Ernie Christian, right, takes his oath of office for Seat B on the Borough Assembly last week from Borough Clerk Kim Flores. Christian replaces Mayor David Jack, who took office after the retirement of former mayor Don McConachie.
Now that you have been appointed to the Wrangell Borough Assembly, what are the top three goals you would like to see accomplished during you tenure?
I will move forward on securing ownership of the Tyee Hydroelectric project for the energy security for Wrangell and Petersburg. I have been and will continue to be an advocate for the building of the AK/BC Intertie. By providing a connection to the North American grid, the AK/BC Intertie would provide energy security to the communities currently connected to the existing grid. I will also continue to support developing our port facilities. The Marine Travel lift has been and will continue to be a vital part of the economy in Wrangell. It is one of the best projects the city has built. It provides jobs for Wrangellites and revenue to the Port and to the city. I also support moving the hospital replacement project forward.
What are your feelings about the Wrangell Medical Center replacement project? What is the best way to move forward, in your opinion, to ensure the new hospital gets built?
The voters approved this project and it’s up to the borough assembly to make sure it happens. I will make sure it is the right size for the community of Wrangell. We don’t want to build a hospital that we cannot afford to run or operate. I support a stick built structure as opposed to a modular design. I feel this project hasn’t been vetted completely and should be reviewed again. I also support a sloped metal roof over the flat membrane type roof. Granted, these options have already been selected, but I believe the selected building type and roof product are not correct for Wrangell.
What do you feel are some of the ways the City and Borough of Wrangell can stimulate economic development and create jobs?
Providing a low cost business environment is critical to attracting new businesses to town. If you don’t have a low-cost, secure energy source, a new business will not locate in a high cost community. When you look downtown you only see basic core businesses. Wrangell has become a service-oriented community. The only industry in Wrangell that creates wealth is fishing. The City and Borough of Wrangell must enhance our port facilities in order to encourage more boats and fishermen using Wrangell as homeport or a work center.
Prior to your appointment, you championed a ballot measure that would reduce the sales tax rate to 5.5 percent. Do you feel that will significantly affect Borough operations or services? Explain.
Now that I have been appointed, as a borough assembly person, I can not lobby one way or the other on the proposed tax reduction. I also want to remind borough staff and other representatives of the borough, they cannot lobby for or against this initiative. This is a voter initiative. The voters of the Wrangell will decide whether or not to reduce the sales tax from 7% to 5.5%. Based on the current budget, I do not believe a reduction in sales tax from 7% to 5.5% will have an adverse affect on borough functions. The sales tax funds the following departments: city hall, public safety, public works, the library, the pool, and part of the school budget. At the end of the current fiscal year, the sales tax fund will have a projected reserve of $650,000. All the other functions of the borough are funded by taxes or user fees. These include port and harbor, electricity, water, sanitation, and sewer. I encourage everyone to participate in the budget process. It is your money.
Will you run for re-election?
I have not decided what position to run for at this time.
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