to the lift shack every evening when the crew came
down from the Chair 2 project to bug Don for a job. The answer was always a gruff “No.”
The wallet was getting thin. I was down to mac and cheese,
and Carling Black Label from the Kut Rate Kid when I went
to bed the Wednesday evening before Thanksgiving.
Very early Thursday morning came with a banging on
the camper door. There in the glare of equipment lights and
heavy snow was Don yelling at me to “Move my damn camper!” so he could plow. And by the way, “get up to the lift shack
and punch in.”
Thus my career at Alyeska began. My inaugural position
was at Midway, Chair 1, where I remained for the next few
weeks. Don would ride through on the lift, his arms full of
lift parts/cat parts/bamboo poles and critique the lift ramp,
which always seemed to be too high for him. You had to pay
attention, because Don would ski up suddenly or walk up
from some broken Snowcat somewhere and do a little unscheduled inspection.
Once I had a paycheck, I would buy a quart or two at the
Daylodge Bar (90 cents in those days), and Don would warm
right up. I convinced him that I was ready for a promotion
to some other lift station, and he scheduled me for the top of
Chair 1.
I had never been above midway. Don’s system of scheduling was to hire one person for each lift position and work
them seven days a week. I could see the happy skiers coming
down in the sunlight, but everything above midway was terra
incognita for me. That first lift ride to the top was a revelation
– no wonder those skiers were so happy!
One of my other duties was to haul the Sitzmark garbage
down to the dump in the morning. Don had fabricated a
dumpster that went on the back of a 1/4-ton Dodge military surplus truck, and when the dumpster was full, the front
wheels just grazed the ground. The dump was just an open pit
down where the Girdwood School stands today. We would
back the truck up to the edge and release the dumpster before
going back up to the hotel to park the truck and go up the
lift. If we ever fell a little behind schedule, we could count
on Don racing up in his pickup to “encourage” us to work a
little faster. He was quick to anger, but also quick to smile, and
quicker with a beer. He was a great guy to work for.
He was the hardest working man I ever met, and he ran
his contracting company, which he formed after leaving Alyeska, with the same energy with which he ran the mountain.
If you have a house here in Girdwood, chances are the water
you drink comes through pipes Don laid. The gravel in your
driveway was probably hauled by Don. If you needed a load in
a hurry, he would always drop what he was doing and get it
for you. The bill said 12 yards, but there was always a lot more
gravel than that.
He was always generous with his tools and would lend you
whatever you needed. It sometimes took some searching. “I
know that damn thing is here somewhere.”
Wherever you found Don, you also found Mike Branch,
who worked with Don for decades. They would “break up”
every few months but were soon reconciled and working
away, “debating” from time to time over the best way to do
something.
The last time I saw Don was down at his place on Crow
Creek Road, when he sold off his tools in preparation for
moving to Utah to retire. We told a few old stories again, and
I got a nice 4-lb. mini-sledge from him, and I think of him every time I reach into the drawer for it. It’s got a great feel and
a nice short handle for persuading in tight places.
There are hundreds more Don Conrad stories. Men like
Don generate more than their share.
Rest in Peace, Don.
Page 10
Courage in the face of diversity
Woman In The Locker Room
by Maggie Holeman
By SK Malone
Staff Writer
“This story is about change. Changing the rules, changing attitudes,
conceptions, traditions and roles. It’s
about spirit, drive, tenacity, independence and human growth. And it’s
about bravery. Not only in the sense
of our chosen careers, but in the sense
of accepting personal strengths and
the ability to let go.” Maggie Holeman
from her book Woman In The Locker
Room.
Maggie Holeman is Hope’s newest published author; she has written
a book titled Woman In The Locker
Room- An Alaskan Woman’s Journey
for Change. It’s about her struggle to
overcome a chaotic childhood while
becoming the first Alaska woman to
have a dual career in both the fire and
police department at Anchorage International Airport. This was during
a time when professions for women
were minimal as to what fields they
could enter into.
“This novel is multi-faceted. It’s
about overcoming child abuse, about
me being the first woman in a department of 86 men and it’s about discrimination,” Holeman replied when asked
what her book was about.
She started working on her story
15 years ago. At the time she wasn’t
thinking about publishing or turning
it into a novel. The writing started off
as a bunch of stories she wrote for her
children.
“The reason I started them was that
Anchorage International Airport was
SK Malone / Glacier City Gazette
Hope author Maggie Holeman poses with her recently
published book.
unique,” Holeman said, “being approximately only 1 in 5 located in the
United States with a combined Fire
and Police Department. I also wanted
my kids to have stories about their
mom,” she said.
She wrote for several years and ended up with 40 stories. One editor told
her to put everything in book form, so
as time went by she critiqued, edited
and started to look at them as a book.
