Kodiak Borough: Assembly Special Meeting of June 25, 2026

Over those seasons for elk or grouse, and you give me information of how to delete wildlife by our own state law definition. You're like, everything you said is right, but nobody's going to do anything. The state is like, let's have a council assembled over here and additional fly fishers are kind of like, I want to terminate grouse. The state will seriously keep grouse. They want to Okay, look around, see, maybe you'll fish.

I think you can almost have a campaign flyer saying that. I was like, there's a, there's a guy, a lady in a suit, in a nice shop.

Okay. All right. I will call the Thursday, June 25th Kodiak Island Borough Assembly special meeting to order. This meeting was called by the mayor and the assembly. Roll call, please.

Madam Clerk. Mr. Ames. Here. Mr. Gardner. Here.

Mr. Johnson. Here. Ms. Roberts. Mr. Smiley. Here.

Mr. Whiteside. Here. Mr. Woods. Here. Mayor Griffin.

Here. You have a quorum. Great. We do. This is a special meeting, so we have one opportunity for citizen comments.

For those who wish to call in, the local number is 907-486-3231. Toll-free, 1-855-492-9202. Please mute your radio or streaming device to prevent feedback. And for those in the room who wish to speak under citizens' comments, Please sign in at the podium, turn on the microphone, make sure the green light is on before speaking, and speak directly into the mic, and state your name for the record and direct all remarks to the Assembly as a whole.

I will give a few seconds in case there is a call.

All right. Seeing no calls, we will move into consideration of the matters in the call for the special meeting. Up first is accepting the resignation of Assemblymember Dave Johnson and declaring the Assembly seat vacant. Madam Clerk, would you like to— It says you are the originator, but—. Oh, we need a motion first, please.

With great regret, I move to accept the resignation of Assemblymember Dave Johnson effective June 25, 2026, declare the seat vacant, and direct the clerk to advertise the vacant seat per borough code. Second. It has been moved and seconded.

Now staff report. Thank you, Mr. Mayor and members of the assembly. On June 4th, 2026, Assemblymember Johnson submitted his resignation letter from the assembly effective today. There are still more than 90 days remaining in the term since the position he holds will not end until October 2027. The schedule for filing his— this vacancy is outlined, uh, below.

June 26th and July 3rd, we're going to, um, advertise the seat on the Kodiak Daily Mirror. Starting on Saturday, June July 11th, we will be receiving applications. The assembly is scheduled to conduct interviews with applicants on July 16th. If the assembly is ready to make an appointment, they can do so on the July 16th regular meeting. Or July 16th regular meeting, that's correct.

If you're not ready, we can call a special meeting the following week. But by code, we need to make the appointment 30 days after you declare the seat vacant. So, um, that's my report, and I'd be happy to answer any questions that you may have. And thank you for your service, Assemblymember Johnson. Any, um, questions or discussion?

Mr. Whiteside. I just wanted to thank, uh, Mr. Johnson. Thank you, Dave, for all of the service you have provided, uh, our country as a U.S. Coast Guardsman, and to our— especially to our community through the Board of Education, our harbormaster. For quite some time, and now in the Borough Assembly. I agree with Mr. Gardner, I really appreciate people who challenge me, and you do it in a way that's, that's respectful and cordial but firm, and I really appreciate that.

I love when people challenge my thought process and make me think through a different perspective, and it forces me to empathize when I, um, largely had my mindset in one direction. So I really appreciate how you approach our decision-making, and I'm a better person for it. So thank you. Mr. Woods. I'm going to largely echo both statements there about people who challenge you.

They only tend to make you better. I appreciate the fact that you have repeatedly posed questions and made comments in a manner that expanded my way of thinking, and I truly do appreciate you for that. I also particularly appreciate your sense of humor, which has occasionally quite picturesquely pointed out some relatively interesting errors that I may have made in the past. Thank you again for your service, sir.

Anyone else? Yeah, same thing. I think that the best compliment that you can give somebody who's leaving a group or a committee or a board is that you made us better. Yeah.

Okay, roll call vote on the motion. Mr. Ames. Yes. Mr. Gardner. Yes.

Mr. Johnson. Yes. Mr. Smiley. Yes. Mr. Whiteside.

Yes. Mr. Woods. Yes. Would anyone like to change their vote? Motion passes 6-0.

Now I think you can leave.

All right. And our final item for the night is an Executive Session, a continuation of the Borough Clerk's performance evaluation. Mr. Whiteside. Moved to convene into Executive Session to continue the Borough Clerk's performance evaluation under the authority of Kodiak Island Borough Code 2.30.030.

The evaluation is a subject that qualifies for Executive Session as a matter that may tend to prejudice the character or reputation of Any person?

Second. Okay, it's been moved and seconded. Uh, Mr. Whiteside, anything else that you'd like to add? Uh, no, Mr. Mayor. Any other, um, questions before we take a vote?

Mr. Gardner, can I make a motion to also invite the manager? We haven't gotten to that one yet. That's a second motion.

Okay, roll call vote on the initial motion, please. Mr. Gardner? Yes. Mr. Johnson? Yes.

Mr. Smiley? Yes. Mr. Whiteside? Yes. Mr. Woods?

Yes. Mr. Ames? Yes. Would anyone like to change their vote? Motion passes 6-0.

Okay, now Mr. Whiteside. Move to invite the mayor, assembly members, and manager into executive session. Clerk Javier is going to be invited in at a later time. Second. All right.

It has been moved and seconded. Any discussion? I do want to bring up that it is unusual to invite the Manager into, I think, an Executive Session for personnel matters. So I wonder, Mr. Whiteside, for the public and for others. Sure.

The reason the Manager is coming in is to make sure the information I have asked of staff is accurate as far as any potential fiscal impacts our decision policymaking will result in and any previous information that was shared with staff from associated contracted employees, which I will specify in executive session. Okay. Voice vote on the motion. All in favor say aye. Aye.

Any opposed, same sign. Okay. We will move into executive session. NOVA, we will call you in.

How—. What do we need, 30 seconds? 60-Second break? Yes, I just need to turn off the streaming device, and I just want to remind everyone to please turn off your.