Assembly Votes Yes on Advisory Question About Consolidation

Kayla Desroches/KMXT

The meaning of the word consolidation came up at the Kodiak Island Borough Assembly regular meeting last night.

The assembly voted on asking the public whether or not the borough should consider pursuing consolidation with the city of Kodiak, and Assemblyman Dan Rohrer pointed out that not everyone might be imagining the same concept when the assembly uses the term consolidation.

“Because it can take place in a variety of different ways and so, I’m not sure if for some members of the public if the word consolidation is used, if that word comes with enough baggage. I think we’re not using it as a legally defined word as the state statuette refers to it. We’re using it as a better word than combine.”

Assemblywoman Rebecca Skinner said the public most likely understands the general idea, and she voiced overall support for the advisory question. She said it’s the public’s chance to tell the borough whether it should look into consolidation or not.

“This is not committing the assembly to anything, this is not a final vote to consolidate or not. This is really asking, do you want us to more time and more resources into kind of researching the costs and the pros and the cons of moving forward?”

The assembly decided to go ahead with the advisory question, which will be put to voters during the October regular Borough election.

Among the other subjects the assembly addressed at the regular meeting, a sole source contract to reforest the burned Chiniak area was among them. However, the assembly voted to postpone the issue due to some changes in the contract and the need to review them.

On a related issue, the assembly entered executive session to discuss a negotiating strategy with their insurance company over the loss of the Chiniak emergency shelter and community library. When the assembly reconvened, Mayor Jerrol Friend said it had directed staff to make initial contact with the Chiniak community to form a tsunami shelter building committee.

The assembly’s next work session is scheduled for August 11 and its next regular meeting for August 18.