AEL&P named small business of the year

Alaska Electric Light & Power has been providing energy to Juneau since the company opened in 1893. This month the Alaska State Chamber of Commerce named AEL&P the Alaska Small Business of the Year.

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"They have been such leaders within their field and they have been so innovative," said Paulyn Swanson, executive director of the Alaska State Chamber of Commerce.

Swanson solicited nominations from its members. She then sent the nominations to a selection committee, this year composed of Chamber members from Fairbanks, Tok, Anchorage and Kenai.

Nominees can have no more than 100 employees, must be headquartered in Alaska, must be in business for more than three years, and cannot be a division of a larger corporation. Businesses do not have to be members of the state Chamber.

AEL& P was presented the award at the state Chamber convention in Kodiak on Oct. 1.

"We were surprised, very pleased," said David Stone, a vice president at AEL& P and a Juneau Assembly member-elect. "I think its an honor that reflects well upon the management."

The award committee felt AEL& P had been "very dynamic and innovative in how they went about accomplishing their daily business," said Swanson.

The Juneau Chamber of Commerce nominated the power company.

"AEL& P had basically been overlooked for a number of years," said Todd Saunders, president of the Juneau Chamber. "I think a lot of people had just assumed that they had received that kind of recognition in the past. For us it was very obvious that they were deserving of the award."

AEL& P has received several awards, but never one from the state Chamber, Stone said.

The power company's leadership in providing shore power for cruise ships, electricity for mines near Juneau, and connecting new commercial and residential lots to power sources were major reasons the Juneau Chamber nominated the company for the award, Saunders said.

So was the company's commitment to public service.

"One of the things we do is we try to direct our donations toward nonprofits and charities that our employees are involved in," said Stone.

Several AEL& P employees volunteer as "bigs" for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southeast Alaska, so the company donates to that nonprofit, he said.

The company also has donated land for the nursing home Wildflower Court, the flume trail downtown and the Thane campground.

• Christine Schmid can be reached at cschmid@juneauempire.com.