Growth, development encroach into mayor's race

Frontiersman editorial board

Though many of the seats were uncontested, and though there were no statewide or national seats on the ballot at all, there was a higher voter turnout than usual at Mat-Su polls Tuesday. Though the turnout still didn't reach 40 percent, it was at least higher than in recent elections, and certainly higher than some people expected.

It's difficult to definitively say what attracted voters to the polls, but it's reasonable to attribute at least some of that to the coal-bed methane issue that has ignited an intense debate here in recent months. The CBM issue became one of the central topics of the borough mayoral race, with the two primary candidates squaring off on either side of the issue.

Incumbent mayor Tim Anderson voiced concern that House Bill 69 had stripped local control of CBM development, and supported a moratorium on drilling until better regulations could be drafted, and local control reinstated. Challenger Charlie Fannon came out in strong support of CBM development here, and Fannon's team accused Anderson of changing horses mid-stream. The Fannon camp called Anderson's supposed change of heart a campaign ploy intended to pander to popular opposition to Evergreen Resources and to CBM development in general.

The Fannon team also accused Anderson of misleading voters when he said he was the only candidate who hadn't taken money from Evergreen employees -- while Anderson didn't receive any campaign funding from Evergreen people, his campaign had sent a letter requesting funds from John Tanigawa in August. After sending the letter, Anderson says he did tell an audience at a Greater Palmer Chamber of Commerce meeting that he would not accept any money from Tanigawa, or any other Evergreen official. Anderson also asserts he hasn't had a change of heart over the issue. He has said he supports responsible resource development regulated by local control.

Whether there was a change of heart or not, Anderson's position is clear now, and the division over CBM development clearly played a role in a mayoral election that won't be decided until the absentee ballots are tallied. The results that have been tallied suggest some interesting lines of division. Anderson appears to have outperformed Fannon on the Palmer side of the Valley, while Fannon clearly captured the Wasilla side. This should come as no surprise given Wasilla's general interest in development and growth and Palmer's more cautious approach to those issues.

Given that the borough mayor's position is a politically weak one anyway, perhaps the opportunity to clearly see the development divide is the most significant result of the entire election. Whatever your position, the Valley will continue to grow. How that growth is managed is the only thing left to debate. We have a Palmer model and a Wasilla model to choose from, and each time we go to the polls we pick one direction over the other.