Bond prop too close to call

Absentee and questioned ballots could make a difference in a $15 million general obligation bond proposition for harbor, water and sewer improvements in Juneau.

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For more Juneau Empire coverage of the October 1 municipal elections, please visit the Juneau Empire Elections Guide.

Proposition 1 was failing by 31 votes Tuesday with 3,649 people voting no and 3,618 voting yes. Election workers counted 546 absentee ballots Tuesday and will count more absentee and questioned ballots Friday. Last year, election workers counted 1,250 absentee and questioned ballots.

The bond would fund the Auke Bay commercial vessel loading facility, harbor improvements downtown and in Douglas, a park in West Juneau, Eaglecrest Ski Area upgrades, a water line extension to North Tee Harbor and water and sewer line replacements in Douglas.

Juneau Assembly member Randy Wanamaker, who supported putting the proposition before voters, said he wasn't surprised by the close numbers.

"I don't think there was enough of an education effort so that people understood why we needed it," he said. "Traditionally with bond issues, many have failed the first time and we've had to re-educate the public."

If the bond package doesn't pass, Wanamaker said the Assembly needs to figure out why. It may be necessary to restructure the package before putting it before voters again, he said.

"I believe it's a viable and necessary set of improvements, especially the people who are waiting for water and sewer, but we need to find out why it didn't make it. And it looks like it may not," he said.

Assembly member Jim Powell, too, attributed the close results to a lack of explanation and education. He supports the projects in the package, but voted against putting the measure on the ballot because of a lack of information on some items, he said.

"If history repeats itself, bonds need a lot of encouragement by the leaders of the community and explanation of what they're for," he said. "Voters in our community need to be convinced if we're going to spend the money and I think that's what happened. You didn't see a lot out there about the bond and quite frankly, the Assembly was not unanimous on the bond itself."

As the results indicate, reaction at the polls was mixed Tuesday. Margaret O'Neal, who was voting at the Mendenhall Valley Precinct No. 1, said she always supports bond measures.

"It's important to keep the infrastructure up to date," she said.

At the Juneau Airport Precinct at the Nugget Mall, Marilyn and Chuck Freymueller were less sure about the bond package.

"I don't think they've given out enough information to make a good vote on that," Marilyn Freymueller said.

"There were probably better ways to get the money," Chuck Freymueller said.

If the bond proposition doesn't pass, Powell said the projects will come up again.

"I think you'll see a bond next year if it goes down," he said. "For those and possibly even more because I think they're very necessary items."