Alaska
Calling each other ‘woke’ and ‘incompetent,’ mayoral candidates debate with Alaska’s News Source
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – Alaska’s News Source hosted a conversation Friday between incumbent Mayor Dave Bronson and former Anchorage Assembly Chair Suzanne LaFrance.
The answers weren’t timed, but the candidates were redirected if one person dominated the talks.
The first fiery exchange began with the topic of homelessness.
Bronson was questioned about why he allowed the living conditions at the homeless camp near Cuddy Family Midtown Park to continue.
He was also quick to point a finger at the Anchorage Assembly, which did not allow his mass shelter in East Anchorage to be built.
The Assembly in May 2022 set aside $6.2 million for its construction, but Assembly members stopped construction a few months later after learning that Bronson officials skirted city code, pushing ahead with millions in work without first getting the required contract approvals from the Assembly.
“We caught the mistake,” Bronson said. “We went to the Assembly and said we made a mistake. Let’s reappropriate. John Weddleton … former Assembly member at that time, says, ‘That’s happened before in the city several times. So let’s just keep going.’”
LaFrance said “maybe” similar mistakes happened in the past.
“But the fact of the matter is that the costs ballooned by millions of dollars,” LaFrance said.
She went on to say the estimated costs didn’t look right.
“There is, you know, certainly a cost to homelessness, and the crisis response that we’ve seen over and over — again, it just wasn’t good stewardship of taxpayer dollars to say yes to something that didn’t have a viable plan and that had already failed,” LaFrance said.
Later, Bronson said the former Northway Mall could be used as a shelter. He also pointed out how difficult it is to truly solve the problem.
“If people drove around town and didn’t see any homeless on the street, they would think this problem would be solved. But I said it wouldn’t be solved,” Bronson said.
LaFrance’s homeless strategy has been criticized with critics saying her call for more meetings on the topic is not a solution.
“The action plan now is to actually have a plan,” LaFrance said.
In a follow-up question, LaFrance said she’d have a shelter plan in place within 100 days of her becoming mayor.
“I do not support 1,000-person shelters in East Anchorage, or ,anywhere in the community,” LaFrance said.
Bronson said the city has put smaller shelters out to bid, but no one has shown interest.
Bronson has called LaFrance “woke,” and LaFrance has called him “incompetent.”
“I bring up the word incompetent because it applies,” LaFrance said.
Bronson said being “woke,” among other things, meant men wearing “tutus.”
But then he shifted his criticism.
“I’ll call it this: tax and spend liberal,” he said. “She’s a tax and spend liberal.”
Inadequate snow plowing for two years that has led to schools being closed also resulted in a heated conversation.
“At the end of the day, Miss LaFrance has to remember — when you criticize snowplowing, you’re criticizing the people that do it,” Bronson said. “Am I responsible for snow plowing? I’m responsible for everything in the city.”
“When I am criticizing the snow removal — or lack of — the last two winters, I am criticizing Mr. Bronson as the CEO of our city,” LaFrance replied. “I’m not criticizing the employees who have worked hard.”
Ballots were mailed to voters April 30. Runoff election day is Tuesday, May 14, and ballots must be postmarked on or before that date to be counted.
Voters may also return completed ballots to secure drop boxes around the municipality, or vote in person at one of the city’s voting centers starting May 7.
After the main debate, we asked the candidates to answer some of the questions from the local Community Councils. Hear their answers on Alaska’s Political Pipeline.
Copyright 2024 KTUU. All rights reserved.
Last Friday evening in Haines, there was only one place to be: The brand new Quick Shop, a shiny new building stocked with everything from ice cream and gun safes to an entire row of Xtratuf boots.
It seemed that much of town was packed into the building on the Haines’ waterfront — the store had just reopened after burning down more than a year ago.
The October 2024 fire destroyed a string of apartments and businesses including the convenience, liquor and sporting goods shop known collectively as the Quick Shop.
“It’s a big day for our town,” Haines Mayor Tom Morphet shouted from the checkout line that stretched through the store.
Minutes after opening, some 50 people were already in line, with dozens more milling about. Many kids’ arms were piled high with goodies.
Further back in the store, owner Mike Ward was busy scanning toilet paper amid the chaos. In between greeting customers, and accepting their congratulations, he said it’s been a long road to get here.
“It’s a relief to finally be open,” Ward said. “But we got a lot of work ahead of us, so it’s not that much of a relief.”
