Skagway’s Planning and Zoning Commission spent 2.5 hours across two meetings creating recommendations for the assembly to increase housing inventory. Residents voiced concerns about the process. The assembly has yet to address the recommendations.
Skagway’s Planning and Zoning Commission met Feb. 8 to discuss housing recommendations forwarded from their Jan. 16 work session. For that work session, Chair David Brena requested each member submit three suggestions to address the borough’s housing shortage. There was little discussion on the recommendations and most of them were forwarded to the February meeting.
Resident Charity Pomeroy was not impressed with the format of the work session. She spoke during Citizens Present on Feb. 8.
“I just wanted to come here tonight to express my extraordinary disappointment in the way the work session was run,” Pomereoy said. “I don’t understand how that can be seen as a work session. It seemed designed to exclude outside input and to shut down ideas amongst the commissioners. It seemed designed to, to just to disallow work. So, I am here to ask that an actual sit down, work session be scheduled, and that the things — the items on tonight’s agenda — be worked on. Worked on and discussed and explored before they are advanced at all.”
Sherry Corrington also addressed the body at Citizens Present. She questioned if Brena’s position as a realtor and landowner made his participation in Planning and Zoning a conflict of interest.
“You know, sitting as the chair of Planning and Zoning as a realtor, and as somebody who holds a lot of land in this community, all eyes are on you right now,” Corrington said. “And we are watching. Making sure that you’re not kind of pushing your own agenda in utilizing the position you’re in. And so, I’m just gonna say it because that’s who I am. And I know I’m not alone in this concern. So extra scrutiny should be in place right now.”
At the meeting, an amendment to Robert’s Rules of Order allowing for use of a consent agenda was voted down. In consent agenda, non-controversial items that don’t require discussion, such as approval of meeting minutes, can be placed into a single agenda item. Any member can request an item be removed from consent agenda.
Several times in the Feb. 8 meeting, Commissioner Laura Mabee requested another work session be scheduled, before any recommendations be forwarded to the assembly.
“I don’t feel I’ve had time to help with the input. And I’d like to see just something more comprehensive come from this group,” Mabee said.
A two-page document of recommendations was submitted to the assembly for its Feb. 15 meeting. Those recommendations were not discussed.
Brena thanked everyone who participated in the two housing meetings, including those who gave public testimony.
“I appreciate all your comments,” Brena said. “You know, I know I’m a realtor. We’re not all bad guys. But you know, we’re trying to get some housing and we, from my point of view, I do want to do it expeditiously. And I see some benefit to having multiple meetings, but there’s a lot of things Planning and Zoning can do that are not controversial in any way. And that can facilitate housing. And I’m hopeful that we’ll do that.”
The next planning and zoning meeting has yet to be announced.
