Voters will decide Oct. 1 whether the borough should borrow $3 million to repair the Public Safety Building, and also whether to amend the municipal charter so that assembly members could eventually receive compensation.
The charter currently prohibits compensation for the mayor and assembly members; the Oct. 1 vote could change that.
The assembly voted Aug. 27 to place both questions on the municipal election ballot.
The bond proposition passed unanimously, while the compensation ordinance passed 6-1. Assembly Member Bob Dalrymple was the sole dissenter. Dalrymple has opposed assembly compensation since the idea was introduced.
The Public Safety Building bond issue would help fund a new shell for the 40-year-old rot-damaged building. If voters approve the bond issue, the borough will borrow the money through a federal community facilities loan program, according to Borough Manager Mason Villarma. It would be a 40-year loan, paid back by borough revenues.
Initial projections for the renovations carry a price tag of around $5 million. Between the borrowed money and a federal grant, the borough would have enough funding to go ahead with the project.
The federal grant, however, is uncertain. The borough has requested $2.438 million for the work, which Sen. Lisa Murkowski has submitted to include in next year’s federal budget. However, the money is dependent on Congress passing a budget, which is uncertain in this election year and could be delayed.
If the borough receives funding from just one of the two proposed sources, it will scale down the size of the renovation project.
Capital Projects Director Amber Al-Haddad said construction would likely happen between 2026 and 2027.
The Public Safety Building would get a new roof, siding, doors and windows. This is the second time the borough has sent a bond issue to ballot for the project. In 2022, the public voted down an $8.5 million bond issue for more extensive repairs on the building.
The process for the second ballot measure — paying the mayor and assembly members — is the first of a two-step process. The public will not directly vote on whether to pay assembly members; it will vote on whether to allow a future assembly to amend municipal code to provide payments.
If voters approve the charter amendment, an assembly will later have to pass an ordinance to establish a compensation plan. That ordinance would require a public hearing.
Compensation for assembly members is relatively normal across the Southeast. For example, Petersburg pays its assembly members $150 per meeting. Some boroughs, like Sitka, pay its members on a per-month ($500) basis instead.
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