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Record of Proceedings

Special Meeting Interview with Steven Dahl for Municipal Administrator - April 22, 2026

City and Borough Assembly — Wednesday, April 22, 2026
BodySitka, Alaska
SessionCity and Borough Assembly
DateWednesday, April 22, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 2:00:42

Original source
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0:00

Joining us today, Assembly.

0:03

I will call to order the regularly scheduled or the special meeting of Wednesday, April 22nd, 2026.

0:10

Please join me for a flag salute.

0:14

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands.

0:21

One nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

0:29

The Assembly of the City and Borough of Sitka would like to respectfully acknowledge the traditional first people of Sheetka.

0:35

With gratitude, we proceed on Clinketani.

0:39

Sarah Rollcall, please.

0:44

Mayor Isawe's present.

0:46

Mr.

0:46

Pike.

0:47

Here.

0:47

Ms.

0:48

Carlson.

0:48

Here.

0:49

Ms.

0:49

Riley.

0:50

Here.

0:51

Mr.

0:51

Christensen.

0:52

Here.

0:53

Mr.

0:53

Mosier?

0:54

Here.

0:54

And Mr.

0:54

Steline.

0:55

Here.

1:01

Thank you.

1:02

Tonight we are gathered to do a second round interview with the candidate Stephen Dahl.

1:10

He will be joining us on Zoom.

1:12

We've scheduled a little bit longer this evening to try and get a little bit more in-depth in our questions.

1:17

I've often seen the first round as kind of a meet and greet.

1:21

You know, initially do personalities mesh.

1:23

Does it look like the person could be a fit for Sitka?

1:26

So tonight is kind of the opportunity to dig down deeper and figure out, you know, how the candidates could apply themselves within the municipality and see uh you know if they would not only mesh with you and your constituents, but the the rest of the town as well.

1:45

Um so we did have two hours scheduled.

1:48

Uh if if it appears that we were running out of questions, um, I'll kind of follow that.

1:52

And you know, we don't have to use the full two hours, um, but it is there and able um for us to be used.

1:59

Josh, do you have anything you need to add to this process this evening?

2:03

Uh good evening, Mayor and Assembly.

2:05

Um, it'll be a round robin just as last time.

2:08

Um reminder that there should be within your iPads there a list of questions.

2:12

If uh I didn't print them out again this time, um, but they're to be there in your email.

2:17

Um also put a sheet in front of everybody, which is the uh protected categories, prohibited questions.

2:24

Um if you're in a joking manner, if you had one of these questions on there, make sure you remove it.

2:29

Um but uh it's not an exhaustive list, but uh if you have anything that was similar to that, make sure not to ask it.

2:35

Um and then uh yeah, Mr.

2:36

Dahl is standing by for me to send him a text and he will join and be ready to go.

2:42

Great, thank you, Josh.

2:44

Questions from the assembly this evening.

2:49

Okay, I guess we're all old pros.

2:52

Um last time we did start with Kevin.

2:54

Katie, do you want to start it off tonight or should we punt that over to Kevin again?

2:59

Can we actually because Katie is having logistical vision?

3:04

I'll go ahead and get started then.

3:09

And then we'll yeah, we'll see which way we uh we go from there.

3:14

Oh, I don't know if I have an opening question.

3:16

How are you?

3:20

Yeah, please.

4:15

Uh good evening, Steve.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Personnel Matters████████████████████████24%
Economic Development████████████12%
Community Engagement███████████11%
Procedural██████████10%
Public Engagement███████7%
Affordable Housing██████6%
Engineering And Infrastructure██████6%
Budget Equity Analysis█████5%
Education And Training███3%
Summary of Proceedings

Special Meeting: Municipal Administrator Candidate Interview – April 22, 2026

The City and Borough Assembly convened a special meeting on April 22, 2026, at 5:00 PM to conduct a second-round interview with Steven Dahl, a candidate for Municipal Administrator. The interview lasted approximately two hours via Zoom, followed by an executive session to discuss the candidate's qualifications. The meeting adjourned at 7:35 PM.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • None.

