Daily Sitka Sentinel

Administrator Vacancy Tops Assembly Agenda

By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
    The final resolution to remove Keith Brady as city administrator will be on Tuesday’s Assembly agenda, along with a discussion of how to go about finding a replacement.
    The Assembly voted 4-3 on June 11 to approve a “preliminary resolution” to fire Brady, suspending him from duty immediately. Under the city charter an administrator, who serves at the pleasure of the Assembly, has the right to have a public hearing in the event of his dismissal, but Brady did not request a hearing within the five days allowed.
    Brady left town on a planned family vacation the day after the preliminary resolution was approved. Fire Chief Dave Miller took over as acting administrator in accordance with a plan already in place for the administrator’s absences.
    Mayor Gary Paxton and Deputy Mayor Steven Eisenbeisz have placed an item on the Tuesday meeting agenda on “discussion/direction/decision on the appointment of an interim administrator.”
    Paxton said he wants to hear from the other Assembly members, but said, “My recommendation is we appoint Dave Miller as interim administrator for the next two to three months. He brings a calming influence to the city, to staff and hopefully to the Assembly.”
    Paxton said he hopes Miller can move forward with filling two major positions on the city staff, planning director and human resources director.
    “After two or three months, in an orderly fashion, we start looking for a new city administrator,” Paxton said.
    Eisenbeisz said he would also like a discussion on the issue of interim administrator.
    “I don’t have anyone in mind, but we need to keep the city moving forward,” he said. “We need to find out who is available and who is willing to do it.”
Other Agenda Items
    Other items on the agenda include a presentation on the FEMA National Floodplain Insurance Program, and an update on the SEARHC/Sitka Community Hospital affiliation.
    A retail marijuana store license and cultivation license are up for renewal for Northern Lights Indoor Gardens at 1321 Sawmill Creek Road. The store is at Suites N, O and P, and the cultivation facility is in Suites M, N, O and P.
    Two ordinances are up for final reading related to the hospital. One sets a budget for the extra month of operation of Sitka Community Hospital because of the one-month delay on the closing date to affiliate with SEARHC. The other ordinance is to cover legal fees and administration contracted services for the sale.
     Final reading is also scheduled on an ordinance that will shift the dates for summer and winter electric rates. It will shift the dates that electric rates rise and fall to one month later in the year. Currently, rates go up April 1 and back down Oct. 1, but two Assembly members proposed shifting the dates to May 1 and Nov. 1 in order to reduce costs to consumers. The ordinance, which will reduce electric department revenues an estimated $80,000 a year, was approved on introduction at the June 11 meeting.
    There are also proposed budget adjustments for capital projects at the fire hall and harbors, and for the No Name Mountain Master Plan.
    Four items are scheduled for executive session. They are related to the alleged theft of electricity from the city, a lawsuit filed against the city by a taxi company, an arrangement with the Baranof Island Brewing Company, and the Sitka Community Hospital services contract with SEARHC under the Asset Purchase Agreement.
    The meeting starts at 6 p.m. at Harrigan Centennial Hall.