Vote no on Prop 1 on Tuesday

With so much attention focused on the national election, I hope people don’t forget to vote locally Tuesday, Oct. 7. We have a number of important races and issues right here at home, and we have a responsibility to all the men and women who have fought for our freedom to inform ourselves and get out there and vote.

That said, I would like to provide some perspective on Proposition 1 for your consideration. MEA management has spent a great deal of our money telling us what to think and how to vote on this proposition. I’m hopping mad about that, and you should be, too. Here’s what MEA management doesn’t want you to know:

When the power plant ordinance was presented to the Borough planning commission, I was the commissioner from District 4 (Wasilla). The ordinance itself is pretty short, and contains a series of questions to be answered before a new power plant is constructed. It provides an opportunity for public input that we, as citizens and member-owners, would otherwise not have on the type of plant, its location, economic feasibility, and potential impacts on neighbors and the environment. What it does not do is prohibit the construction of any type of power plant, including coal. The written comments and verbal testimony we received from a packed house was overwhelmingly in support of the ordinance, about 75 to 5 in favor.

Tuckerman Babcock testified for MEA that we should throw out the ordinance and that it was going to be extremely expensive if we did not. I always try to be fair and objective, so I asked him to list for me the top three questions in the ordinance MEA did not want to have to answer.

Imagine my surprise when he admitted he hadn’t even taken the time to read the ordinance. I asked what provisions were going to add so much to the cost, and he couldn’t tell me that, either, saying his consultants hadn’t told him.

MEA offered not one suggested amendment to make the ordinance better nor even one specific objection. In fact, the MEA staff insulted the membership by coming to the meeting totally unprepared and by having the audacity to tell us they were there representing the opinions of their members on an ordinance they had never asked the membership about.

Similarly, they did not bring anything constructive to the table at the assembly, nor have they made a constructive attempt to reach agreement with the Borough manager, per my discussion with him last week.

It seems MEA management is so desperate to make sure you have no say in what gets built, how, and where that they have chosen to spend a great deal of our money ranting, raving, and fear-mongering instead of acting in our best interests by coming to the table prepared for a rational discussion on the specifics of what’s in the ordinance and suggesting amendments, where appropriate.

I suggest we all vote a resounding NO on Proposition 1 and let MEA know we expect more from the company we own.

Dianne Woodruff

Wasilla

Editor’s note: Dianne Woodruff is a Wasilla City Council member.