A longtime Department of Transportation manager will soon be in charge of the agency’s Southeast Alaska operations.
Mike Coffey takes over Oct. 1 as director of the department’s Southcoast Region. It includes Kodiak Island, the Alaska Peninsula and the Aleutian and Pribilof Islands, as well as Southeast.
He says changes in Alaska’s climate are posing new challenges for the department. He cited mudslides in Sitka, Kodiak and other communities, as well as fires.
“I think, we’re becoming experts in dealing with natural disasters, unfortunately, because we’re seeing them a lot,” he says.
Coffey has been in charge of the transportation department’s statewide maintenance and operations. Much of his 33-year departmental career has been in Southeast. He’s also worked on projects on the Alaska Peninsula and the Aleutians.
He takes over from Central Region Director Rob Campbell, who has been filling in since March. Gov. Bill Walker removed the prior Southeast director, Al Clough, in January during a conflict over the Juneau Access road.
Walker froze that and other large projects, saying they were too expensive. But he allowed work to continue on a supplemental environmental impact statement.
Coffey says he’ll follow the governor’s approach.
“Let’s move Juneau Access to this logical spot. Finish the environmental document and by doing that, that finalizes all the information that we need to make a decision,” he says.
As Southcoast regional director, Coffey will have minimal involvement in the Alaska Marine Highway System, which is overseen by a deputy commissioner.
He says part of his new job will be to look for efficiencies, including snow-removal equipment.
“I think a good example, and we use this here in Juneau, is the tow plow. Basically, one operator, one piece of equipment doing the job of two people and two pieces of equipment,” he says.
Coffey says the state’s revenue shortfall will continue to limit what the department can do. That will affect roads, airports, ferries and state buildings.
