McConachie believes employee relations are a problem for borough

Don McConachie Sr. served on the assembly or as mayor between 1998 and when he resigned as mayor in 2013 for health reasons. He's ready now to get back to work at City Hall.

McConachie, 75, who is retired, is running against incumbent David Powell for a one-year term on the borough assembly.

"Our city has changed an awful lot. It has deteriorated a substantial amount," McConachie said. He was reluctant to provide specific examples, explaining, "The best way to understand what's going on is to get involved."

He added, "I want to see this city move in a better direction," declining to provide details of that direction until he is on the assembly and could learn more. "I really don't want to say until I know for sure what it is."

McConachie did cite employer-employee relations as one of his big concerns for borough government. "I know a lot of people in the community," he said, and based on phone calls he has received he believes there is a problem with "interference from the upper echelon to the worker."

He tells of how when he was on the assembly, he would hand out pies and coffee cards for employees, to show his appreciation. "I would like to see that happen again."

Part of the problem now, McConachie said, may be too few workers, particularly in the electrical line crew. "There's no sense in cutting back and cutting back ... so that you're just barely getting by."

Adding a position while holding the line on overall borough spending could require staff cuts to other departments, though the candidate declined to name where he thought positions could be eliminated. "I am not going to say, because this is a small town," and people could mistakenly assume they are able to identify which employees might worry about their job.

McConachie was one of the leaders earlier this year in a recall effort against Mayor Steve Prysunka. The candidate said he supported the recall because he believes the borough did not follow the law in announcing to the public its emergency meetings for dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, a charge the mayor has rejected.

In addition to his time on the assembly and as mayor, McConachie served on the planning and zoning commission and was active in the chamber of commerce. He moved to Wrangell from Canada in 1984 to operate the Wrangell Fisheries plant, formerly Wrangell Seafoods.