Anchorage Action

03/19/2024

The BSA increase veto override failed by one vote.

That vote was Rep Julie Coulombe . Representative Tom McKay. Rep Craig Johnson. Rep Dan Saddler. Laddie Shaw. Any could have made a difference for students this year that will miss out on IGNITE as a result of their vote. That will have even larger class sizes. That will not have funding set aside for reading interventions.

They took their 35k raises and the 20% increase in funding to the legislature and said thank you but what's good for me, kids don't deserve.

November is coming.

07/19/2022

One thing I've seen in the time I've spent at Centennial is that there are a lot of individuals who need substance misuse treatment, not a muddy campsite.

60-80 of those individuals could be receiving substance misuse treatment right now if Mayor Dave Bronson would do what's right for Anchorage instead of what he promised his NIMBY campaign donors & USED THE GOLDEN LION for a treatment facility.

Instead of being used to help solve this homelessness crisis, it sits EMPTY. It's akin to taking bribes and is unconscionable.

Meanwhile, the community has provided a covered tent and distribution of essential needs, through volunteers and community sourced donations while the mayor crows about how it's not his responsibility and he's not to blame and he's doing so much by having parks employees, who are not trained in any type of outreach or homelessness response, act as mass shelter security guards. Finally after nearly a month, the mayor has contracted with Salvation Army to provide coordination which, while a good thing, sounds like a bare minimum PR move and doesn't mention food among other things.

Lest anyone forget, this campsite is 2 miles from the nearest grocery store and has residents using walkers and wheelchairs and no transportation. Beans Cafe is fundraising day to day in their efforts to provide food at the site.

04/21/2022

A little known saga surrounds the Golden Lion hotel, which was purchased by the municipality to use as a treatment facility serving our houseless neighbors. The mayor, bowing to campaign donors, has steadfastly refused to use the Golden Lion for its intended purpose as a treatment facility, and has instead let a different set of campaign donors use the building, rent free and fully subsidized by tax payers, for their private businesses.

This Mayor has no concern in the best interests of the citizens of Anchorage, only in serving the best interests of his most ardent supporters and campaign donors. Crooked to the core. Meanwhile, we have no new treatment facilities to help move our city forward on our homelessness response and our homeless neighbors on a path to healing. The real costs are unmeasureable.

As The Blue Alaskan previously and rather extensively documented, since March 14, Anchorage Assembly Chair Suzanne LaFrance has sought details about the Municipality of Anchorage’s (MOA) lease/use agreement of the Golden Lion Hotel with WEKA Medical, a Bronson megadonor-owned for-profit business t...

11/22/2021

Agenda for Tuesday's Assembly meeting.
Lots of budget stuff (No testimony but amendments will be introduced), a few confirmations, and a resolution recognizing Eugene Carl Haberman.
Should hopefully be a pretty calm and quiet meeting.

10/27/2021

All residents but especially East Anchorage/Fairview/Government Hill residents please take note and ask for funding to be returned to these Parks!
Parks that were defunded by the Mayor in the proposed budget:

$200,000 Chanshtnu Muldoon Park master plan items (photo).

$500,000 Russian Jack Springs Park master plan items.

$250,000 Athletic Fields.

$300,00 Government Hill Master Plan.

$325,000 Eastchester/Woodside in Fairview on the Chester Creek Trail.

This is AO 2021-97; Capital budget
https://moaonlineforms.formstack.com/forms/assemblyphonetestimony

Photo is Chanshtnu Muldoon Park, which is an important park in East Anchorage; it is a new and much needed purpose built community center and green space that the East Anchorage neighborhood fought long and hard to be able to create (in lieu of another strip mall), for about a decade. With a community garden, winter ice rink, covered pavilion, dog parks, Saturday Market space, playground and trails it has become a central gathering space for East Anchorage.

10/19/2021

It's time to move on from the "hospitals are struggling because of vaccine mandates", which is sounding more like propaganda every day.
Mayor Dave Bronson, we can all see that it isn't true.

Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson and some members of his administration predicted high numbers of health care workers would leave their jobs rather than get the shot.

10/19/2021

Press release by Clifford Armstrong:

For Immediate Release

10.18.2021

Anchorage, AK

I’d like to inform the public about my understanding of my involuntary separation, or firing, by the Bronson administration on Thursday October 7th, 2021. It is my hope that with the information I’m providing, most of which is already public information, the public can make informed decisions about how they’d like to defend the office and work they fought for in 2020.

Many folks have inquired about why they think I was fired. I cannot give you a definitive answer as no cause was given. However, based on the circumstances, several factors seem to have come into play.

The first reason, which has been the most focused-on, is the Affirmative Action Plan (AAP) Summary Report that I delivered shortly before I was terminated. I, in collaboration with others, produced a report which identifies hiring and personnel action disparities at the Muni. The report recommends specific actions to be taken between now and February of 2022, which is when a formal report and plan is due. The administration has claimed that the report and it’s implementation will continue to be worked on in my absence. I request the public demand to know by whom and how that individual would know what to do considering the Muni hadn’t addressed any of the issues I wrote about within the memory of any staff whom I consulted.

The second reason is that it became abundantly clear that I was not like the other executives in the administration who, with few exceptions, did not compete in a national free, open, fair, and auditable application process like what most governments do to attract the best, most qualified, workforce for their organizations. I was hired for technical competence and not political allegience. And in performing my duties, my obligation was to follow the municipal code. You will have to decide for yourselves whether technical competence and legal compliance are valued by this administration.

The third reason is related to the budget process. Without my consent, the 2022 proposed budget shows the Office of Equity and Justice (OEJ) without the connection to the Assembly that was placed there originally. Also, there were about 4 different municipal code or policy & procedure changes that I drafted specifically to improve the organizational processes related to equity and justice. In particular, drafts related to Language Access, Section 3, the Affirmative Action Plan, and the OEJ and Chief Equity Officer roles and responsibilities. This included additional staffing to do the work well. The administration categorically denied advancing on any of these proposals.

The fourth reason is related to political commitments. In a public forum, the Mayor said he viewed my office and position as unecessary and something to be removed upon winning the election. That obviously didn’t happen and he has since named someone else, significantly less technically qualified than myself, to hold the office. The administration is clearly engaged in a political squabble with the assembly and my position and office were convenient pawns in a larger dispute unrelated to my ability to perform my job.

I am disappointed to have lost my position under these circumstances. If offered, I would welcome the opportunity to once again serve the people of Anchorage.

-Clifford Armstrong III 10.18.2021

10/17/2021

Important town hall!