The Sitka City and Borough Assembly held its regular meeting on January 28, 2025, at 6:00 PM in Assembly Chambers. Mayor Steven Eisenbeisz was absent; six members were present. The meeting included special reports from the Health Needs & Human Services Commission (childcare and elder care recommendations), the Sitka School Board, and the Sitka Tribe of Alaska. Public comments addressed childcare funding, trail safety, and commercial recreation code changes. Key actions included approving legislative priorities with amended language on school funding, adopting a new commercial recreational land use ordinance, advancing the marine haul-out bidding process, and supporting two historic preservation grant applications.
Commissioners Crystal Duncan, Annette Evans, and Chair Michelle Kavouras presented findings from the Child Care and Elder Care working groups. Recommendations included funding childcare through an alcohol tax, subsidizing utilities for licensed centers, identifying a facility for a community childcare center, and holding a work session in February. The Commission also made six recommendations for elder care, ranging from maintaining current services to exploring a dedicated commission.
Phil Burdick, School Board President, reported on HB69 (proposing $1,000 increase to Base Student Allocation plus inflation funding), budget hearings, and the need for public testimony.
Chairwoman Yeidikook’áa Dionne Brady-Howard highlighted a recent meeting with Representative Himschoot covering herring protection, education funding, and marine highway. She noted the signing of a transportation compact with USDOT and ongoing housing projects.
Good evening. Like to call the meeting. Uh call the order, the January twenty-eight assembly meeting. Please join me for a flag. I pleased regions to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which is one nation under God. The Assembly of the City and Borough of Sitka would like to respectfully acknowledge the traditional first people of Sheekka with gratitude. We proceed on Clintani. Jess, roll call, please. Sarah. Okay. Mr. Pike. Yes. Ms. Carlson. Here. Mr. Yesad. Here. Mr. Christensen. Here. Mr. Mosher? Here. Mr. Selene. Here. Thank you. Moving on. Correspondence and agenda changes. Are there any correspondence or agenda changes this evening? Seeing none. There are no ceremonial matters. So we'll move on to special reports. Under special reports, we have a number tonight. First will be Health and Human Health Needs and Human Services Commission members Crystal Duncan and Annette Evans will present. Thank you. Good evening, Annette Evans, Health Needs and Human Services Committee Member. And I'm Crystal Duncan, and we have Michelle. Michelle Cavoris sharing a mic over here. So we are three folks on the Health Needs and Human Services Commission. And so we're going to do a quick presentation of the two goals that we had. Further, the Health Needs and Human Services Subcommittee on Child Care Services would like to recognize the response from individuals and groups in our community to support the gathering of information for this report. A special thank you to SICA's Early Childhood Coalition, Southeast Association for the Education of Young Children, and Executive Director Blue Scheibler, SICA Tribe of Alaska, SIGA Counseling, Joel Marcus, Betty Eliason Childcare Center Board President and Parent, all local child care providers and their governing boards, Parks and Recreation, Stephanie Berglin, CEO of Threat Alaska, Rachel Roy of SICA Chamber of Commerce, CBS Strategic Work Group, CBS staff Melissa Weilman and Melissa Haley for your policy and procedure guidance, and other volunteers who are helping to address this issue for SICA, including Carrie Sagel and Lauren Wilde of the Early Childhood Coalition. SICA's working parents are struggling to maintain their jobs or attain a job due to lack of available child care. Families with children enrolled in child care struggle to balance their mortgage and food on the table with the steep child care costs. Our local businesses struggle to keep their doors open without a reliable workforce. With all these challenges, our community stands on a demographic demographic cliff with an aging population, lower school enrollment, fewer births, and a housing situation that makes in migration challenging. Now more than ever before, it is important for our municipal governments to act in supporting their communities.