LaFrance names two to Anchorage naming commission after repeated quorum failures

Two vacant seats on Anchorage's Public Naming Commission would be filled under appointments Mayor Suzanne LaFrance sent to the Assembly. The nine-member commission has twice in the past year failed to reach the five-member quorum it needs to act.

LaFrance appointed Rick Harrison to Seat 3, a term expiring Oct. 14, 2027, and Hilary A. Morgan to Seat 5, a term expiring Oct. 14, 2028. Harrison is tribal administrator of the Native Village of Eklutna, and his resume lists two decades on the Chickaloon Village Traditional Council and an Ahtna Athabascan language program. Morgan led YWCA Alaska from 2011 to 2018. Both request confirmation at Tuesday's regular meeting, Sept. 15.

The commission reviews and recommends names for municipal sites, objects, trails, landscapes and buildings. The ordinance directs the city to weigh historical, cultural and geographic significance, including Dena'ina Athabascan and other Alaska Native place names, while allowing honorary names for individuals under set criteria.

The commission's minutes record no quorum at the Dec. 10, 2025 and March 11, 2026 meetings. At the commission's Sept. 10, 2025, meeting, Jamie Hines said, "I started pulling you guys together because there was a quorum, and I thought, well, at least if we can get a bare quorum together, we can start processing."

The Office of Internal Audit found this summer that five of nine seats were filled and recommended reauthorizing the commission, which is scheduled to sunset Oct. 14, 2026. It expires unless the Assembly renews it, and both new terms run past that date. With five seats filled and five needed, every member must attend; confirming both would make seven.

Residents may apply for the remaining vacancies through the municipality's online portal.