Assembly Regular Meeting of May 1, 2025

Go ahead and call to order the Kodiak Island Borough Assembly regular meeting of Thursday, May 1st, 2025, at 6:30 PM in the Assembly Chambers. First thing, we'll have the invocation by Cadet Joe Duren of the Salvation Army, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Please rise.

Thank you. Dear Heavenly Father, we give thanks for this beautiful day here in Kodiak, Alaska. And Lord, I just ask you be with each and every one of us this evening in this room. Be with us in our discussions and everything that we do and say. And I just ask you keep us in good spirits and in good health.

In your son's name, Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen. Amen. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. And to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

We are gathered on the traditional homeland of the Supiaq Alutiiq people, and we acknowledge the 10 tribes of the Kodiak Alutiiq region. We recognize the Alutiiq culture that enriches our community to this day. Roll call, please. Mr. Ames. Here.

Mr. Griffin. Here. Mr. Johnson. Here. Mr. LeDoux.

Here. Mr. Sharrett. Here. Mr. Smiley. Here.

Mr. Whiteside. Here. Mayor Arndt. Here. You have a quorum.

Thank you. Next item is approval of the agenda and consent agenda. Jared. Move to approve the agenda and consent agenda. Second.

It's been moved and seconded. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed, same sign. Motion carries unanimously.

What, uh, for the public's information, the consent agenda is, uh, approval of the regular meeting minutes of April 17th, 2025. Next item we have is citizens' comments. Uh, there's citizens' comments at the beginning and the end of the meeting. Comment period are intended for general comments as well as for agenda items that are not part of the public Let's see, we have questions. We are— we have a one public hearing item tonight, and that is for the new winery manufacturer sample endorsement application.

Comments for this item will be heard when the item is called during public hearing, so please wait until then to come forward. And then if you're In the room and coming forward to speak, please sign in, turn on the microphone, make sure the green light is on before speaking, and speak directly into the mic. State your name for the record, address all remarks to the assembly as a body and not to any member thereof. If you're calling in, the local number is 907-486-3231.

Toll-free number: 855-492-9202. Please turn off your radio or any listening device to prevent feedback. Anybody wishing to come forward, please do so at this time or call in.

Hello, assembly, people of Kodiak.

Nice night out there.

My name is Sandra West, and I'm coming on behalf of Island Trails Network and of course the Kodiak Short Trail. I just want to inform you mostly, let you know that we have received some money from the Denali Commission and we are going forth looking for some design and engineering. But we are— we shortened our ask. So the Kodiak Short Trail is a little bit shorter. Phase 1, we're asking from the City of Kodiak to Boy Scout Lake at the beginning of Tom Stiles Road, which goes into Coast Guard housing.

It's been a big desire to connect the displaced people group of the Coast Guard housing dependents. So we're shortening it. We have good support. We have support from the DOT, the commissioner and the planners. We are in communication with them, which is really nice.

We also have the support of the City of Kodiak. There's two resolutions that they've approved to support this project. We are also looking for grants in which nonprofits qualify.

Maybe we'll change our name to municipality because there's lots of grants for municipalities, but I understand that's not an easy do for you all. I would also like you, as you enter into the comprehensive plan, to make sure that the Kodiak Short Trail, the Plan for putting a short trail out to Bells Flats is in the plan. And consider what it is you could do to help support the Kodiak Short Trail in the future. Thank you all. I'm— I enjoy coming.

I enjoy watching you do real work in the real world. Y'all are doing a good job. Thank you.

We have a phone call.

You are now answering a call from the queue. Assembly meeting, you're on the air. Please state your name for the record. Joseph Delgado from Yuzinki. Um, during my time on the Kodiak Island Borough Assembly, especially during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, I sat in on many public meetings where people came forward passionately expressing their anger and fear.

They told us their rights were being violated, that wearing masks, closing schools, or requiring distancing was a form of government overreach. Some were sincere, others confrontational, and emotions ran high. I remember sitting there, calm, listening while they demanded their freedoms. But inside, I couldn't help but smile just a little. Not out of mockery or disrespect, but because as an Alutiiq Sioux Vietman, the son of a boarding school survivor, I carry a much different understanding of what it means to have your rights truly violated.

My people weren't just told to wear masks or stay home. We were taken from our homes, our language, our culture, our identity, systemically stripped away. Children were beaten for speaking their native tongue. Families were divided. Communities were told they had to forget who they were in order to survive.

That wasn't discomfort, that was dispossession. So when people, some people claim they are being silenced because they had to wear a mask in the grocery store, I couldn't help but reflect on the irony. I thought of my own elders whose voices had been silenced in boarding schools, whose traditions had been banned by policy, and now I was an elected official The first Native person some had ever seen on that assembly, listening to complaints about oppression from people who had never had to fear losing their entire identity. The moment reminded me why it matters that we're in those seats, why representation isn't symbolic, it's essential. Because we bring memory, we bring perspective, we bring truth that doesn't always sit comfortably with the majority.

We're not there to argue, we're there to witness, to lead, and to ensure that history doesn't get erased again under the weight of present-day inconvenience. That smile I had, it wasn't cynicism, it was resilience. It was the quiet pride of a son who came from survivors who now helped shape policy for the very land that tried to forget his people. And it's a reminder that even when we're the only Native in the room, we carry all those who came before us into that room with us. Thank you guys.

Have a good night. Good night, Joe.

Go ahead. Hello. Is this on? The light's on? Yes.

