Haines meets borough manager candidate Annette Kreitzer in-person

The Haines borough manager finalist Annette Kreitzer arrived in Haines on Monday for a town visit, and appeared at the Library for a public meet and greet. KHNS’ Corinne Smith filed this profile.

Haines residents had an opportunity to meet Annette Kreitzer in-person at the Library on Monday evening as part of her town visit. For the past week she’s been the sole applicant to be borough’s next manager. Kreitzer’s professional experience is heavy in Alaska state government. From 1992 she worked as a legislative aide before joining the executive branch. She was chief of staff for Lt. Gov. Loren Leman before being named  Commissioner for the Department of Administration by Gov. Sarah Palin, a role she continued under the administration of  Gov.Sean Parnell. She retired in 2012. 

A leading question for her from the group of about a dozen residents at the meet and greet was why apply for a local government job in Haines?

“A lot of people in Juneau are asking, what are you thinking?” she replied, laughing. “And (the job) has been open, it’s been open several times and I did not apply. And I didn’t seriously consider applying until this last year and a half… So this last time, I just kept thinking about what I do well. And what I think I do well is to bring stability, and communication, try to be as open and transparent as possible, as quickly as possible.”

Kreitzer and her husband live in Juneau. Since her retirement nearly a decade ago, she says she’s been helping her family through medical issues, as well as finally completing her Bachelor’s degree in business management. She says she got on-the-job training and mentoring in management in her decades of government work, and as commissioner was responsible for roughly 15,000 employees. As chief administrator for the borough, she told KHNS in an interview that her goal for managing staff would be to create trust and stability. 

“Part of my approach is getting to know people, why they’re there, and their jobs, and all of that,” Kreitzer said. “That takes a bit of time. And then ensuring that there is fairness. That’s always something that I’m concerned about. That everyone who is in a similar situation is treated the same. So whether that is praise or discipline, you want to make sure that’s fair across the board.”

While in Haines, Kreitzer is touring municipal buildings and various borough project sites like the Lutak Dock and Beach Road landslide area. She says she’s a very direct person in her professional dealings. She says she wants to combat the rumor mill for the Haines community to make clear-eyed decisions. 

“What I see happening, is I see fear getting out in front of facts,” Kreitzer said. “My approach is to be very straightforward. I’m not a touchy feely person. Laughs. And I don’t mean that in a bad way. We’re all structure differently, you know, we need touchy feely people. And we need people like me, who are much more analytical. That’s what I hope to bring to it, a much more analytical approach, these are the facts. And if I’m wrong I’ll correct it. And I’ll correct it quickly. I don’t have any problem saying I’ve made a mistake and come back and make it right.”

She’s said she’d be able to start work in Haines on October 1st. She says after a an eight- to 10-month trial period her husband in Juneau would follow her. 

The Assembly will hold a personnel committee meeting Tuesday and vote on whether to move forward with hiring Annette Kreitzer as borough manager, then a final vote would be held at the Assembly meeting at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday.