When the Sitka Assembly meets tonight (5-11-21) it will consider issuing a “request for proposals,” seeking bidders to buy or lease the former Sitka Community Hospital building.
The Assembly began to consider a sale after the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC) expressed interest in purchasing the property. SEARHC currently leases the building to house its long-term care unit.
This spring, the city held two town halls to receive public input on a possible sale. In late April, it reviewed an earlier draft of the RFP that didn’t include a property value assessment. Tonight the Assembly will review the full RFP, and may go behind closed doors to discuss the appraisal of the hospital building and land.
The group will also review the city’s budget for next fiscal year, on first reading. The final versions of the general and enterprise fund budgets were published earlier this month, but the Assembly and city staff have been holding regular budget meetings since December. It’s been an unusual budget cycle, with uncertainty around the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact a second slow tourist season will have on the city’s bottom line.
The Sitka Assembly meets at 6 p.m. tonight. Raven News will broadcast the meeting live, following Alaska News Nightly.