Hello, my name's Mike Milligan. I wanted to support what Sandra said. And also what Joe Delgado just said, you know, people my age in a lot of the villages were in boarding schools and it was a huge negative impact being torn from their families. But that's not why I came to speak tonight. I saw that you had a land sale going and I wanted to reiterate this concept that I've heard floating around of giving a discount to anyone in Kodiak buying, purchasing borough land, get a discount in bidding if they have a Kodiak High School diploma.

And what this would do— and I've talked to a couple of you about it, and it's not totally supported, some people are against it, and I can see why— but what this would do was it would raise the value of a Kodiak High School diploma, and it would also encourage people to look at making Kodiak their home. Maybe they're going off to college or moving somewhere else, and it would still give them a stake in Kodiak. And of course, the place I was always looking at is the 800 acres out in Chiniak. And, uh, anyway, I just think that would be a good idea, and it might set a standard for the rest of the state because other boroughs have land that they could also sell. And you would just allow either a 5 or 10% discount in your bid one time.

So those of you on the assembly that graduated from Kodiak High School You would get to use that one time, and it would also encourage other people to stay in Kodiak High School instead of going to another online school or one of these other school districts. Because as some of you know, uh, all the local districts have had to compete since other people are trying to recruit people out of their district to some of these other cyber schools. So I would just Encourage you to look at that concept, not in this land sale, but in future land sales. Look at the concept of giving anybody with a Kodiak High School diploma a discount in the bidding process on borough land sales. Thank you.

Thank you, Mike. Anybody else wishing to come forward, please do so at this time. Do we have any more phone calls?

Seeing none, we'll move on.

Next item we have is awards and presentations. The first one here is Building Safety Month. Just a minute.

From the Office of the Mayor, Kodiak Island Borough, Kodiak, Alaska, proclamation declaring the month of May 2025 as Building Safety Month. Whereas the Kodiak Island Borough is committed to recognizing that our growth and strength depend on the safety of homes, buildings, and infrastructure in any everyday life and when disasters strike. And whereas our confidence in the resilience of these buildings can only be achieved through the devotion of vigilant guardians, building safety and fire prevention officials, architects, Engineers, builders, tradespeople, design professionals, laborers, plumbers, and others in the construction industry who work year-round to ensure the safe construction of buildings. And whereas these guardians are dedicated members of the International Code Council, a nonprofit that brings together local, state, territorial, tribal, and federal officials who are experts in in the building environment to create and implement the highest quality codes and standards to protect us in the buildings where we live, learn, work, and play; and whereas, these modern building codes include safeguards to protect the public from natural disasters such as hurricanes, snowstorms, wildland fires, floods, and earthquakes; and whereas, Building Safety Month is sponsored by the International Code Council to remind the public about the critical role of our community's largely unknown protectors of public safety, our code officials, who ensure us of safe, sustainable, and affordable buildings that are essential to our prosperity. And whereas Game On, the theme for Building Safety Month 2025, encourages us all to get involved and raise awareness about building safety on a personal, local, and global scale.

And now, therefore, I, Scott Arndt, Mayor of the Kodiak Island Borough, do hereby proclaim the month of May 2025 as Building Safety Month in Kodiak Island Borough and encourage all citizens to join us as we participate in Building Safety Month activities. And I'd like Ted Hanson to please come forward. [FOREIGN LANGUAGE] Thank you, Assemblymembers. Appreciate it. We want to keep our buildings safe, don't we?

Thank you very much. The next one we have is a proclamation in recognition of the National Salvation Army Week.

The Office of the Mayor, Kodiak Unborough, Kodiak, Alaska. Proclamation in recognition of the National Salvation Army Week, May 12th through the 18th, 2025. Whereas in 1954, the first National Salvation Army Week was declared by the US Congress and proclaimed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower, as a reminder to Americans to give freely of themselves in service to others, and whereas The Salvation Army members continue their compassionate tradition of helping wherever there is hunger, disease, dissension, and spiritual need, and provide for those in the most— in the most need without discrimination, and whereas The Salvation Army has one agenda: to meet human need without discrimination. And whereas The Salvation Army assists approximately 23 million Americans annually, serves in 130 countries around the globe, and with over 1.5 million members consisting of officers, soldiers, and adherents, The Salvation Army has pursued their mission since 1865. And whereas the Salvation Army should be commended for its selfless dedication to help meet the physical and spiritual need of people around Alaska.

Now therefore, I, Scott Arndt, Mayor of the Kodiak Island Borough, do hereby recognize the valuable service of the Salvation Army to the Kodiak Island Borough and urge everyone to express their appreciation to the Salvation Army for their good works and to follow their example of service, a cause greater than themselves. Thank you. Joe, would you please come forward? [FOREIGN LANGUAGE] Thank you, Mayor and Senate members. And as you know, this proclamation, uh, it involves the hard work of a lot of individuals in the Salvation Army.

So on behalf of Salvation Army, I would just like to say thank you. Thank you. Appreciate it. And then we have proclamation declaring May 4th through the 10th, 2025, as 56th Annual Professional Municipal Clerk Week. And I will read that one.

