Assembly holds follow-up on staffing questions, repeals fee schedule

The Wrangell Borough Assembly met Tuesday, Feb. 25, to have a

follow-up work session on staffing issues at the Irene Ingle Public Library and the Nolan Center. As covered in a Feb. 13 article of the Sentinel, the assembly has been considering how best to resolve staffing questions at both facilities while also keeping everything as affordable as possible. During their last workshop, the assembly considered a number of options for an empty assistant position at the library. The Nolan Center has also been in need of an attendant and a museum collections employee. In their last workshop on Feb. 10, the assembly determined that the three positions should all be offered at 29 hours per week, a 70/30 split for employee-only health insurance, and no PERS be offered. However, during this work session, Borough Clerk Kim Lane stated that the assembly decided to not move forward with any hiring for these positions for the near future.

After their work session, the assembly held a meeting in which they repealed a section of the municipal code. Section 14.11.0005 covers fees for the harbor department. Borough officials have been considering making changes to the harbor's fee rates, adding new ones and altering existing ones. The department has a large fee section, however.

"One issue is that we visit different parts of the rates depending on what issue we are dealing with and this results in too many changes to the code and repeat meetings with the Assembly,'' the agenda packet reads. "By removing the actual fee table from the WMC [Wrangell Municipal

Code], the Assembly will have the ability to amend the fee schedule from time to time, by Resolution.''

The agenda packet goes on to add that similar actions have been taken for the fee schedules of the parks and recreation department, as well as the public works department. Resolutions to alter fees will still require public hearings and action before the port commission, as well as the

assembly. The fee schedule for the harbor, as it currently stands, remains unchanged.

The assembly also adopted a new ordinance. Ordinance No. 969 amends the municipal code, adding a section that addresses sales taxes for remote sellers. This does not impact sales tax for local vendors, according to the meeting's agenda packet, but will allow the City and Borough of Wrangell to collect sales tax from remote vendors. A "remote vendor,'' the packet explains, is a business which operates in Wrangell but does not have a physical presence in the borough. The collection of these sales taxes will be done through the Alaska Remote Seller Sales Tax Commission, which Wrangell joined back in November of 2019.

During the meeting, the assembly also adopted a resolution naming replacement of the Public Safety Building their top capital priority.