Save our boards and commissions

Newly appointed Mat-Su Borough Deputy Mayor Ron Arvin is recommending that we do away with the Real Estate Property Asset Management Board. He says he thinks he’ll save the borough money by moving borough decisions out of the spotlight and into the dark cubicles of the borough building, where he and other representatives of special interests have easy access — and where most of us have none.

The people of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough are not desperate to go on a “board diet.” Public input should not be ignored. It is simply bad policy to use or dismiss boards and commissions because they don’t rubber-stamp this or that pet project quickly or enthusiastically enough.

It should be pretty clear that this move is a part of a larger agenda to make an end-run around public participation on property that is owned by the taxpayers of our borough.

Dissolving our boards and commissions will mean returning to the days of closed doors and backroom deals. It could mean putting the borough in the hands of special interests and taking away your right to know how decisions are studied, deliberated and made — who influences the decisions, who provides the data, who argues for one decision or another — and why.

In its publicly advertised meetings that are open to the public, the Real Property Asset Management Board provides advice to the assembly and manager on real property acquisition, use and disposal. The board includes knowledgeable representatives from sectors in soil conservation, material use and management, agriculture, timber forest products, parks, recreation, tourism (including hunting, fishing and visitor services) large landowners and real estate. They assist in identifying land for disposal, public facilities, forestry and materials, wetland banking and public recreation. Without this public process, crucial decisions about taxpayer resources will be made behind closed doors where lobbyists can influence the borough without public oversight. The key to making good decisions about taxpayer assets is openness. There are too many people who would benefit from a poorly negotiated lease agreement or a poorly timed land swap for those decisions to be made without public review. Shut down the Real Property Asset Management Board and the foxes will be guarding the henhouse.

Boards like the RPAMP bring consistency and stability to borough policies. Many board members have been active in the community longer than assembly members or the deputy mayor — certainly longer than many people on the borough staff, including the as-yet-to-be-appointed manager. These volunteer board members bring institutional memory — a wealth of professional expertise and context — to land use decisions and assets for a very small price to the borough. This context gets lost if we cut back on the public process. This is particularly troublesome at a time of change in the current borough management and pending the outcome of the upcoming mayoral election

And bear in mind, the move to limit democracy will not stop at the RPAMB. There is already talk on the Assembly about cutting other boards and commissions — and some on the Assembly resist input from Community Councils as well. They are coming for the Real Property Asset Management Board now, but are they going after your Parks and Recreation Board next? There is no democracy without knowledge – and no knowledge without a public process in which to exchange and interpret information. Please call or write your Assembly Representative to encourage him or her to protect our boards and commissions – starting now with the Real Property Asset Management Board.

Terry Snyder is a property owner in both Palmer and Big Lake. She serves on the Real Property Asset Management Board as the member in tourism. The views expressed are her own.

David Cheezem is a Palmer business owner. He serves on the Mat-Su Borough Planning Commission. The views expressed are his own.