Fairbanks mayor seeks $200,000 in borough savings for 2028 Arctic Winter Games

Fairbanks North Star Borough Mayor Grier Hopkins is asking the Assembly to move $200,000 from the borough's general fund balance to help pay for the 2028 Arctic Winter Games. The ordinance is scheduled for introduction Thursday on the Assembly's consent agenda, which approves routine items together in one vote. It takes two Assembly members to pull an ordinance up for introduction off the consent agenda.

The money would be available to the 2028 Arctic Winter Games Host Society for hosting expenses, but only after the society signs an agreement with the borough. Any unspent money would return to the general fund.

In a memo dated Nov. 12, Hopkins wrote that the Games will need a total budget of more than $6 million, most of it from outside the borough. He called the $200,000 early working capital meant to secure larger state, federal and corporate money. "We can do our part locally by ensuring our contribution comes early enough in that process to set the organization on a path to success," he wrote.

In April, Fairbanks sought $3.5 million from the state to host the Games. The state put in $500,000 through a line the Legislature added to the enacted capital budget: $400,000 from the general fund and $100,000 from the Capstone fund, a separate state fund. The governor's amended budget request included nothing for the Games, and the line became law without a veto.

On Sept. 24, the Assembly approved without objection a resolution supporting the hosting and urging residents to volunteer. It spent no money. The resolution calls the Games the North's premier sporting competition and cultural exchange for youth from Alaska, Canada and Greenland, and it expects more than 2,000 team members and coaches. Fairbanks hosted in 1982, 1988 and 2014.

Hopkins told the borough's Economic Development Commission on July 28 that the International Committee was set to vote on Fairbanks hosting. The Northwest Territories government announced Aug. 4 that the committee had accepted an unsolicited Fairbanks bid for 2028. Vince McKay, the territory's minister of municipal and community affairs, said the territory looks forward to supporting its team in Fairbanks.

Residents can comment on the request during citizens' comments at Thursday's meeting, which starts at 6 pm. The Finance Committee is set to review it Dec. 3, followed by a public hearing Dec. 17.