Office of the Mayor, Kodiak Island Borough, Kodiak, Alaska. Proclamation declaring May 4th through the 10th, 2025, 56th Annual Professional Municipal Clerk's Week. Whereas the office of the professional municipal clerk, a time-honored and vital part of local government, exists throughout the world, and whereas the office of the professional municipal clerk is the oldest among public servants, and whereas the office of the professional municipal clerk provides a professional link between the citizens, the local governing bodies, and agencies of government at other levels, and whereas the professional municipal clerks have pledged to be ever mindful of their neutrality and impartiality, rendering equal service to all, and whereas the professional municipal clerk serves as the information center on functions of local government and community, and whereas the professional municipal clerks continually strive to improve the administration of the affairs of the office of the professional municipal court through participation in education programs, seminars, workshops, and the annual meetings of their state, provincial, county, and international professional organization. And whereas it is most appropriate that we recognize the accomplishments of the Office of the Professional Municipal Clerk— that is a mouthful, thank you— Now therefore, I, Scott Arndt, Mayor of Kodiak Island Borough, do here recognize the week of May 4th through the 10th, 2025, as Professional Municipal Clerk Week, and further extend appreciation to our professional municipal clerks: Borough Clerk Nova Javier, Deputy Clerk Lena Cruz, and Assistant Clerk Irene Arellano. And to our professional municipal clerks for the vital service they perform and their exemplary dedication to the communities they represent.

Please come forward.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor and members of the assembly, for recognizing the vital services we provide our community. Thank you. Thank you for your professional dedication, always. Thank you. Next is committee reports.

Do we have any committee reports?

Seeing none, we'll move on to public hearings. State of Alaska Alcohol and Marijuana Control Office, AMCO, new winery manufacturer sampling endorsement application for Friends by the Ocean LLC, doing business as Friends by the Ocean. Jared, move to voice non-protest to the State of Alaska Alcohol and Marijuana Control Office new winery manufacturer sampling endorsement application for Friends by the Ocean located at 38057 Chinniack Highway and direct the Clerk to notify AMCO of this decision. Second. It has been moved and seconded.

Staff report. Alina.

Thank you. I hope we are going to change it. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. The application before you is for a new winery manufacturer sampling endorsement. It's from Friends by the Ocean, which is located in Cheeniak.

Do we have 60-day window to file a protest or non-protest? And our deadline to submit our comments is May 31st. We have been investigated per borough code. Initially, we had received 3 concerns from the departments, which has now been rectified. At the last work session, I distributed a copy of the permit which has the correct— which reflects the correct address.

So I spoke to the departments that initially filed or commented about their concerns, and they all retracted their comments. So in light of that, I recommend non-objection to this application. Thank you. I would be happy to answer any questions. We also sent out public hearing notices and we have received one.

A copy of it has been distributed to the Assembly and it is in support of the application. Thank you. Any questions of staff? Seeing none, I'll go ahead and close the regular meeting, open the public hearing. For those in the room who wish to speak, please come to the podium and sign in, turn the microphone on, make sure the green light is on before speaking, and speak directly into the mic.

State your name for the record, address all remarks to the assembly as a body and not to any member of If you are calling in, the local phone number is 907-486-3231, toll-free number 855-492-9202. Please turn off your radio or any listening devices to prevent feedback.

Good evening. Can you hear me? We can hear. Go ahead. My name is Brenda Friend, and I am one of the owners of Friends by the Ocean.

My husband couldn't be here tonight, but we just want to thank you all. This has been a really long process in the making, but we are excited and we're really looking forward for our family business to open up and in a few short months here, we're hoping. And we invite you all out to come see. We have an amazing project out there that we put a lot of blood, sweat, and tears in, and we, we're very proud of it. We feel like we're bringing a piece of Kodiak history back.

It was an original winery 20 years ago, and And we're just going to get busy and make some wine and have some massages and everybody come out and enjoy it. I really feel strongly that Chiniak is the next— kind of the next Girdwood of Anchorage. It's going to be the Girdwood of Kodiak. It's growing quite a bit, and I'm looking forward to the land opening up out there. I think it's a great idea for young people, and I have several employees who would love to live out there.

So keep that in mind when the— when you guys make those decisions, that there's nowhere else but out the road. And it's a beautiful scenic drive, and I'm not sure if you've made it out there recently, but, you know, the bears are out And the foxes are out and the deer are out and come relax and have some of our home wine and enjoy the scenery and relax because we have a new destination in Kodiak. Thank you. Thank you, Brenda. Are there any phone calls?

Anyone else wishing to come and speak?

Hearing and seeing none, we will close the public hearing. Um, reopen the regular meeting discussion.

Larry. I am very happy to support this and I wish you the best.

All right. Roll call vote on the motion, please. Mr. Ames. Yes. Mr. Griffin.

Yes. Mr. Johnson. Yes. Mr. LeDoux. Yes.

Mr. Sharrett. Yes. Mr. Smiley. Yes. Mr. Whiteside.

Yes. Would anyone like to change their vote? Motion passes with 7 yes, 0 no. Thank you. Next is the borough manager's report.

Amy Williams. Good evening, Mr. Mayor and assembly members. Letters have been prepared to send out to the folks who live along the Russian River so they know about our easement options. Thanks to Megan Christianson for prepping those letters and working with GIS to make sure they got to the correct property owners. Our local contribution ask is in from the school district, $12,979,556.50.

The letter is attached to the packet tonight. Senate Finance is considering the option of reducing school bond payments by 25%. This would result in a $1,062,150 deduction. To the school bond debt that the state pays. Alaska Waste sent in their annual report this week.

It's attached tonight. Commercial rates are scheduled to go up 0.4% and residential rates will go down 4 cents. That's assuming there's no change in landfill fees. Kodiak Economic Development Corporation will be holding their third session of the Recharge Your Community's Economy series. It will be on Wednesday, May 7th from 10 to 4 at the marketplace.

In community development, the findings from River Focus for the hydrology and hydraulic study are expected to be submitted by the borough by tomorrow. After they are reviewed by staff, it will come to the assembly. For the comprehensive plan, there is an online exercise available for those who weren't allowed to attend the workshop that was held on April 22nd. The multi-jurisdictional, multi-hazard mitigation plan received a few comments back from the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management. Once those go back in, uh, that will— and be reviewed, they will go on to FEMA.

