Borough talks election results, building demo

PALMER — Between light-hearted gibes about a shameful walk home from the Potato Bowl and what a typical date looks like for one assemblyman and his wife, the Mat-Su Borough Assembly checked off a number of business items this week, and heard a new controversy.

First, assemblymen Matthew Beck (District 2) and Jim Sykes (District 1) were sworn in and congratulated on their reappointments, as Ray Michaelson was congratulated on his narrow win over Susan Pougher in the race for Mat-Su School Board president. Beck ran unopposed, Sykes defeated Brian Endle by 177 votes and Michaelson garnered 66 more votes than Pougher in an election with a record 28.2 percent voter turnout.

Also, with Proposition B-1 regarding marijuana establishments defeated by an almost 10 percent margin, the court has issued a notice of intent to dismiss the related lawsuit against the borough, according to Borough Attorney Nick Spiropoulos.

However, Spiropoulos said the plaintiffs have requested more time to respond because "they want to argue about why (the initiative)’s illegal and it shouldn’t’ve been on the ballot.”

“Our position is going to be that the whole thing’s moot ’cause it failed,” he said. “The Supreme Court has already said they don’t consider ballot initiatives unless they pass.”

Assemblywoman Barb Doty then asked if the Marijuana Advisory Committee would continue operation, to which Halter answered in the affirmative, though membership may be pared down and the committee will sunset “about a year from now,” he said.

Capital projects and congratulations

In the manager’s comments, Capital Projects Director Jude Bilafer reported on the district’s newest schools, as well as improvements made to existing school district buildings and properties this year.

Redington Jr./Sr. High School, which opened last fall, was recognized the first LEED Gold-certified school in the state, according to architect Jason Collins, and Bilafer boasted about the on-time opening of the new Iditarod and Dena’ina Elementary schools.

The demolition of the old, asbestos-ridden Iditarod Elementary School was approved for $800,000 with assemblymen George McKee and Steve Colligan opposed. Bilafer said the demolition could likely be done for less than that — to the tune of $642,982 — but the higher figure will cover “any contingency,” and excess funds will return to the borough’s Land Management Permanent Fund.

“What we are not fully sure of is the extent of the asbestos or any sort of contamination underneath the school. Neither us nor the contractors when they bid were able to look at that,” he said.

Also during the manager’s comments, Emergency Services Director Bill Gamble informed the assembly of the Caswell Lakes Fire Department’s new ISO (Insurance Service Office) rating, down to 5 from 9 out of 10.

Gamble called the change a “huge achievement” that will result in lower insurance rates for property owners within a 5-mile radius of the Caswell Lakes fire station.

“That’s a big one,” Halter agreed, leading the audience in a round of applause.

Debra McGhan — one of the head organizers of the Mat-Su Emergency Preparedness Expo that was held last month — also congratulated local residents on their commitment to emergency preparedness by announcing the age group winners of the expo poster contest: Chloe Bell (5-7), Brianna Westover (8-10), Ashlyn Bell (11-14) and Ashley Gibbs (14-18).

Contact reporter Caitlin Skvorc at 352-2266 or caitlin.skvorc@frontiersman.com.