- 1996

The October municipal elections featured several propositions and bond issues to reflect ongoing community debates and concerns. Perhaps the most contentious debate focused on impacts of large-scale tourism to the community. One citizens group responded to gather signatures to put a proposition on the ballot, which if approved, would charge a $7 head tax per cruise ship passenger to help pay for costs associated with increased municipal services.  It was defeated, however, as opponents argued that the industry already paid its fair share through other fees. Voters approved a temporary 1-cent sales tax increase to buy land and build a new police station on property near the new Kmart shopping area.  The $9 million, 40,000 sq. ft. facility would replace an old deteriorating 9,000 sq. ft. facility built originally for a laundry business.  Voters also approved a $3 million bond issue to equip the school district with enough computers to provide a student-computer ratio of 4-1 at the high school and 5-1 for middle and elementary schools, along with requisite software and a management system for administrators.

Mining development continued to attract the community’s attention. Greens Creek Mine re-opened in the summer after a three-year shut-down due to low world metal prices for its output of silver, zinc, and lead. After investing $88 million in the interim period to improve its efficiency and better weather future price drops, the mine began production again and expected a full work force of 250 employees to be in place by next year.  The other two gold mine developments still faced continued obstacles in their permitting processes to re-open their historic workings.  Coeur-Alaska Inc. made major changes in its Kensington venture planning to alleviate some environmental concerns, but continued to negotiate agreements with environmental and citizen groups.  Echo Bay received another setback when the Alaska State Supreme Court ruled that the city improperly awarded permits to the company for its AJ mine project, having failed to address all information for all phases of the plan.  The company could still go ahead to get other permits, but would have to go back for a revised city permit.  The decision also would force the city to spend more effort for future permit reviews.

A post-election capital move poll late last year showed that voters around the state had definitely lost interest in the topic, being more concerned with how the state spends its money for other services.  This was good news to Juneau’s Alaska Committee, which had spearheaded the drive to defeat the 1994 capital move initiative.  Committee members, however, felt the need to keep building up the capital city’s infrastructure to deflect future capital move arguments. Improving housing availability was top priority, particularly short-term housing for legislators and staff in the downtown core area. The Assembly developed an incentive plan, including interest-free loans and favorable pay-back criteria, for local builders.  Housing built under the plan would also provide units for low-and-medium-income people.

Federal workers, beginning late last year, faced their own housing crisis at the start of the year, when about 400 local employees were furloughed without pay, due to the latest failure of Congress to approve of continuing appropriations to maintain the federal payrolls.  Many workers without paychecks faced possible evictions to pay their rents, and the state also faced running out of federal money used to process the state’s unemployment insurance program.  By mid-January, Congress relented and the money started flowing again.

Juneau’s reliance on government payrolls was highlighted in a 1995 survey conducted by the Juneau Economic Development Council.  The top 20 government agencies employed over 6,000 workers, with the Alaska Department of Transportation topping that list with an average of 737 workers, followed by the city with 654 and the school district with 634 employees.  Fred Meyer was the top private employer with 237 workers in a top 20 employers list totaling 2,265 employees.  Overall totals of employees in all economic sectors were not given, however, since the survey only revealed the top 20 employers in those two main components.

Print media in Juneau for decades meant the Juneau Empire, albeit under different titles in its history, but citizens have not always been content to solely depend on that outlet for their news and other features.  Many other smaller newspapers have come and gone, and the latest casualties in the local print industry folded this year.  First to go was The Big Skinny, a volunteer-run alternative paper that had put out as many as 4,000 free copies a month in its year-long run.  Securing advertisers, always a main consideration in financial success of any media outlet, contributed to its downfall in February when the other alternative paper, The Paper, started up earlier this year and pulled away many of the contributors the Skinny had depended upon.  By the end of this year, however, The Paper, was in financial trouble itself and looked to fold shortly.  The rest of the surviving newspapers in the area, besides the Empire, were the advertiser Capital City Weekly, volunteer-published high school papers, the university Whalesong, and the irregularly published humor magazine, The What.  In other media news, KTOO-FM celebrated a decade of its half-hour Alaska Native news program, “Southeast Native Radio”, which provided information on cultural and traditional events and issues impacting Native communities.

A heavy fall rainstorm, culminating in the second highest rainfall on record (3.35 inches at the airport) in a 24-hour period on September 24, sent boulders cascading down Gold Creek, triggered mud slides, and carved away yards and roadsides, but no injuries were reported. Damage was estimated as high as $700,000 for the area’s parks, roads, and waterways.  Perseverance Trail was heavily damaged and state parks officials were uncertain as to when, if ever, it would be fully repaired.

Hilary Lindh, local champion skier, won a bronze in February at the FIS Alpine World Championship Downhill at Sierra Nevada near Granada, Spain.  The JDHS Crimson Bears girls basketball team beat long-time champions East Anchorage High to win the state championship, their first state title since 1983. Douglas Island Pink and Chum (DIPAC) expanded to operate the state-owned Snettisham facility and added sockeye salmon to their production. Maggie Hall caught a special tagged fish and won a special $100,000 prize in Golden North Salmon Derby.

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