In finance, uh, our go-live date for the Tyler implementation project has moved to September. We are in the final software testing stage for our new electronic timesheet, uh, software, and we are advertising for an accounts payable technician. In assessing, a total of 13 appeals were filed with the clerk's office, and 4 of those will be Proceeding to the Board of Equalization on the 5th. Assessing will be certifying the tax roll on Wednesday, May 7th. Uh, the Household Hazardous Community Waste and Community Cleanup Day is this Saturday, May 3rd.

The borough will be offering free disposal of household hazardous waste. There's a 100-pound limit per person from 9 to 2. Threshold will be accepting recycling and unwanted electronics. They'll be accepting electronics to recycle for free. The Kodiak Chamber of Commerce will coordinate the actual yellow bag community cleanup that goes from 9 to 1.

And if you are participating, you can come back and have barbecue hosted by the Lions Club at noon. Kodiak Native Youth Council and City of Kodiak will be collecting large items in yellow bags that weren't brought back. At the KFRC, because cruise ships have started and next week is a busy week, the touch tank will be open May 5th through 9th from 10 to 2. At the landfill, the regional solid waste plan update was opened on April 8th. We received 5 submissions.

We are scheduling interviews with the top 2 firms, and those interviews will happen the week of May 12th. The landfill monitoring wells invitation to bid pre-bid was April 30th, and the boundary brush cleaning pre-quote meeting had a large turnout with quotes due on May 9th. The service area invitation for bids are published on the website. The mandatory The pre-bid meeting was held yesterday and we had 3 organizations in attendance. Bids are due by 2:00 PM on May 14th.

In Information Technology, they are installing BitLocker on all the laptops, so they will be contacting you for your laptop to add an extra layer of security if you are using a borough laptop. They are working with Finance to get the timesheet soft— hardware installed. And been working with Community Development and with Megan to get those addresses done. Tonight, I have attached a brief summary of the infrastructure symposium, the local contribution request letter, the annual report, and a Community Cleanup Day flyer. Paperclip to your report is a slide deck from Community Development Director Invaldez that had some really neat ideas.

Effective ideas that they share their best practices at the infrastructure symposium. So I've asked our fine— our Community Development Director to go through that, and he already has. And there's some good things that we might be able to implement here in Kodiak. I'm happy to answer any questions. Thank you, Amy.

Any questions of the Manager's Report? Seeing none, we'll move on to messages from the Borough Mayor. I have none tonight. Under new business, we have resolutions. Resolution number FY2025-24, resolution of the Assembly of the Kodiak Island Borough accepting the recommendations of the Borough Lands Committee to dispose of certain borough lands declared surplus to the public need and authorizing staff to prepare the parcels for sale at a future land auction.

Jared. Move to adopt Resolution Number FY2025-24. Second. It's been moved and seconded. Staff report.

Amy. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. At the Assembly work session last week, the discussion centered around the use of an outcry auction to sell lots as recommended by the Borough Lands Committee. Based on KIBC Title 18, the method of sale is not required to be established until the review of the land disposal. This resolution directs staff to begin the land disposal process Staff has revised the ordinance to remove the outcry auction as the method of sale and to clarify that the method of sale established during the land disposal review process, which occurs after the initial plan by the planning— review by the Planning and Zoning Commission.

The Borough Lands Committee on January 6, 2025, approved a motion recommending that the Assembly declare surplus to the public need the 4 lots identified on the draft preliminary plat dated February 22, 2019. 2017 And attached to the agenda item as an exhibit to the resolution. The recommendation from the Borough Lands Committee included a recommendation to rezone the 4 lots from the Public Use Lands District to 2-Family Residential or R-2 District. The committee recommended that the parcels be sold through an outcry auction, but that has been changed in your version 2. In your packet tonight, there is the updated version and the old version, and our Community Development Mr. Baxter is here tonight if you have any questions.

Discussion or questions?

Seeing none, roll call vote on the motion, please. Mr. Griffin? Yes. Mr. Johnson? Yes.

Mr. LeDoux? Yes. Mr. Sharick? Yes. Mr. Smiley?

Yes. Mr. Whiteside? Yes. Mr. Ames? Yes.

Would anyone like to change their vote? Motion passes with 7 Yes, 0 no. Okay, moving on to the second resolution, resolution number FY2025-25, a resolution of the Assembly of the Kodiak Island Borough increasing the compensation of the Service Area Number 1 board chairperson. At this time, I will say pass the gavel to the deputy presiding officer as I have a conflict. I don't use a gavel.

I think— oh, Steve stole the— I'll take it ceremoniously for now.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Yes, I do officially rule, I guess, that Mayor Arndt has a conflict of interest, and so he may be excused from this discussion on this agenda item. So I, at this point, looks like he has excused himself, which is great. Would anybody like to appeal that ruling?

Okay. All right. I will entertain a motion to adopt this resolution. Scott? Move to adopt Resolution No.

FY2025-25. Second.

All right, it's been moved and seconded. Assembly discussion. Scott. I received, I think everyone else did too, a letter, an email from Mike Sirowczyk stating that this was the board's idea and not Mayor Arndt's, and he strongly supported this for Mr. Arndt given the amount of effort that he puts into the job. So I'm supportive of it.

Ryan, and then Steve. Thank you, Mr. DPO. So during the assembly work session, I had asked the question, uh, of the composition of the board and who was elected versus appointed. It was later disclosed that they were all elected, meaning that there was no, at least in my interpretation, ethical influence or questionable ethics that could have persuaded this to happen. So based on that information, I also support this.

