My Turn: Alaska Committee making Juneau a capital city for all Alaskans
Many Juneau citizens are familiar with the Alaska Committee and may have participated in some of our past battles to retain the capital in Juneau. Now we are facing the threat of losing the Legislature if a citizen initiative gains enough signatures and is placed on the ballot in 2002. It may be helpful to place some of these events in context.
There have been at least seven votes in one form or another relating to the capital move issue whether it was about the actual move, the location, or the funding. The earliest of those votes was in 1960 and the most recent was in 1994. In the '70s we voted three times. We lost one of those votes - Alaska voters actually voted to move the capital. Fortunately, we prevailed in the one that counted, which was in 1994 - almost seven years ago.
The Alaska Committee can probably trace its roots clear back to those first votes, but, up through 1994, it functioned strictly as a political action committee - advocating for the passage or defeat of various capital move ballot propositions. During its most recent active campaign, leading up to 1994 and the period following, the committee was headed up by former Mayor Jamie Parsons who successfully coordinated the efforts of the committee to defeat the capital move and then lead the committee into a "kinder and gentler" phase. At that time, Jamie realized that if we were ever going to put capital move issues behind us, we couldn't just keep reacting to capital move pressure, we had to be pro-active and deal with some of the issues which fuel capital move debate.
Hence, in 1995, the present day Alaska Committee was born. It is an 18-plus member all-volunteer nonprofit 501(c)6 civic organization under IRS rules. Our mission became simply "dedicated to making government work better for Alaskans by improving and enhancing Juneau as Alaska's capital city." Since that time, the committee has taken the lead on a number of initiatives that have resulted in several successful programs. Most of us are familiar with these: KTOO's Gavel to Gavel TV coverage of the Legislature, Alaska Airlines Constituent Fares, airport improvements including the GPS approach and wind shear detection.
This year the committee has also undertaken several new initiatives underwritten by the City and Borough of Juneau. Soon, we will have completed a study providing some alternatives to enlarge and enhance the Capitol complex. In addition, with KTOO's help, Internet streaming of Gavel to Gavel and audio streaming and archival of all legislative committee hearings will be provided.
How does this work fit into the overall mission of the Alaska Committee? Some people view us as a pro-business, pro-development group like the Chamber of Commerce. This isn't true, but we do find that sometimes our goals overlap. Our mission is clear: We try to identify and address issues and concerns all Alaskans may have with their capital city. It isn't just OUR capital city - it's the capital for the entire State of Alaska. And let's face it, there are more of them than there are of us and we have a responsibility, as the location of the capital city, to be sensitive to their needs and concerns.
As we travel around the state and hear that getting to Juneau is difficult and expensive, we have to deal with that perception - whether you agree with it or not. That is why we have strongly opposed shortening the runway at our airport or compromising airport safety the effect of that message across the state would support the perception that we want less access. It is also why the Alaska Committee has consistently supported road access.
This issue was underscored several weeks ago when Rhonda Boyles, the mayor of Fairbanks, speaking at the Juneau Chamber of Commerce, reiterated her support for Juneau as the capital, but also voiced support for a road to Juneau. Therefore, despite Juneau's mixed feelings about road access, we will continue to advocate for it.
Raising our awareness of the statewide perception of Juneau is important so that when public policy is debated on issues that affect access, we can, as a community, weigh the potential impact of our decisions against our responsibilities as the capital city. We must also be aware of the needs of other parts of the state particularly our neighbors in Southeast Alaska and be ready to support their needs so they will continue to support us.
I don't think it is any secret we have lost support among our Southeast neighbors. But if we are going to address that concern, we need first to admit there is a problem and, toward that end, the recent newspaper articles about this subject are healthy. I was in Ketchikan recently and spoke with a number of community leaders. I feel encouraged that ultimately we will regain support for Juneau. But we cannot take it for granted. Juneau needs to be proactive in addressing community leaders and groups throughout Southeast.
Since I became chair of the Alaska Committee in 1999, our efforts have continued to be focused on facilities, outreach and improving access - both physical access and electronic access. I don't see this focus changing in the future but over the next year we will be campaigning hard to ensure our message gets out.
Once again, everyone's participation is absolutely critical. Our personal agendas must be put on hold to focus on making Juneau a capital city all Alaskans can fully appreciate. Soon, we'll need volunteers to assist in our campaign and we'll need your financial contributions as well. You have always come through in the past and I know you will this time.