Local Government

It would likely not be built until 2015, but a pioneer road would be the first extension of the North Douglas Highway.

A proposed two and a quarter-mile section would allow both the City and Borough of Juneau and Goldbelt Inc. to access their land on West Douglas Island.

The two have been working together for about 17 years to plan for development. Between Outer Point and Point Hilda, CBJ owns more than 3,434 acres and Goldbelt has 1,740 acres.

The area has long been considered the most accessible property for development on the road system.

The topic has been the subject of two Assembly Committee of the Whole meetings in as many weeks.

CBJ Lands and Resources Manager Heather Marlow said the city has no development plans yet, so “what does the road corridor do for us now?”

She told the Assembly Monday night that the road would begin about three-tenths of a mile from the current end of North Douglas Highway and would go out to Middle Creek.

In the short term, she said, it would provide better access to recreation such as hunting, camping, fishing, and cross-country skiing.

“So what it does is essentially is set us up for future development opportunities and future planning opportunities,” she said.

It also would allow Goldbelt to access its land.

Vice President of Operations Derek Duncan recently told the Assembly that Goldbelt’ s goals for West Douglas include a cultural center, residential and commercial development, and a deep-water industrial port.

The 1997 West Douglas Island Conceptual Plan – an agreement between Goldbelt and the city – would develop land in nodes.

“In this concept of nodal development, you’d have a concentrated cluster of development separated by open space, which would basically protect the habitat for cultural subsistence and recreational uses,” Duncan explained.

Since the 1997 conceptual plan, Alaska Electric Light and Power has extended power to the end of North Douglas Highway. The city has acquired more than 20 acres in the Hilda Creek area for open space and recreation. CBJ also incorporated the conceptual plan into the borough-wide Master Plan.

Marlow said a proposed private golf course developer’s lease option on city land has expired. She said Totem Creek never presented its development plans to the city.

Later this month, the Assembly is expected to approve an ordinance to appropriate $600,000 in state grant funds for project design. After more field studies, Marlow said the city would seek permits for the pioneer road. She said it’s possible the city could go out for bid by this time next year.

She described the pioneer road as a 20-foot gravel cross section with periodic pullouts.

About $2.9 million in state Department of Transportation funds would be available for the road.

The new CEO for Juneau’s Bartlett Regional Hospital doesn’t plan to make major changes right away.

Chris Harff was named to the city-owned facility’s top post Friday by the hospital’s board of directors, which is appointed by the CBJ Assembly. She’ll start in mid-August, and says there will be a learning curve as she transitions into the job.

KTOO’s Casey Kelly has more.

Chris Harff says quick changes aren’t her style. She says she’ll need some time to get up to speed and used to things at Bartlett.

“This is going to be a big adjustment, just with new leadership alone,” says Harff. “But I think the lesson of the day is to learn as much about Bartlett, the community of Juneau, learn the lay of the land before any changes are made. Because I don’t think coming in and changing anything for change itself does any good.”

Based on what she knows from interviewing for the job, Harff believes Bartlett is a solid organization in a stable financial position. But in general, she says the health care community owes it to the country to reduce costs and be more efficient.

“All rocks need to be lifted and uncovered,” Harff says. “And you got to look at it and kind of figure out where it is in particular for Bartlett.”

Harff has a nursing degree and an MBA from the University of Minnesota, and a law degree from William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul, Minnesota.

The 50-year-old has been CEO at the 25-bed Sanford Medical Center in Thief River Falls for the past seven years. The small hospital also has a 10-bed behavioral health unit and two outpatient clinics. By comparison, Bartlett has 43 acute care, 12 Mental Health, and 16 chemical dependency beds.

Before Sanford, Harff was chief operating officer at another hospital in Minnesota. She’s also been director of nursing at two facilities. Early in her career she was a trauma nurse at Seattle’s Harborview Medical Center, where she says she learned the value of connecting with patients and families on a personal level.