Living in Service District 1, I can tell you that the service district chair does drive those roads frequently in the winter, in the summertime, and I can attest that he remains busy and diligent. So I do also support this. Based on those initial ethical questions and answers. Thank you. Steve.

I will be supporting this, um, having seen Mr. Arndt and trying to meet with him, but he's busy doing district stuff. He does not, in my opinion, treat this as a in charge of the district, he treats it actually as a job. He spends a lot of time deciding the roads with what they need for maintenance. He, in the winter, drives around to see whether they need sand, gravel, plowing, what. So I do think he actually treats this as a job, so compensating them properly.

And because it was initiated by the board and not him. I will be supporting this.

I'm going to take Bo.

Thank you. So initially, I've received some concerns from, from the community of folks residing in Service Area 1. However, when Thinking about what the goal of this resolution is, I don't quite think they apply to this increase. So they were relative to the amount of tax levied in the service area and the areas for improvement and how concerns are handled by the service area chair and board. Now, how that— I can't really take that and twist it into a performance incentive or disincentive when it comes to this resolution.

So I will support this, but also noting that there's still area for improvement in our service areas. So I think more discussion needs to be had about the amount of tax levied and the cost of service area. But given the overwhelming support for this, and I've had some concerns about those taxes but not relative to the chair, so I will I support it as well. Thank you, Beau. I want to take Dave and then Ryan.

Thank you. I just— I support this. As most everyone else has said, this is coming unanimously from the service district itself. One thing I would personally, you know, reflect on though is, you know, the mayor's work towards this job description notwithstanding, um, we're setting the pay rate for a position, not a person, right? So is that the expectation of a service area chair?

It sounds like it is from the fellow board members. So for that reason, I've got no problem supporting it. I just— my only concern would be if that's not the expectation of a service board chair and the mayor's going above and beyond, will the next Service District 1 chair continue receiving $800 a month, yet doing 25% of what is maybe happening above and beyond the expectation of the job now.

Ryan. Thank you for my second shot. My statement is actually a combination of both of those, is that, again, I do support this. I would actually like to see a written documentation— a written document that substantiates the efforts that are spent to receive this stipend, as well as a positive control accountability method. We have had testimony from Service District 1 residents on drainage issues, driveway issues, and so I still think this discussion here tonight on the raise is sans those issues, but I do believe that they do have some synergy and as Bo had mentioned earlier, I don't believe that we have a resolve to those.

So I still think there needs to be some staff involvement and the accountability on the service district chairs and their performance or their hit list, if you will. Thanks.

Larry.

I wanted to echo what Assemblymember Johnson indicated, that we're raising it for a job, not an individual. And because of that, there's no job description at this point in time. And apparently, based on the comments, it's really necessary to look at the position like Scott Arnn has— a lot of driving, a lot of work, a lot of associated— but that's not written down. My initial concern though was we're essentially raising the taxes of Service District 1. If we assume their budget was put together, balanced, and we've added an increase to it— and initially I preferred that we put it off until the election, that the service district could actually vote on it.

However, according to our wonderful clerk, that is an administrative decision that is not eligible for people to vote. So in recognition of the kind of job that's being done and in recognition of the job that comments from the service district seem to indicate, I do support this at this time. Thank you.

Thank you. I have a couple of things. Yes, I will support this too with a couple of caveats also. It's really— I don't want to use the word dangerous, but it's unadvisable to create policy around one person for that person for the very reasons I think that were mentioned before. So I'll still support it, but that one doesn't stick a little well with me.

Larry's point about the effective date, we can't change or amend line 35 to the date that is closest to the fourth quarter, October 1st?

Mr. Chair, yes, you may amend the resolution. Resolution if you wish to. [Speaker:COMMISSIONER OVERMAN] So that does, if Assemblymember LeDoux is interested, so that does put it closer to the election, not quite after the election. But I think the quarterly basis ideas or line there is prudent.

I won't make that amendment, but someone else certainly can. I also will support this because I think it does encourage participation. A little bit more. I also do agree that, and I believe that we can probably change this by ordinance, that any service area that distributes a stipend to someone must be accompanied by a job description or job expectations or something. I'm pretty sure we could probably do something like that in the future if we wanted to.

Anyone else? Steve.

Um, as far as coordinating it with the election, is he up for reelection this year? Okay, well, I'm not too worried about the start date because obviously if the residents don't like it, they can cast their vote and make a decision. I do like the idea though of Any district that has this stipend payment needs to have a job description of what they're expected to do to receive that. If that's drive the road so often, if it's whatever. But I do like the idea of that so they know what they're getting into and why they're getting paid.

Thank you.

Anyone else? Oh, Larry. I would like to amend the resolution to include that the increase is pending the submission to the borough manager of a job description.

Um, which, which line? He was just saying put an amendment in.

Is there a second? Second. Okay, there is a motion and a second. Yes, Nova. If— point of clarification, I think we are going to need to amend then Section 2 stating the stipend shall be paid on a quarterly basis.

Is from the time that a job description is submitted to the manager's office. Is that correct? Okay.

That would be lines 34 and 35 of the resolution.

Scott and then Ryan. Madam Manager, do you have any Any ideas on this? I would think I would want to take it back to the Service Area 1 board and see what their expectations are because they are the elected people representing that service area. So I think they would probably be able to write it. Service Area 1 is the only service area that has a stipend for their chair, so it might be a model for other service areas if they decide they want to go that way.