Ward said he aims to have the store fully stocked and in order by the fire’s two-year anniversary on Oct. 5. He added that he rebuilt as quickly as possible because he had heard a larger convenience chain was thinking about moving into Haines.
“So that’s one of the major reasons why I got aggressive, right?” he said. “I didn’t even think about taking the money.”
But the money part hasn’t been easy. Ward had insurance, but his policy didn’t come close to covering rebuilding costs – or the $1.8 million in inventory that also went up in flames.
“I got hosed,” he said. “I took a $2.5 million loss.”
The loss was felt in the community, too. Haines’ grocery stores close by 8 p.m. most days, and even earlier on Sundays. The Quick Shop is open until midnight.
“I feel like not having anywhere to get food late at night is pretty hard for people. So I feel like everyone’s pretty excited to have it back,” said local Ryan Irvin, who worked on the crew that built the facility.
He added that it’s cool – and somewhat novel – for the community to have a space that was actually built for its purpose.
“We’re always retrofitting old buildings, making them work. But this is actually designed for what we’re doing, what Mike’s doing, rather,” Irvin said.
Morphet, the mayor, echoed that point. He said the new store is a testament to Ward’s faith in Haines’ capacity to keep it open.
“We’re only 2,000, 2,500 people here, so it’s kind of a shot in the arm to town morale,” Morphet said. “People like the town to have nice stuff, and this is beautiful.”
The first month of the U.S. war against Iran caused crude oil prices to skyrocket around the world, and the price of Alaska’s oil has risen particularly far.
That rise is making tens of millions of dollars, maybe a few hundred million dollars if high prices persist, available for state services and the Permanent Fund dividend, even as it squeezes the finances of individual Alaskans.
In figures newly compiled by the Alaska Department of Revenue, the average price of a barrel of Alaska North Slope (ANS) crude was $111.17 in April.
That’s $8.70 higher than the average price of a barrel of Brent crude, a benchmark price for Europe’s North Sea oil. It was also $13.11 per barrel higher than the average price of West Texas Intermediate, the benchmark for oil from America’s second-largest state.
“The differential is the largest monthly value since the year 2000 and may be the highest value in history,” said the Department of Revenue, referring to the gap between Brent and North Slope crude.
“The large premium is due to a tightness in the Pacific basin oil market, where ANS is traded,” the department said.
Alaska crude goes to refineries in Washington state and California, with a small volume delivered to a refinery in Nikiski on the Kenai Peninsula.
In addition to Alaska oil, U.S. West Coast refineries obtain their crude from Canada, North Dakota and California oil fields, and a substantial volume from overseas suppliers.
“Uncertainty about shipping and delivery is incentivizing refiners to pay a premium for available crude that does not transit areas with substantial security risks. Crude grades from the Americas are the safest option. Brent primarily trades in the Atlantic basin, where the impacts from the Iran war are not quite as pronounced on a barrel-for-barrel basis.”
The premium now being paid for Alaska crude will have a significant impact on the state treasury if it continues for months.
Each $1 increase in the average price of a barrel of ANS crude for a full year is worth roughly $30 million to $50, depending on the price.
While more than half of the state’s general-purpose revenue now comes from the Alaska Permanent Fund’s investments, oil is still the No. 2 source of flexible spending money for the state, and prices — combined with production — cause the amount of available money to flex up and down each year.
Legislative budgeters write the state spending plan with an average crude price in mind for an entire fiscal year, from July 1 through June 30 of the following year.
In the current fiscal year, which ends June 30, the Department of Revenue expects prices to average $75.26 per barrel.
Thanks in part to the Alaska premium, the average through May 5 was $75.71. Every day that prices stay above that level, the more unexpected money the state will receive.
The state Senate already has a plan for that extra money.
The first $96 million would go to an “energy relief” payment that increases the amount of the 2026 Permanent Fund dividend by $150 per Alaskan. The next $111 million would be distributed to public schools, and anything above that would go into the state’s principal savings account, the Constitutional Budget Reserve.
While Alaska’s state treasury is receiving a boon from the high prices, legislators don’t expect it to last. In the fiscal year that starts July 1, they’re anticipating significantly lower average North Slope oil prices.
“The Senate operating budget, when combined with spending agreements for the capital budget, balances the budget on $73/barrel oil, with some money left over,” said Bethel Sen. Lyman Hoffman, co-chair of the Senate Finance Committee, speaking about the Senate’s budget proposal on May 6.
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