By Marc Donadieu
Glacier City Gazette
Rather than celebrate Cinco de Mayo, a community room filled with Girdwood residents gathered to discuss the future of policing. After Proposition 9 passed, which granted the Girdwood Board of Supervisors power to tax for policing in the Girdwood Service Area, surprising developments have taken place. The meeting of the Public Safety Task Force Contract Committee is where the community reviewed the new developments and lingering issues regarding policing.
Col. James Cockrell, Director of Alaska State Troopers, sent a letter to Anchorage Police Chief Chris Tolley on April 21. In it, Cockrell stated that after AST leaves its Girdwood post on June 30, “AST will not provide general law enforcement services from McHugh Creek to mile 75 of the Seward Highway. Those responsibilities will be ceded to the Municipality of Anchorage.”
In addition to saying APD will be responsible for patrolling and responding to that stretch of the Seward Highway, Cockrell said AST will only handle motor vehicle crashes (MVCs) if a trooper is patrolling the highway. This point was followed by Cockrell’s attention getting declaration.
He wrote, “We will not call out a trooper to handle MVCs on the Seward Highway after hours. Those MVCs need to be handled by APD.”
What Cockrell’s letter did not address was that APD can only respond to calls in the Anchorage Service Area because taxes are specifically collected to be used only there. APD is prohibited from providing police service in municipal areas that do not pay for it, except in the case of a public emergency. Instead, Cockrell justified his position by citing reductions in trooper positions throughout the state.
In response, Municipal Attorney William Falsey replied with a letter on April 29 that urged Cockrell to reconsider his position and its implications. Falsey wrote, “The Municipality appreciates that the Alaska State Troopers are facing significant financial and staffing constraints. But it is not within the Troopers’ power to ‘cede’ the state’s law-enforcement responsibilities to the Anchorage Police Department, nor is it within the power of the Anchorage Police Department to accept them.”
Falsey then addressed what would happened if a situation arose on the highway or surrounding communities that needed police when APD is unable to respond and AST is unwilling to respond.
“Allowing crimes committed in Indian, Bird, Rainbow and Portage to forever go uninvestigated-and allowing motor vehicle crashes to close the Seward Highway overnight, until the return of ‘on duty’ hours, is indefensible,” Falsey wrote.
The dueling letters by Cockrell and Falsey set the stage for an unexpected about-face by AST. On May 2, there was a meeting at AST headquarters in Anchorage that involved state public safety officials and municipality officials. Supervisors Sam Daniel, Jerry Fox and Municipal Liaison to Girdwood, Kyle Kelley represented Girdwood.
During the meeting, Cockrell said AST would be receptive to continuing the same level of service it currently provides if Girdwood pays $600,000 for it. He also asked the Municipality to cover $58,000 rent for the trooper post as well additional office space and administrative costs. The cost of the latter two items was not defined.
The unresolved question is if Proposition 9 would allow the tax revenue collected in Girdwood to be spent on policing outside of the Girdwood Service Area. If AST were to contract with Girdwood for policing, the coverage would be what is currently provided, which is mostly patrolling the Seward Highway that is outside of the Girdwood Service Area.
If an agreement with AST is reached, Girdwood would be paying taxes for what used to be a statewide service and possibly setting a precedent for the rest of the state. The governor and the legislature would also have to approve of the arrangement. Cockrell said that if a contract framework were in place but not finalized by June 30, the trooper post would remain open.
With the new information presented to Girdwood residents in the community center, the question of how to proceed was rigorously discussed and questioned from a variety of angles. Although AST has offered nothing on paper, it is understood that they will follow their established service model, which leaves little room for change or negotiation.
In contrast, Whittier has offered an initial proposal for $615,000 that would feature a community-policing model that would require a three-year contract. There would be two officers a day for seven days a week. The officers would work overlapping shifts for a total coverage of 16 hours a day and a response to calls 24 hours a day. Whittier is open to officers living in Girdwood, which would reduce response time. Two Whittier officers currently reside in Girdwood.
Whittier’s proposal offers a greater degree of local control and flexibility than AST’s unwritten proposal. Whittier also offers more engagement with community involvement. However, there is still one main objection. Quite a few residents expressed the opinion that the Whittier proposal offers too much policing at too high a cost. They argue that Girdwood’s low crime rate doesn’t merit such overspending for unneeded service. They said a contract should reflect what Girdwood needs, not what Whittier wants.
A lively round of discussion ensued over concerns with each proposal.
“I respect the fact that Whittier is involved in this process,” said Larry Holmes. “I’m glad they are. We might end up with them. If we do, I’m good with it. Saying that, we don’t have a loyalty to anyone. This is a business. We’re talking about a contract here. This is what the fit for the community is about. I’ve been here when we’ve had a problem with the water system, the fire department, natural gas – every single one of those issues was long and laborious. And members of this community, just like we are here, spent the time to work on it. They all worked out well, and it didn’t happen overnight.”
Retired trooper and PSTF member, Mike Opalka was skeptical over AST’s proposal, especially its timing.
“I have many questions,” Opalka stated. “One is why now? Why all of the sudden? What happened to $1.9 million? Why $600,000? Their purpose is the state. That’s where their priority is going to be. I spent 22 years with them. If something happens out on the highway, that’s where they are going to go. We’re paying for Bird Creek, Indian, Portage and Rainbow. We’re paying for all that because if they’re here and something happens, that’s where they’re going to go.”
As the meeting was called to a close after 9 p.m., there was no resolution on a direction for Girdwood policing. What was agreed upon is that more productive discussion on policing is needed in the community to find a way forward for an option that works best for Girdwood. With that goal in mind, the contract committee was directed to draw up a list of specifications for a request for proposals to define what the community is looking for in a policing solution. A follow-up Contract Committee meeting date is yet to be announced.