Thank you.

Ryan. I would just caution us as a governing body to require a job description. I know that this sounds kind of tongue-in-cheek and polar opposite of what I just said. However, when we are writing a personnel description, it needs to go through a process that is longer and arduous. Going through HR, municipal attorneys, the PERS program.

I mean, there's quite a bit involved with this. So I would actually suggest that this be more of a standard operating procedure that is produced from the service district rather than a personnel description of what we're asking for. For. That way it could be produced at a local level and also held accountable at a local level. So that's my suggestion.

Yes, Larry. I was wondering if Assemblymember Short could clarify the difference between a job description. It made sense what you were saying, but I wasn't really sure. Exactly what you meant between the two. [Speaker:COMMISSIONER MAY] Yeah.

Go ahead, Ryan. [Speaker:MR. BATTLES] Thank you, Mr. DPO. So a job description is a vetted statement that runs congruent with other job descriptions that the Bureau funds or produces and is accountable through Human Resources and accountable through the PERS system. If we were to ask the service district as a body to produce a standard operating procedure for a chairperson, that would just be a procedural document versus an actual job description.

So this would be essentially taking a— what would be a specification standard for personnel description and changing it more to a performance standard or a standard operating procedure, if you will.

Thank you.

Is there anyone else? Anyone else before? Okay, go ahead and take a vote. I like where this is heading. Clearly there's a lot of work being done by this position.

I'm going to stop referring to it by an individual, but this position or this chair has a lot of responsibility. A lot of people rely on this person to perform those duties. I don't have a preference on what form this takes, but I do really like the idea of having some form of accountability to warrant the stipend, no matter who's sitting in that seat. So I would be open to, to an SOP. I think that's great.

I would love to see whatever, whether it's an SOP or a job description, increase the— not necessarily accountability, but have some information as to how this person responds to and communicates and records input from service area residents. I would really like to see that be a part of this requirement. But SOP sounds great to me. I support the idea.

Dave, and then we will go back to Larry. Thank you, Mr. DPO. I just— after listening to the discussion initially, I thought I like the idea, and I do think that an SOP is a righteous effort. Support the amendment, however, because I'm always trying to stay cognizant of what unintended consequences can, can react— can happen. And as Miss— as was previously mentioned by another assembly member, there's a lot of great ideas as to what this could and probably should include, but I don't think we want to sit here amending and motioning this for the rest of the night trying to figure out exactly what that looks like.

And I think if we get heavy-handed in dictating that we won't authorize money until this is done, we could get something written in CRAN. And if we don't have strict guidelines as to what is included, which again is a process that I don't think any of us came prepared tonight, we lose the benefit in— of what we're trying to get in due to malicious compliance. So I think a conversation between the manager and the Service District Board that we would like them to follow up on this action is a reasonable expectation of us, but I don't want to try to put a stick to that as well. So that's where I'm at with it. Thank you.

Thank you, Dave. Larry, and then Scott, and then Steve. Well, ultimately, the Assembly is approving, you know, approving the use of public money that people have paid taxes for without any accountability. And the accountability is necessary because we're not talking about a person, we're talking about a position. And I would say that if the service district can't come up with an SOP in a timely manner, then we're in trouble already.

But I think in deference to the taxpayers, there should be some accountability, and I don't see that as a difficult task And how do we use the public money without specifically saying what we're doing with it? And we are responsible. We approve the service district's budget, and this came up relatively quickly. I mean, this just came up recently, and we're moving forward on an expenditure, and I, I believe the money is justified. Has nothing to do with that, but what is it for?

Okay, what is it for? And nobody has defined that, and I believe the service district could do that.

Um, thank you, Larry. Scott? I think we should leave this up to the service district. I think that they're the ones that spend the money that their residents are tithed with, which is 1.5 mils, as I recall. And they pay— they agree to pay contractors this and that and the other for various functions that they perform.

I think if anyone is able to have an insight into what the job description for this person should be, it's going to be them. To me, we are just supposed to either agree or disagree on this. It's up to them. The whole thing. So I think a lot of this is hanging fire, waiting for them to make some decisions.

Thank you. Amy, did you have something? I went to those Service Area Board meetings, and the service board was, dare I say, passionate about this increase. They spoke about the wear and tear on the chair's vehicle, the money for gas. Tires, all that stuff.

And so it was, uh, someone even brought up like, what if we had to pay the per mile, like the government per mile amount, which made the $800 sound really cheap from what I've heard. So the— I agree that the Service Area Board, what they've approved it, and they're elected, and they're the ones spending that money, so that feels appropriate for them to be the authors of what they expect out of that position.

Thank you, Amy. Steve. I'll support it. I— the board supported it, and they are responsible to the residents for their tax dollars, so I don't think we need to meddle in that. I think we vote to agree or not, but we should let the districts govern themselves.

And not try to micromanage everything.

So I will be supporting it. I do think we could ask them for standard operating, what they expect, but— and I understand the concern about future, saying as there is an election this fall and there may be competition. But we have a recommendation from the board, and I think they should be pretty much the deciding body for their district. They're elected, and so they should decide how that money is spent.

Thank you. Thanks. Yes. And just before we move on to Nova, just a reminder, we're actually discussing the amendment right now, not the whole resolution. So just— good points were brought up, but we're looking at lines 34 and 35 specifically.

Nova, you had your hand raised, but would you also read us back the language that you generated for us? So the motion that is on the floor right now It states the stipend shall be paid on a quarterly basis from the time that a job description is submitted to the manager. So job description is in there. So it's— if you want to be particular with the type of wording that you want in this motion, if you want to use SO SOP, standard operating procedure, is that what you wanted in there? You are going to need to have a second amendment on the floor changing that job description to standard operating procedure.

