The borough assembly voted 5-1 Tuesday to reject changes to borough code during a first reading.
The changes would have given the harbormaster powers to impound or remove abandoned and derelict vessels from the marine service yard at the port. Harbormaster Greg Meissner had told the port commission that the changes were necessary in order to deal with up to six boats currently housed in the yard.
Assembly members seemed to have no complaint with the primary text of the change, which officials have said was made to bring borough code into alignment with changes to state law as well as deal with the issue of derelict and abandoned vessels. However, assembly members expressed concerns with portions of the existing borough code. In particular, they focused on a passage from existing code allowing the harbormaster to impound a vessel “in violation of any rule or regulation of the harbor,” as stated in section 14.13.005, subsection C. Another suggested change sprang from sections 14.13.030, subsection B, paragraph 3, in which a written notice must be “published in a newspaper of general circulation in the borough at least once.”
Assembly member Daniel Blake objected to the language from the harbor regulation section on the grounds that the ordinance was too vaguely worded.
“The people we have down there now are very fair and very easy to deal with,” he said. “I realize that our current port people would never do that, but should we get somebody else up there, they may.”
He cited improperly displayed boat serial numbers as an example of something which, under existing borough code, could conceivably result in an unreasonable vessel impoundment.
“Once it’s in the law, it’s that much harder to change,” he said.
Assembly member Jim Stough objected to the section on public notice on the code primarily because it didn’t jibe with other sections of municipal code and past borough practice, which require publication not only in the newspaper, but also a notice posted at the post office and city hall.
The lone aye vote came from assembly member Julie Decker, who joined the meeting via telephone. Assembly member Pamella McCloskey was absent.
The ordinance now heads back to the port commission, where it will likely be amended to reflect the new changes and resubmitted to the assembly for approval.
In other business, the assembly recognized several citizens for participation in civic affairs. They include: April Hutchinson, Warren Edgley, Dawn Angerman, Jim Nelson, Linda Churchill and Harley Johnson, none of whom were in attendance Tuesday evening. Mayor David L. Jack also displayed a plaque to have been presented to Lurine McGee for her service greeting cruise ships in Wrangell harbor. Neither McGee nor anyone from her family was present to accept the plaque.
Prior to the public comments section, Jack reminded the audience of the rules pertaining to public discussion, fallout from a raucous Sept. 24 meeting during which someone in the audience accused a person speaking at the podium of being a liar.
That sort of acrimony had no place in public affairs, Jack said.
“When debate is lost, slander will become the tool of the loser,” he said, quoting Socrates. “We should not be losers. So let’s keep the slander down.”
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