When the Sitka Assembly meets tonight (7-9-24), it will discuss an action plan to enact recent recommendations from its tourism task force.
The Assembly created the tourism task force last year, in response to a tourism boom following the expansion of Sitka’s privately owned cruise dock. The task force spent last winter gathering community feedback on how the city should respond to rapid growth in cruise tourism.
The action plan ranks the recommendations from the task force from high to low priority. Top priorities include pursuing an agreement with the cruise industry, establishing a permanent tourism commission and regulating e-bikes. The assembly was going to consider the action items at its last regular meeting, but the item was postponed to give the city’s contract attorney more time to review the issue.
Looking ahead to the October 1 municipal election, the assembly will consider several possible propositions that could end up on the ballot. Described in a memo from the city’s finance director Melissa Haley and clerk Sara Peterson as “housekeeping ordinances,” one would remove a section requiring money from the Sitka Community Hospital Dedicated Fund only be spent on operating, capital, and debt service needs for the former hospital. Haley and Peterson write that while the money is currently being used to cover some former hospital employees’ retirement expenses, they expect there will be money available in the fund for other purposes in the foreseeable future. The other two items deal with removing another reference to Sitka Community Hospital from the charter, and updating the city’s process on recalling elected officials to align with state law.
And finally, the assembly will hear an update on the airport terminal improvement project from the airport manager.
The Sitka Assembly meets at 6 p.m. tonight. Raven News will broadcast the meeting live, following Alaska News Nightly.