“After the patient is stabilized, then it’s working with families and getting the pieces picked up so they can go back to as much of a normal life as possible,” says Harff.

Kristen Bomengen, who led the hospital board of directors’ search committee, says members wanted a CEO who had worked in a clinical setting.

“We were hoping to get in someone who was experienced at balancing the many different factors that a CEO will have to balance,” Bomengen says. “And someone who could speak the language so to speak about the clinical experience. We were able to find both of those in this particular candidate.”

The Bartlett board decided late last year to hire its own CEO after more than two decades of an outside management company running the hospital. Bomengen says the board wanted the hospital’s leadership to be more responsive to the local community.

Harff was one of three finalists for the top job. The other candidates took their names out of consideration before the hiring process was complete. Still, Bomengen says Harff really impressed the board during the final assessment center interview, where she was asked to solve simulated problems in a real life setting.

“We knew that all of the candidates were well-qualified and were reasonable for us to consider,” says Bomengen. “And then it was simply a matter of getting to know more about their style and their approach to things to determine what the best fit would be. And I think we have the best fit.”

Harff and her husband have two daughters in high school and a son in college. She’ll be paid $262,000 a year, which Bomengen says is about average for a hospital CEO in Alaska.

Juneau Police Chief Greg Browning says the investigation into the June 23rd deadly accident on Auke Lake may take weeks.

Browning and City Manager Kim Kiefer held a press availability late Friday to review the preliminary investigation into the accident that resulted in the death of 16-year-old Savannah Cayce, of Juneau.

Kiefer also repeated JPD’s need to identify and interview witnesses who actually saw the inner tube/ jet ski collision.

“We are asking anyone who many have seen the collision, or who have video or photographs, to contact JPD at 586-0600, if you have not already talked with them,” Kiefer said.

Cayce and a friend were being towed by a jet ski when the accident happened somewhere in the middle of the lake. Browning says police have not yet determined if the accident occurred within or outside of the motorized zone.

The preliminary investigation also shows the inner tube struck the starboard side of another jet ski, which was traveling at a slow rate of speed. But Browning says police are still developing estimates as to how fast both jet skis were going.

Browning says enforcement at Auke Lake has always been a problem.

“We don’t have a boat, or officers trained in that aspect of policing,” Browning said. “So we make the attempt to enforce from the shore, which sometimes can be difficult.”

Early in the investigation police said alcohol was not involved in the accident. Browning on Friday indicated neither jet ski driver was given a breath test at the scene.

He said when the investigation is complete, the district attorney’s office will determine if any charges will be filed against anyone connected to the accident.

Then the city will begin a review of the policies regulating boating activity on Auke Lake. Kiefer said that should not begin until police know the cause of the accident.

“I believe there are regulations in place to try and keep people safe, but until the investigation is complete I can’t tell you if any change of regulation would have made a difference,” Kiefer said. “We want to make sure we have a complete investigation to know the actual cause before we review what’s currently in place.”

Auke Lake is owned by the state of Alaska. The city of Juneau regulates boating activities. When those regulations were put in place in 2007, they were evaluated by the state Department of Natural Resources. Kiefer says DNR will be asked to participate in the city’s review.

Kiefer said the city sends its deepest sympathies to the Cayce family and to Juneau youth who have been affected by the accident.

The Juneau Assembly still has no agreement on which projects to include in two financing measures likely to be sent to voters this fall.

Between a proposed extension of the city’s temporary 1-percent sales tax and a bond proposition, the Assembly could have nearly $60-million to spend — with voter approval, of course. But city departments and one nonprofit have submitted more than $70-million in requests.

After chipping away at the list somewhat last night, the Assembly Finance Committee will continue the discussion Monday, hopefully with a fresh set of eyes. KTOO’s Casey Kelly has more.

The assembly is in broad agreement with Mayor Bruce Botelho’s proposal to put some of the projects into a bond proposition. The move would allow more items to be included in the sales tax list, and provide immediate funding for projects in the bond package.