One editor remarked how she seemed
to be more of an observer of the stories
than a part of them.
“Some of these were juxtaposed stories of my childhood,” Holeman said,
“which was chaotic, so for me to put
myself in these stories stirred old emotions I thought were gone.”
She finished formatting her finished
works into a book five years ago, and
now it is a published work. Holeman
recently had a book signing for her
book at the Hope Community library
on April 9. Approximately 35 people
were in attendance for this event,
where Maggie talked about her book
and signed copies. She also had a retired
guest speaker come from Anchorage to
talk about what working in the Airport
Police and Fire Department meant at
that time as well as working with a
woman in a job that was considered a
man’s job in the 70’s. Holeman stood
up and made a difference in her field.
You may find her book in a number
of places. Online, you can find it at
Amazon.com and on Kindle. The book
is also at a select few Fred Myers and
Carr’s grocery stores. Around Hope
you can find it at the Library Gift Shop.
A few other Hope gift shops have expressed their interest in carrying the
book as well, these include Sherrit’s
Fine Art Gallery, Sour-Dough Dru’s
gift shop and Hope Junction Trading
Company. The Hope Library also has
copies available to be checked out.
Maggie Holeman is a brave and courageous woman, an inspiration. She
overcame her chaotic and emotional
childhood, discrimination and adversity in a challenging career, stood up
for her rights and the rights of women
in the future who might choose the
same career field. She wrote her story
of these events in her life to give them
a voice and share them. Hopefully this
novel will give others courage to follow their dreams, whatever the odds,
to stand up for themselves and be
brave.
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Page 11
Whittier waits while Girdwood looks for policing solution
a way forward must be chosen.
Despite offers from police officers in Dillingham and Seldovia
to help start a police department,
O’Malley said one will not be built
from scratch at this point.
“The Safety Committee has
done its job,” O’Malley said,
“which is to present options. The
Information Committee will have
meetings over the next couple of
months to gather public opinion.
It will be like a Board of Supervisors meeting but just on police.
We haven’t worked out any details, so we need to get down to
the details.”
The Information Committee
would be tasked with learning
community concerns about policing, especially from those who
voted no, to try to find a workable consensus. O’Malley is hopeful that the process will eventually
lead to Girdwood forming its own
police department in the future.
“It seems to me that developing
our police department,” O’Malley
said, “which is down the road
a ways, is really a good idea. If
Whittier doesn’t work out for
some reason… In any case, we
should work toward having our
own police department, and that’s
really complicated.”
Whittier’s Mayor Blair is pretty
positive about pairing policing
with Girdwood, but he knows
the decision is not his to make or
negotiate. There is not much he
or the city can do except wait for
Girdwood to act. If Whittier is the
choice, it’s prepared to go forward
with the process.
“Chief Schofield has been doing
some homework,” Blair said. “He
has some of the physical resources
that are going to be required, like
additional police cars. There’s
some hardware required for the
officers, and he has put some stuff
on reserve. I think it’s going to take
a week or so. Once a contract is
negotiated, it has to go before City
Council. As long as there are not
unforeseen delays in that area and
there are no hiccups because there
are always last minute things. I
think there is a reasonable chance.”
Blair believes it is possible to
put together a policing package for
Girdwood within two months if
a contract were negotiated soon.
The goal for both communities
would be to have policing in place
by July 1 for the beginning of Forest Fair. Blair said that the tight
deadline applies appropriate pres-
sure to get everything ready instead of an indefinite timeline.
Blair praised the rural policing
model used my Chief Dave Schofield, saying that it has worked
well for seven years. Blair is interested to see how this model works
in a larger community. He thinks it
will be a good fit since Girdwood is
a happy, functioning community.
However, he realizes there will be
critics and skeptics regarding the
Whittier Police in Girdwood.
“I have no doubt that there is
going to be some skepticism,”
Blair said. “We’re from Whittier,
and we’re not part of the community of Girdwood. You get
that same thing here in Whittier
when people show up from outside of Whittier. There’s a certain
amount of, not mistrust. They’re
not local people you know and see
every day. There is probably some
misinformation out there. I’m not
sure what information they have
about our police force or what
their perceived information is.”
If Whittier is chosen to police
Girdwood and a contract agreed
upon, Chief Schofield has indicated a significant community outreach by he and his officers would
be in order.
Mayor Blair was supportive of
Chief Schofield, saying, “I think
he’s gone as far as he can and I
think he’s got a lot of things organized, so that if Girdwood decides
to go ahead, I think he can hopefully turn on the spigot and get
things rolling. I’m optimistic.”
Ragged Top looks resplendent during a warm spring evening in Girdwood.