Correct. Is anyone willing to make that motion to amend the amendment? Ryan. I would like to make the motion to amend the amendment and replace the language of any insinuations of personnel description with the installation of standard operating procedure to remove anything for employee-based things. So to remove job and replace it with standard operating procedures.

That would be removing the words job description description and changing those words to standard operating procedure. Exactly. Thank you. Is there a second? Okay, it's moved and seconded.

Discussion on the amendment to amend? Yes. I have to start a whole other page of names. Thank you. I appreciate this discussion.

This is important. I agree with the statement earlier that, you know, I support that the board is elected and they should have a lot of influence on how that service area operates and how the chair operates and how they interact with the public. My sticking point is this is essentially a fee-for-service scenario. People are paying taxes. Oh.

We might have to interrupt you. [Speaker:COMMISSIONER ARKOOSH] A point of clarification, we need to focus our discussion discussion on the wording right now. We can't go back to the main motion yet, so we need to focus only on the changing the wording from job description to standard operating procedures. So if you have any comments on the second amendment, it's pertaining to the wording only. We're going to have to focus on, on the wording.

Are you getting there? May I continue? Yes. I'm working towards that. Thank you.

So back to what I was saying, this is a fee-for-service. So having a clear understanding of what those services are and what that position or chair would be doing for those fees, which are taxes, I do think that should be outlined at least in a broad sense. Whether or not that can happen right now or we put a timeline on it, I agree that there is overwhelming support from the board for this to happen. I do agree that populating an SOP should be pretty straightforward for this chair. So I am still in support of the amendment for an SOP.

Anyone else?

Okay, roll call on the motion to amend the amendment. Okay, this is changing the words job description to standard operating procedures. Okay, Mr. Johnson? Yes. Mr. LeDoux?

Yes. Mr. Sharon? Yes. Mr. Smiley? No.

Mr. Whiteside? Yes. Mr. Ames? Yes. Mr. Griffin?

Yes. Would anyone like to change their vote? Motion passes with 6 yes, 1 no. And we are back to the original amendment to— our original motion to amend lines 34 and 35 now to require standard operating procedures before the stipend can be dispersed. So, any more discussion on that particular amendment?

I will speak then. This one I don't think I will support. I agree that this is a longer process and to expect something very quickly from them just might cause more problems for us than we intend. I am in favor of requiring now an SOP for sure, but I think we can accomplish that through discussion and through revising ordinance, revising the code so that it's in there for future generations, future chairs.

Any other comments? Okay. Roll call on the amendment. Okay. Mr. LeDieu.

Yes. Mr. Sharrett. Mr. Smiley? No. Mr. Whiteside?

Yes. Mr. Ames? Yes. Mr. Griffin? No.

Mr. Johnson? No. Would anyone like to change their vote? Motion passes with 4 yes, 3 no. All right, and now we're back at the original motion to adopt Resolution 2025-25.

Any further discussion? Does anybody need it reread before we vote since we changed?

Okay, roll call on the resolution. Okay, so this is the— the resolution will be adopted with the change wording in line 34 and 35, which states the stipend shall be be paid on a quarterly basis from the time that the standard operating procedure is submitted to the manager. Okay, Mr. Sharrett? Yes.

Mr. Smiley? Yes. Mr. Whiteside? Yes. Mr. Ames?

Yes. Mr. Griffin? Yes. Mr. Johnson? Yes.

Mr. LeDoux? Yes. Would anyone like to change their vote. Motion passes with 7 yes, 0 no.

There he is. I will now return the gavel to the mayor. Thank you for your patience. Okay, next item is ordinances for introduction. This is Ordinance Number FY 2025-2B, amending Ordinance Number 2025-2, Fiscal Year 2025 Budget, by amending budgets and appropriations to account for various revenues that are over budget, providing for additional expenditures, and moving funds between projects.

Jared.

Move to advance ordinance number FY 2025-02B to public hearing at the next regular meeting of the assembly. Second. It's been moved and seconded. Uh, staff report, Nova.

How about— is it okay if I do that one, Mr. Mayor?

Yes, you may. Uh, thank you. This ordinance presents The net changes for additional requests which occurred during the current fiscal year. This is our third quarterly budget amendment. There will be a fourth at the end of June, beginning of July to wrap up fiscal year '25.

I know last week Dora walked you through the ordinance line item by line item. Would you like me to do the same tonight? No. Is there any questions? There was one question that Mayor Arndt had during the work session last week about the North Star and roof and skylight repair project, and you mentioned you were interested in the flat roof discussion.

The architect has been directed to design that, so we are well on that pathway, Mr. Leib. Thank you. By that you mean a flat roof? Yes.

Any other discussion? All righty. And I missed that. I should have crossed that out on my thing on the staff report, so Seeing none, roll call vote on the motion, please. Mr. Sharon.

No. Mr. Smiley. Yes. Mr. Whiteside. Yes.

Mr. Ames. Yes. Mr. Griffin. Yes. Mr. Johnson.

Yes. Mr. LeDoux. Yes. Would anyone like to change their vote? Motion passes with 6 yes Sawan, no.

All righty. Next is other items. Confirmation of assembly appointments to the Monashka Bay Road Service Area Board of Mr. Jeff Brubaker and Christian Kormetas. Chair. Move to confirm the following assembly appointments to the Monashka Bay Road Service Area Board: Jeff Brubaker for a term to expire in October 2027, and Christian Cormenes for a term to expire in October 2025.