Discussion Items

  • The Assembly interviewed Steven Dahl, who addressed questions on his administrative philosophy, experience, and specific challenges facing Sitka. Key topics included:
    • Role of Administrator: Dahl emphasized acting as a liaison between the council and staff, being accessible to the public, and avoiding political involvement.
    • Organizational Style: He stressed the importance of listening to staff, using the city's five-year plan as a guide, and pushing decisions down to appropriate levels.
    • Housing: Dahl supported accessory dwelling units and multi-income housing, citing prior efforts in Dundee to repurpose school buildings for workforce housing.
    • Budget Process: He described a collaborative approach starting with council goals, department input, and iterative trimming to achieve a balanced budget.
    • Community Engagement: Dahl discussed handling complaints with empathy, being available, and explaining legal and resource limitations.
    • Infrastructure and Utilities: He advocated for proactive maintenance, bundling projects, and developing a local workforce pipeline through school internships.
    • Tourism and Community Character: Dahl acknowledged the tension and said he would need to better understand residents' specific concerns before proposing solutions.
    • Emergency Management: He deferred to trained staff and emphasized supporting them with resources and FEMA paperwork.
    • Relationships with State/Federal Agencies: Dahl shared experience testifying before legislatures, working with regional associations, and securing earmarks.
    • School District Partnership: He viewed the school district as a partner in community vitality, supporting resource sharing and career fairs.
    • Personal Background: Dahl discussed his father's influence, his education in management and alternative dispute resolution, and his hobbies (dog walking, writing a children's book, curating art exhibits).
  • At the end of the interview, Dahl asked the Assembly what one issue they would prioritize in the next year. Assembly members offered varied responses: housing, financial stability, maintaining budget support for schools, addressing outmigration of working families, and using head tax revenue for community benefits.
  • The Assembly then moved into executive session to discuss the candidate's reputation and character, excluding the Municipal Administrator and Municipal Attorney, but inviting Assistant Municipal Administrator Josh Branthoover. The session lasted from 7:08 PM to 7:34 PM.

Key Outcomes

  • The Assembly unanimously (7-0) voted to enter executive session to deliberate on the interview with Steven Dahl.
  • After reconvening, Mayor Eisenbeisz commented that the Assembly had a good discussion of the candidate's merits and looked forward to the next interview with Jenny Alber on April 24, 2026.
  • No formal decision on hiring was made during this meeting; the process will continue with additional interviews.

Meeting Transcript

Joining us today, Assembly. I will call to order the regularly scheduled or the special meeting of Wednesday, April 22nd, 2026. Please join me for a flag salute. 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. The Assembly of the City and Borough of Sitka would like to respectfully acknowledge the traditional first people of Sheetka. With gratitude, we proceed on Clinketani. Sarah Rollcall, please. Mayor Isawe's present. Mr. Pike. Here. Ms. Carlson. Here. Ms. Riley. Here. Mr. Christensen. Here. Mr. Mosier? Here. And Mr. Steline. Here. Thank you. Tonight we are gathered to do a second round interview with the candidate Stephen Dahl. He will be joining us on Zoom. We've scheduled a little bit longer this evening to try and get a little bit more in-depth in our questions. I've often seen the first round as kind of a meet and greet. You know, initially do personalities mesh. Does it look like the person could be a fit for Sitka? So tonight is kind of the opportunity to dig down deeper and figure out, you know, how the candidates could apply themselves within the municipality and see uh you know if they would not only mesh with you and your constituents, but the the rest of the town as well. Um so we did have two hours scheduled. Uh if if it appears that we were running out of questions, um, I'll kind of follow that. And you know, we don't have to use the full two hours, um, but it is there and able um for us to be used. Josh, do you have anything you need to add to this process this evening? Uh good evening, Mayor and Assembly. Um, it'll be a round robin just as last time. Um reminder that there should be within your iPads there a list of questions. If uh I didn't print them out again this time, um, but they're to be there in your email. Um also put a sheet in front of everybody, which is the uh protected categories, prohibited questions. Um if you're in a joking manner, if you had one of these questions on there, make sure you remove it. Um but uh it's not an exhaustive list, but uh if you have anything that was similar to that, make sure not to ask it. Um and then uh yeah, Mr. Dahl is standing by for me to send him a text and he will join and be ready to go. Great, thank you, Josh. Questions from the assembly this evening.

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