Sitka City Assembly Meeting - November 10, 2025

The regularly scheduled meeting of the City and Borough of Sitka Assembly convened on November 10, 2025, at 6:00 PM. The Assembly conducted routine business, including the adoption of a Veterans Day proclamation and a special report update on Harbors and Waterfront projects. A significant portion of the meeting was dedicated to the acceptance of the Municipal Administrator John Leach's resignation, effective May 30, 2026, and the subsequent discussion regarding the recruitment process and salary considerations for his successor. The Assembly also received reports on tourism initiatives, strategic planning, and the housing land feasibility study.

Consent Calendar

• Minutes: Unanimously approved the minutes from the October 28th Assembly meeting.
• Grants: Unanimously approved authorizing a 50-50 matching grant application to the Office of Justice Programs Bulletproof Vest Partnership.

Public Comments & Testimony

• No public comments were offered during the public participation segments for either on-agenda or off-agenda items.

Discussion Items

• Resignation of Municipal Administrator John Leach:
  • Municipal Administrator John Leach: Stated his resignation was made with clarity and gratitude, citing the emotional toll on his health and family from constant public scrutiny and the sustained pace of the job. He expressed pride in the strategic transformation of Sitka, including the implementation of the first asset management plan and infrastructure investments, and offered to assist in the transition until his final day.
  • Assembly Members (General Sentiment): Expressed deep gratitude for Leach's six years of leadership, acknowledging his role in stabilizing the city post-pandemic and building long-term resilience. Multiple members noted that the Assembly, as elected officials, should have absorbed more of the public backlash directed at the Administrator, expressing regret that Leach should bear the burden of such criticism.
• Recruitment Strategy and Compensation:
  • Councilors Kevin Christensen and Katie Riley: Positioning themselves as strongly supportive of competitive salary increases, they argued that the current market requires a starting salary of at least $200,000 to $225,000 to attract high-caliber candidates, noting that Sitka's unique status as a unified city-borough with utility oversight adds significant complexity to the role.
  • Councilor Scotty: Expressed opposition to raising the salary without immediate necessity, arguing instead that the primary issue is structural; he emphasized that the Council must better define decision-making authority regarding gray areas (such as Gary Paxson Industrial Park) so the next administrator is not set up to take the "heat" for Assembly decisions. He advocated for focusing on role clarity and reorganization rather than higher pay.
  • Councilors Tim, Holly, and Mayor Eisenbais: Reiterated the need to treat recruitment as a significant investment in the community's future, agreeing that compromising on salary now would likely result in a "false start" similar to previous administrative transitions.
  • Process Clarification: The Mayor clarified that while Leach's expertise would be valuable as a resource for the selection committee, he would not be formally involved in the hiring process to avoid conflicts of interest. The recruitment process is scheduled to review job descriptions and salary benchmarks at a workshop on November 25th.
• Tourism Report (Mayor): Mayor reported on the ATIA conference, noting two Sitkans won awards (Chris McGraw for business excellence and Victoria for emerging leadership). He proposed implementing a visitor Wi-Fi survey similar to the one used by Visit Anchorage, citing it as a cost-effective method to gather demographic data from cruise and air travelers.
• Housing Land Study (Councilor Katie): Reported on the Planning Commission's evaluation criteria for the housing land suitability study. The Commission established a weighted scoring system where "slide risk" was prioritized as the highest category (20%), followed by physical conditions and utility capacity. Environmental impact and proximity to services were assigned low weights (3% and 1%, respectively).

Key Outcomes

• Resolution: Formally accepted the resignation of Municipal Administrator John Leach, effective May 30, 2026.
• Vote: The motion to accept the resignation and begin the recruitment process passed by a vote of 6-1.
• Directive: The Assembly directed the Mayor and HR to conduct a workshop on November 25th to finalize the job description, determine the salary range (with recommendations leaning toward $200k+), and establish a timeline for the recruitment process.
• Agenda Change: Item C (Adopting the Historic Preservation Plan) was pulled from the agenda for legal review due to attorney concerns.
• Proclamation: Adopted a proclamation recognizing November 11, 2025, as Veterans Day.
• Scheduling Updates:
  • The quarterly meeting originally scheduled for November 12th was cancelled due to lack of space and rescheduled to occur after the government-to-government dinner (tentatively after November 13th).
  • Upcoming meetings scheduled for December have been moved to December 16th and December 30th; a special budget meeting is scheduled for December 18th.
• Vacancies: The Clerk's report confirmed vacancies exist on the Animal Hearing Board, Building Department Appeals Board, Health Needs and Human Services, Historic Preservation Commission, Investment Committee, Library Commission, Parks and Recreation Committee, Police and Fire Commission, Sustainability Commission, Tourism Commission, and Tree and Landscape Committee.