By Marc Donadieu
Glacier City Gazette
During the Girdwood Board of Supervisors May meeting, they voted unanimously to enter into contract negotiations with Whittier for policing. If an agreement is reached, it would be a sole source contract for three years at a cost of up to $615,000 per year. Policing would be for the Girdwood Service Area only, and would begin July 1, the start of Forest Fair. The day before is when Alaska State Troopers vacate their Girdwood post.
The reserved atmosphere in the nearly full Community Room was in contrast to the May 5 meeting of the Public Safety Task Force Contract Committee. During the latter meeting, there was rigorous discussion about how to proceed with a policing solution after the yes vote on Proposition 9 gave GBOS taxation power for policing. At the GBOS meeting, the public in attendance was mostly supportive and gave a loud standing ovation after the 5-0 vote concluded. During the discussion period, no objections were expressed regarding pairing with Whittier.
Supervisor Sam Daniel explained that a Request for Proposals would not be issued for two reasons. First, there is the challenge of how long the process would take, especially if objections were filed after a proposal is chosen. The second reason is because neither AST nor Whittier is equipped to respond to bids for police service. Because Whittier is the only entity making a feasible offer, the negotiation would be for a sole source contract.
Shortly after Proposition 9 passed, AST expressed interest in continuing its current level of service with no changes if Girdwood were willing to pay $600,000 for it. That figure is considerably less than the $1.5 million AST proposed last year for the same service. The troopers’ primary responsibility would still be the Seward Highway with occasional patrols in Girdwood.
There were two primary concerns with AST’s offer. If it were chosen, Girdwood would be locally funding a statewide service that is already provided. The other concern is that taxes collected for the Girdwood Service Area cannot be used outside of its boundaries. If Girdwood taxes were used to fund the trooper’s highway patrolling, it would violate municipal law.
A main reason supervisors supported pairing with Whittier is because the arrangement can help advance the goal of Girdwood creating its own department at lesser cost with local control. The town would get to see what Whittier’s community policing is like and learn from it as it develops. That would not be the case with AST.
After a motion was made and discussion dissipated, Daniel said it was time to make a decision after months of reviewing options, extensive community input and the 3-vote margin on Proposition 9 giving GBOS the power to move forward.
“At this point, it is my recommendation as Public Safety Supervisor that the Girdwood Board of Supervisors enter into negotiations with the City of Whittier for a sole source contract to provide public safety services in Girdwood for a period not to exceed three years.”
If Whittier and Girdwood are still in contract negotiations by July 1, Whittier Chief Dave Schofield said he would obtain a Memorandum of Agreement from the Municipality to make sure there will be some police in place during Forest Fair. Whittier would provide a limited level of policing for the event.
Supervisor Tommy O’Malley said the initial, limited policing from Whittier would be “like a soft opening.” Officers will be present during peak Forest Fair times and conduct rolling patrols, but the full police service package will not yet be in place.