For the next few months the Assembly will be pretty obsessed with the budget. Across the country states and municipalities confront declining revenues. Some people want no service reductions and no layoffs and are open to tax increases. Others oppose any tax increases and look at this as an opportunity to “reduce the size of government.” I want to avoid layoffs or service cuts, but I also do not want to increase taxes. That limits the number of choices. Our shortfall is about 4 million a year. If the city employees union (MEBA) agrees to forego their negotiated wage increases in exchange for no layoffs, that will cut the deficit to about 2 ½ million. We will try and find 1-2 million more in cuts and then probably take the rest (1-2 million) from our Budget Reserve. We are fortunate to have that reserve and want to make sure it is available to tap into in subsequent years if revenues continue to be low. The Assembly will hold a Finance Committee meeting January 13 to discuss proposed reductions. Tell the Assembly your proposals of how to resolve the deficit. Email us at Borough_Assembly@ci.juneau.ak.us
Docks and Harbors proposes to dredge Douglas Harbor. Glacial rebound affects the Borough even at Douglas, and if dredging is not done soon, the Harbor will become unusable as it gets shallower. It has been dredged several times in the past – the last time about ten years ago. Levels of mercury in the harbor have risen somewhat. In our July COW meeting Harbors Director John Stone answered my question about that change- “Mr. Stone said the samples in 2002 showed an average of 2.0 micrograms per kilogram of mercury in the soil. The average for the Douglas Harbor just done was 2.3.” http://www.juneau.org/clerk/documents/2009-07-20_COW_Minutes.pdf
The issue is what to do with the dredged materials. Harbors proposes to dump them in the middle of the Channel. This proposal has been submitted to the permitting agencies and currently the Army Corps of Engineers (who regulate placement of dredged materials) has the issue out for public comment until January 8. You can find gobs of info on this at http://www.juneau.org/harbors/DHRP.php. The Corps request for public comments is the last link on that page. We rely on the permitting agencies to let us know when we are within safety limits.
Another issue on the horizon concerns development on Douglas. As I noted last entry, we recently met with Goldbelt to talk about a potential road extension to West Douglas to open up new land. In a related issue, on December 8 the Planning Commission approved rezoning several tracts of land along North Douglas highway from D3 to D10 and D18 –[as planned resulting from the sewer extensions now being completed]. This brings up the whole idea of development in general – and particularly on North and West Douglas. Some Juneauites oppose any new development. They argue it will change the character of Juneau in undesirable ways, and that it is not needed due to flat population growth. Others argue that we must promote development to survive and new land will stimulate the economy, and ultimately lower the cost of housing. We know that housing density must increase if we want to create affordable housing opportunities.
I have continually called for diversification of Juneau’s economy. Dependence on any one industry leaves us vulnerable. Juneau has been dependent on government, and to a lesser degree tourism, for a large percentage of our jobs. I want to promote non-government/tourism jobs. That does not mean I oppose the jobs we have, but rather I want to spread our risk. That is why I continue to support efforts to grow commercial fishing and primary production business (non-retail). I do not oppose retail, but retail is dependent on money that is already in the community. We need to find ways to bring money in from outside the Borough. Government and Tourism do that. Commercial fishing does it. Businesses like Glacier Seafoods, Taku Fisheries, Alaska Brewing and Heritage Coffee do it. We are better off than other Southeast communities, and that is why our population has not declined. But we are still at risk. That may not be a big deal for some who have secure employment or retirement, but it is critical for the rest of Juneau and particularly young people, new to the job market.
Juneau is a beautiful, desirable place to live because of our environment and our quality of life. It is important to preserve and enhance that quality. We must protect what we love; the land, the water, and the arts and social life that nourishes our minds and our souls. But that protection must be balanced with economic development that provides employment to our citizens and the means to support our community life.
This is a difficult and emotional issue. Many people want to preserve the Juneau they have now – or return to a Juneau they remember. But change is inevitable, and we need to shape it to our preferences. That is our challenge. We must work together to promote environmentally responsible development. I am neither an “all development is good” or an “all development is bad” person [which angers people on both sides]. I think our best route is through careful, planned development on North and West Douglas where land is available. I have supported the West Douglas Conceptual Plan which lays out such a process http://www.juneau.lib.ak.us/plancomm/WestDouglasConceptualPlan.php
I have told my environmentalist friends and my pro-business friends that this is an opportunity to demonstrate that they are not just knee jerk, ideologues opposed to the other. It is an opportunity for Juneau to pull together rather than continually polarize. Responsible development is something that can unite us as we cope with life's inevitable changes. I appreciate those of you who share your opinions by email, phone or commenting on this blog. Please keep it up, because it helps me see all sides of issues.
I wish a happy and peaceful holiday season to everyone.