Second. All righty, any discussion? Seeing none, roll call vote on the motion, please. Mr. Smiley? Yes.

Mr. Whiteside? Yes. Mr. Ames? Yes. Mr. Griffin?

Yes. Mr. Johnson? Yes. Mr. LeDoux? Yes.

Mr. Sherry? Yes. Would anyone like to change their vote? Motion passes with 7 yes, 0 no. Alrighty, next is, uh, this is the second bite at the apple of citizens' comments.

Um, the local phone number is 907-486-3231, toll-free number 855-492- 9202. Please turn off your radio or listening device to prevent feedback. Anybody in the audience wishing to come forward, please do so at this time. Seeing none, any phone calls? Seeing none, we'll move on to assembly member comments.

Uh, Bo, I'll start with you. Thank you. Um, not much tonight other than I'm going to be absent from tomorrow morning until the 23rd, and I do not wish to be excused. Thank you. Thank you, Bo.

Jarrett.

Just— we had a lot of proclamations today, and I just wanted to say thanks to the Mayor for allowing these proclamations, the recommendations for proclamations to go through. There are many municipal leaders, especially down south, who don't do this kind of thing. And so I think it's really cool that, that, that we do that. I will be in Port Lyons on Monday and Akiak on Tuesday. So I'm looking forward to my visits there next week.

Then I'll be in Old Harbor the following week after that. And have a great week. Thank you. Dave. Thank you, Mr. Mayor.

I wanted to thank Mr. Brubaker and Mr. Kormetas for volunteering to join their service area district boards. It's always, you know, appreciated to get more people into the fray. And I wanted to, I guess, apologize to my fellow assembly members. You know, you get to know folks and you become friends, or at least friendly, and sometimes it's easy easier to forget your rules, your parliamentary procedure. You know, there's a reason we're supposed to talk through the chair, and I didn't— hadn't been doing a great job of that, and so I will do better.

Thank you. Thank you. Steve.

I'd like to thank anyone who volunteers to be on service boards or any other boards that help run the borough. Also remind people that during Crab Fest there will be a blood drive, and please donate. You never know when you might need it. Thank you. Larry, um, in the manager's report tonight, she included, um, the local housing solutions zoning ordinances and beyond from the city of Valdez.

And when I was on the assembly previously, when formed the Lands Committee, we— I believe that we had a dream similar to what this put forward. I have never seen a document so well done, and then I think it could be a template— not everything in it— for us to look at what we can do to facilitate housing and land development in Kodiak. There's just a lot of good information there, and I wish there was some forum where we could sit down and really take a look at this. Certainly Maybe Planning and Zoning could take a close look at this, as I think the manager said, and I appreciate that. I also wanted to thank the head of Service District 1.

It appears that what we've heard tonight and last week is that the head, which is Scott Arndt of that Service District 1, has been doing an exemplary job using his own gas, being up at 4 in the morning, and I'm well aware of that because I used to be at Northstar where he was always trying to make sure the roads were ready to go. And so given the discussion tonight, I think in— I think one of the assembly members talked about all the people that serve on the boards. I think I would like to take this opportunity based on the input that we've had of all the work done to thank Scott for all he's on, on Service District 1. Thank you. Thank you.

You done, Larry? No. Bummer. No, and I'll take that back real quick. And, uh, the, uh, the other is, at some point in time, um, I've been through, I think, 5 budget processes now, and I would like to, uh, perhaps when it's all done this year, that we sit down and look at a different way of of looking at the budget that is more understandable to assembly members at different times, but also to the public so that they can find out, you know, what's going on, what's up, what's down, what are the revenues, what are the expenditures, and in a real simple format.

And I think it would benefit the assembly to take a look at that. I appreciate all the work that's done. I think it's been exemplary. I just feel that there might be a simpler way to project the critical information to the public and to the assembly so that we can make good decisions. It's not a complaint, it's just an offer of a different way to look at the budget process.

Thank you. Scott.

I keep looking for spring. I don't see it. It's just been cold, wet rain. I want to thank people on the services District 1 board for their insistence on dealing with this issue. I think it's a good thing that they stood forward that much.

I know we've had issues with some of the people who live in Service District 1, but it's good to hear that the board is supportive of the chair of the board in in spite of all the other stuff.

I think the question of how the budget is presented is a difficult one. Personally, I find it absolutely opaque. I— when we go through each line, it just drives me nuts, and I would like to have a simpler saying we are going to keep this and we are going to cut that would be a lot easier for me. But I have a tiny brain and I know you guys are all whizzes at that kind of stuff. So, at any rate.

Thank you, Scott. Ryan. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I will also apologize for my role in the lack of professional decorum at last meeting.

I would also like to give a huge shout out to Jenna, Cody, and Seema, as well as Patricia, and let them know that it's been notable over the last couple months of how good of a job they are doing. Not only did Jenna kill it during the budget presentation, presentation. She was able to respond to questions to the best of her ability with limited information and preparedness, and I appreciate that. So please pass on my absolute appreciation to the staff for doing a great job and a notable difference in their demeanor over the last couple months. It's been very refreshing.

So outside of that, that's it. Thanks. Thank you. The next assembly work session is scheduled on Thursday, May 8th at 6:30 PM, followed by a special meeting. The next assembly regular meeting is scheduled on Thursday, May 15th at 6:30 PM in the assembly chambers.

Chair would entertain a motion Motion to adjourn. Move to adjourn the meeting. It's been moved. Is there a second? Second.

All those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed, same sign. Motion carries unanimously, and we are adjourned at 7:43. Thank you.