The mayor’s proposal includes setting aside $10-million from the sales tax extension to pay down debt service on the bonds. That would give the assembly at least five years before it has to look at raising property taxes. In the meantime, Botelho says some of the city’s other bond debts should come off the books.

“So people would not see any increase in their mill rate,” Botelho says.

Still to be decided is which projects should be included in the bond proposition and which should go into the sales tax measure. Botelho wants to use bonds for a “transportation package,” including items for the airport, docks and harbors, and Capital Transit.

But assembly member Mary Becker says the tax measure should fund “needs,” such as building maintenance, and projects that improve the health and safety of residents. Becker says so-called “wants,” such as funding for a new Mendenhall Valley library, should go into the bond package.

“If in fact the public wants the library, and they want JACC to be expanded, and they want Eaglecrest to have the other good things, those are the goodies as far as I’m concerned,” Becker says. “They’re kind of in the quality of life, but not in the necessities of life.”

With no consensus on the issue, Finance Committee chair Karen Crane tried to focus discussion on specific requests. She asked each member to briefly weigh in on whether they support the full amount, partial funding, or no money for each request, regardless of which package it ends up in.

After going through the entire list and spending another hour trying to narrow it down even further with the items where there was agreement, Crane finally suggested continuing the meeting on Monday.

“It would also give members additional time to look at the ideas that have been discussed this evening concerning the bond issue,” Crane says.

At this point, most of the funding requests are still on the table. The only certainty is that the final list must go to the full assembly for introduction by July 16th. That’s so it can come up for final action in August, giving the city clerk’s office enough time to prepare the propositions for the October 2nd municipal election.

Juneau police are still looking for witnesses to Saturday’s accident on Auke Lake, which resulted in a teenage girl’s death.

Police Lieutenant Kris Sell says officers have interviewed a number of people who were on the lake that afternoon, but not everybody saw the inner tube / jet ski collision. Sell says police are specifically looking for witnesses to the accident.

Sixteen-year-old Savannah Cayce died Monday from a severe head injury. She and another teenage girl were being towed in an inner tube by a jet ski. Police say the inner tube swung out and hit another jet ski.

Once Juneau police conclude their investigation, the CBJ Parks and Recreation Advisory Board plans a review of current regulations, adopted by the city in 2007.

“All of Juneau uses that lake for different recreational uses, you know for motorized/non-motorized, (and) swimming, so I think we need to find space for everybody, but in a safe way,” said Jeff Wilson, PRAC chairman.

Auke Lake management issues are the topic of a news conference scheduled this afternoon (Friday) by City Manager Kim Kiefer and Police Chief Greg Browning.

The conflict over Auke Lake use has gone on for 30 years, said PRAC member Tom Rutecki. He was also on the board during the 2006 / ’07 debates.

“Density is really the issue,” Rutecki said.

He said the city should look at studies done in other states since the advent of high speed personal watercraft, such as jet skis.

Since the accident, Juneau officials have received a number of comments from citizens concerned about safety on the lake. Some advocate additional buoy markers that delineate the section where motor boats can operate. Others say the few buoys have simply become a slalom course for jet skis.

PRAC Chairman Wilson said the board has a number of issues to review – from signage to the number of buoys to whether the lake should be restricted to non-motorized use, such as kayaking and swimming.

The Assembly made a variety of appointments to local boards during a special meeting on Wednesday.

Jerry Godkin was reappointed to another three-year term on the Airport Board. But another open seat was left unfilled because Assemblymembers could not reach a consensus on a selection. More applications will be solicited for that open seat.

Dr. Carlton Heine and Alexis Howard were appointed to three-year terms on the Eaglecrest Ski Area Board. Bruce Garrison was appointed to a two-year term. They fill the seats previously held by Norm Gorsuch, Barbara Murray and Steven Handy.

Tom Donek was returned to the Docks and Harbors Board for another three-years. David Logan and Scott Spickler start new terms on the board, replacing Don Etheridge and Wayne Wilson.