$5 million for new Palmer library, $1.5 million for Arctic Winter Games in late additions to state budget

Palmer will get a new $5 million public library, and the Matanuska-Susitna Borough will get a $1.5 million state grant to help fund the upcoming Arctic Winter Games.

These are late addition to the state budget and contingent, of course, on final approval by Gov. Mike Dunleavy of the Fiscal Year 2024 state budget approved by the Legislature at the end of a one-day special session Thursday, May 18, that followed the regular session.

The Palmer library money came about through the efforts of Rep. DeLena Johnson, R-Palmer, while the Arctic Winter Games contribution came about through work by Sen. David Wilson, R-Mat-Su. All Mat-Su legislators helped with these, but these lawmakers took the lead.

The library money came at the last minute as part of a final budget deal negotiated by House and Senate leaders to get legislative approval for the FY 2024 budget.

Wilson’s Arctic Winter Games money had been worked out earlier by the senator with Sen. Lyman Hoffman, D-Bethel, who is cochair of the Senate Finance Committee for the capital budget. Hoffman made the Arctic Winter Games amendment part of a late addition by senators to the capital budget before it went to the House.

Palmer’s city manager, John Moosey, said he was delighted over the library grant, which will replace the community’s library building that was declared lost when its roof caved in under a heavy snow load earlier this year.

Although everything in the budget is now contingent on the governor Palmer city officials are hopeful enough that they have issued a Request for Proposals for design and engineering for a new building.

Moosey said it will take three to four weeks to get proposals in and for the city council to approval a design contract. The size and interior configuration of the new building will be determined by the architect but the hope is that it wlll include a large space for meetings, Moosey said.

If there’s enough room the city may be able to hold council meetings there and have more seating for the public when there are items of interest. That’s difficult now because the council meetings are held at city hall where the space is cramped at times.

Mat-Su legislators also hoped to get money for other projects including a conversion of the gravel railroad bed for its use as a road for vehicles. Modifications that are needed are mainly with bridges that are designed for a railroad and need to be converted.

The effort on that was unsuccessful, however, given the state’s tight reveneues this year.

The state capital budget is mostly funded for the required state matching funds for federal infrastructure programs, such as highways and airports, and a few selected major deferred maintenance projects on university and state buildings.

Some good news for Mat-Su, however, is that the state contribution for school debt service on bonds sold by the Matanuska-Susitna Borough is fully funded according to a formula. In some previous years this was only partly funded or not funded at all, leaving the full obligation to pay on the borough and Mat-Su taxpayers.