Election Day is Tuesday, and several important positions and propositions are on the ballot in Ketchikan.
Voters in the City of Ketchikan will decide between three candidates for two seats on the city council. Challenger Spencer Strassburg will compete with incumbents Lew Williams and Judy Zenge for those two seats.
City voters will also decide three propositions.
City Proposition 1 asks voters whether the city should ban on-site marijuana consumption. If it passes, the city would ban future “cannabis cafes” from popping up within city limits.
City Proposition 2 asks voters to allow Ketchikan Public Utilities to finance a new fiber optic cable to Canada to improve internet connectivity. KPU says the 11.5 million bond wouldn’t increase customer rates because it’ll cut the amount the utility currently pays for access to a competitor-owned cable.
The city’s Proposition 3 would asks voters to approve financing $5 million in repairs to the city’s main water lines. KPU says water rates may increase by nearly 9 percent to cover the cost of the project.
All voters in the Ketchikan Gateway Borough will have a chance to decide on candidates for borough mayor and borough assembly.
For borough mayor, the candidates are Rodney Dial, Sidney Hartley and Michelle O’Brien. Incumbent David Landis is term-limited and cannot run again.
Two seats on the borough assembly are also up for grabs. The candidates for assembly are Jeremy Bynum, David Landis, and Austin Otos.
Leslie Becker, Hilary Kvasnikoff, Paul Robbins, Jr., and Kathleen Yarr will face off in the race for a one-year term on Ketchikan’s school board. Bridget Mattson and Jordan Tabb are running uncontested for three-year terms on the school board.
Borough voters will also decide whether a $2-per-pack tobacco tax should be extended or allowed to expire in 2022.
Finally, voters along Old Dairy Road south of Saxman will decide whether to form a service area to finance services such as plowing and road maintenance within the service area.
