Borough Work Session to Focus on Junk Cars and Hospital Lease

Kayla Desroches/KMXT

The topic of junk cars leads off the Kodiak Island Borough Assembly work session tonight.

Borough Manager Michael Powers says staff will update assembly members on the issue of abandoned cars and the borough regulations that apply to them.

“Everything’s expensive to ship whether it’s coming here or leaving, and so we have worked with some vendors to try to get things off the island. We did the metal project with the villages, but junked vehicles is an ongoing problem.”

The owners of unwanted cars are known to discard of them in random places, including in the parking lots of apartment complexes or just the side of the road.

The second item on the agenda will be the ongoing issue of accessory dwelling units, or mother-in-law apartments. Tonight, the assembly and the Planning and Zoning Commission will discuss another version of an ordinance which would permit ADUs in certain residential districts.

The last topic of conversation will be the renewal of the Providence Health & Services Alaska hospital lease, which Powers says the borough first established with Providence 20 years ago.

“We’ve extended the term for cancellation for the lease out to two years from one year to try to make sure that there’s a transition if it does get cancelled, but probably the biggest components of it have to do with maintaining the building and [renewal and replacement] on the building.”

The work session begins at 6:30 p.m. tonight. It’ll be in the borough conference room.