Glass Doctor comes to South Anchorage
By Marc Donadieu
Your vehicle is not truly
Alaskan until your windshield has been chipped or
cracked. Driving the Seward
Highway is a scenic way to
introduce your windshield to
rocks kicked up by the tires
of other vehicles. Maybe the
cracks in the glass are growing at an alarming rate or a
large chip interferes with
your line of sight. Unfortunately, there comes a time
when replacement or repair
can no longer be pushed back
until next week.
When your windows
need work, Andrew Morgan is the professional on
hand to help. His recently
opened Glass Doctor in
South Anchorage, and it is
the only franchise of its kind
in the city. Renowned for a
1-year warranty on windshield breakage, his shop offers extensive glass services
performed at the highest
quality standards.
“They do everything from
windshields, to home glass,
to business glass, table tops
and countertops, everything
glass,” Morgan said.
Morgan is certified to
work on vehicle glass and
perform headlight restoration. He also was recently
certified to work on residential glass and commercial glass. After acquiring
the franchise in March
2015, Morgan began performing mobile work from
his large business van in
June 2015. It was a frustrating, 7-month search to find
a suitable property where he
could have a shop and start
expanding with a proper
waiting room. While progress on that front is moving
slowly Morgan said there
would be a grand opening
once complete, hopefully by
the end of summer.
Because he can work out
of his van, Morgan is open
to the idea of traveling to
Turnagain Arm communities to repair or replace
glass. If he can work with
a few customers a day, it
is cost effective for him to
travel to the communities
south of Anchorage. In the
case of windshield replace-
ment, he requires a covered
work area to ensure a proper seal.
Morgan explained how
he came into the glass business. “I have a degree in
business management, and I
didn’t find a job to do anything with that. I saw how
big chip repair and windshield replacement was here
in Anchorage. I thought, ‘I
need to help get me into that
market.’ We looked into
franchising at Glass Doctor, and what stood out was
their Code of Value.”
He is looking to develop
his new business to the point
where he has enough work
to justify having three vans.
His plan is to have them in
five years. Though his business is primarily auto glass,
he hopes by next year to
have more residential and
store front glass work.
For Morgan, every job is
a learning experience, and if
one approach isn’t working,
he finds another that works.
He also clearly enjoys what
he is doing.
“Cutting flat glass with
the little glass cutter is the
Andrew Morgan uses
a variety of tools to
extricate and replace
a broken windshield
at his new South Anchorage business.
Photos by Marc Donadieu / Glacier City Gazette
most fun thing that you can
do and the most dangerous,”
he said. “Even though the
edges look smooth, you’ve
got to be careful or otherwise it’s going to cut you. I
enjoy the hands on part. I’ve
always loved working with
my hands, taking things
apart and putting them together. It’s a lot of precision.
You’re making something.”
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Page 12
Proposition 9 passes after recount
Supervisors now has the authority to move forward to find a solution, there is wide recognition
that it must be done in a way that
creates a larger community consensus to ensure feasibility.
At the April 18 GBOS meeting,
Municipal Attorney Bill Falsey
arrived with recount documents
that found no shortage of people
willing to volunteer. The petitioners had multiple reasons for
wanting the close vote to undergo
additional scrutiny before certification. For the recount to happen,
10 registered voters had to sign up
and pay $300 to have Girdwood’s
three precincts reviewed. The
precincts are Girdwood, absentee
ballots, and questioned ballots.
The money would be refunded,
minus costs, if the outcome of the
vote changed.
Girdwood residents Mike Edgington and Barry Durbrow signed
the Proposition 9 recount petition
and drove to City Hall to see the
event in person. Both were interested in witnessing the process of
the recount as well as its result.
“There were multiple motivations and reasons for people wanting a recount,” Edgington said.
“The main purpose of the recount
is that it’s very, very close. There
is always going to be some question about whether given any ir-
regularity, one small mistake could
easily switch the result. We want
to make sure everything has been
done to make sure that result is
correct before we go ahead.”
One of the concerns over Proposition 9’s outcome was that people
not registered to vote in Girdwood
had cast ballots. If an unregistered
voter arrives at a precinct, he or
she is given a questioned ballot. It
is not until later that election officials check the voter’s registration
to determine the ballot’s validity.
Questioned ballots were rejected
during the recount because the
voters were registered in another
precinct, borough or state or simply not registered.
“In the case of the Girdwood
precinct,” Edgington said, “my understanding is about 31 or 32 questioned ballots were cast here, and
only four were actually counted. I
imagine that the majority of those
were people who were not registered in Girdwood or registered 30
days prior.”
Edgington said that for a policing solution to work in Girdwood,
the concerns of the no voters and
the yes voters will need to be heard
in order to get a workable consensus moving forward.
“To be successful in the long
term,” he said, “you need the community behind any policing solution. At the moment, if the community is split 50/50, people are
not going to be behind that to the
extend they would need to be to be
successful.”
