Evergreen agent resigns

Chickaloon resident steps in to replace Tanigawa

By RINDI WHITE-Frontiersman reporter

MAT-SU -- John Tanigawa, who many Valley residents know as the man who introduced the Valley to Evergreen Resources Inc., has taken a step back from the company.

In a press release sent out Wednesday, Evergreen announced that it has hired Chickaloon resident Corri Feige as manager of government affairs and public relations in their Wasilla office. Although not mentioned in the press release, company spokesman Jack Ekstrom said Tanigawa has resigned his full-time position with Evergreen in order to further his education. He'll still be doing consulting work for the company in Alaska, Ekstrom said.

Feige, who moved from Reno, Nev., in 1998, worked previously as a consulting geophysicist from Western Mining Corp.'s U.S. division, where she was part of a team mining precious metals. She was also the executive director of the newly formed Valley Voice, a nonprofit group Feige said hopes to act as a clearinghouse for information about issues facing the Valley. Feige said she's stepped down from that position since taking the job with Evergreen, a job she says promises to keep her busy.

Feige will act as the primary contact for Evergreen in Alaska. She said she plans to begin making rounds, introducing herself to representatives of state agencies. It's a process she's already started, by sitting in on the organizational meetings the Department of Natural Resources has been holding with other state agencies and the Mat-Su Borough. Feige said although she doesn't yet have anything on the calendar, she'll be going around to local chamber of commerce meetings and other community meetings to introduce herself.

Although Evergreen Resources has taken fire recently from residents upset at a lack of notification and apparent lack of regulation concerning coal-bed methane drilling in their vicinity, Feige said she's excited to be joining the company.

"I don't really look at it as being a target, necessarily," Feige said. "I obviously believe very strongly in what Evergreen is trying to do, both in this industry and in Alaska."

Feige, who also operates Castle Mountain Bed and Breakfast with her husband, has wasted little time in getting involved in her community. She has for the past three years chaired the Chickaloon Community Council and is president elect of the Glenn Highway Scenic Byway Association.

"Corri will be a valuable addition to our team in Alaska," Evergreen CEO Mark Sexton said in a press release. "She brings to Evergreen an exceptional record of community involvement and energy industry knowledge, as well as experience in civic affairs and government relations in the Mat-Su Valley."

She said she understands the need to reach people on a grass-roots level, and is interested in preserving Alaska's beauty for years to come. She said she believes the regulations being developed by the state, along with Evergreen's practice of "doing it right" can help do that.

"I, like everyone else who lives in the Valley, love this place and I very much want to do what I can …" Feige said. "I think Alaska deserves the very best, and we should expect nothing less from any industry."