Durbrow gave his reason for petitioning for a recount. “The vote
was so close,” he said, “and I wanted to make sure that we got to the
correct result. I knew this would
be a divisive issue for Girdwood,
so I thought it would be a good
idea for a recount to go forward so
we had a firm number.”
Durbrow was glad to view the
recount process from the beginning, including a hand recount of
the Girdwood precinct’s ballots to
make sure the numbers were correct. It was a learning experience,
and it was not what he expected to
see.
“It’s very involved, and it’s not
as clean as I had imagined. That
was one of the other reasons I
came down here, to see the process in action because Girdwood
is a split municipality. It’s kind of
bizarre the way the map is drawn
and some people got ballot 19 and
some people got ballot 18 depending on where they live. It’s been an
eye opener.”
Larry Holmes, a long time member of the Girdwood community,
also signed the petition for a recount. He recalled a number of
growth issues the town has faced
over the years, such as the water
system, the fire department, and
natural gas coming to the valley.
Mike Edgington (center) and Barry Durbrow (right)
observe the recount process on Proposition 9, which
passed by three votes and gives the Girdwood Board of
Supervisors the ability to tax for policing.
Holmes said that while these developments have benefitted the
community, they were very controversial at the time. He said the
community discussed these issues
and generally came together. He
hopes it happens on the current issue of Girdwood policing.
“I feel strongly that there needs
to be a public safety presence in
Girdwood,” Holmes said. “I don’t
think we’ve come to a collective
consensus. The vote itself at the
time I signed the recount was only
two votes more ahead of the opposition. I see there is a lot of perceived partisanship from people
on the outside looking in, and you
heard it at the meeting. That’s the
last thing you want to have in a
democratic republic. Basically you
want people to feel like they’re being represented whether you agree
with them or not.”
Changes coming to Girdwood School bussing
bus service, from safety to
timing to the lack of community involvement.
Joslyn Stinson offered
concerns, both as a parent and as a teacher at the
school. “I find it very hard
to believe that this schedule
will work,” she said. “When
you look at the times in between stops, many of them
are only a minute apart, it
seems like there is a strong
likelihood that the bus will
run behind, and with only a
5-minute window from the
time students arrive until
the late bell rings, I feel that
this has a huge potential to
impact the academic day.”
Despite the fact that the
route has yet to be tested,
Chuck Moore, the District’s
new Director of Transportation reiterated their confidence that “this will work.”
One of the biggest issues
with consolidating the bus
stops was safety.
“My biggest concern with
the changes to the bus stops
is that in the winter, you
now will have kids walking
further in the dark, on the
road, with no streetlights
and no sidewalks. It seems
like a potentially very dangerous situation,” offered
Betsy Connell, a sentiment
echoed strongly by parent
Mandy Hawes.
Hawes said that her children were almost hit recently on their way home
from the bus stop by a driver
who took a corner too fast
and slid on the gravel road.
“It feels like Girdwood is
always having services retracted at the expense of
safety just because we have
a low population relative to
the district,” she added.
Another unknown is how
students will be supervised
before and after school
hours, what activities they
will be engaged in and who
will perform the supervision. While it appeared
likely that some additional
money may be available
from the general fund to
pay teachers to add this
time to their schedules, concerns about further strain
to already stressed teachers’
schedules were raised.
On hand to address a peripheral issue was Jim Anderson, ASD’s new head
of Student Nutrition. “We
would love to be able to
serve breakfast here,” he
enthusiastically offered. “It
might be something to help
offset the earlier arrival
time if parents knew their
kids could have a delicious
and nutritious breakfast
here at school before classes
begin.”
As the meeting progressed, community members began to offer a variety
of options to District rep-
resentatives, from utilizing Glacier Valley Transit
services to lobbying the
Municipality for tax dollars
that come from Girdwood
but are spent on Anchorage
services that do not benefit
Girdwood residents.
Unfortunately,
when
asked if the one bus route
solution was a “done deal,”
Mike Graham, Chief Academic Officer for ASD answered, “Yes, it will be happening. We can reassess it
if there are safety problems,
but this will happen in the
fall.”
Bird Creek resident
Whitney Whitman offered the last comment of
the evening, encapsulating
a sentiment characteristic
of the community. “Our
kids are heavily impacted
by this. I would like to say
that I really appreciate the
work that you have put
into this, and your coming
down here. And I know
that you are dealing with
some really tough issues
to which there are no easy
answers, but I think you
missed out on your greatest
resource, which is the community here. Why weren’t
we asked? We are good,
involved, creative problem
solvers, and we are taken
off guard when solutions
are forced upon us.”
“That is much appreciated. I hear you, and we
will do better,” came the response from Graham.

April 27, 2016 - Glacier City Gazette

Transcription

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