PUBLIC SERVICES DEPARTMENT REPORT TO

Northwest Arctic Borough

Mayor & Assembly

FEBRUARY 12, 2004

Capital Projects

Kivalina Relocation

Report on status of this project will be in person.

Noatak Cemetery Road 

No change on this project.   Staff is poised to write a letter requesting grant extension, but has been waiting for the last month for approval from Noatak.

Buckland Water & Sewer

The Borough has received a request from Herman Tickett, Mayor, City of Buckland, requesting help getting the Buckland Project going again.  Of prime concern to the Borough is to #1 assure that construction will start this summer (’05) in order to avoid losing USDA grant funds,  and #2 get the bridge over the Buckland River back into the project with bridge construction beginning no later than  the summer of ’06.  The Borough will be coordinating a meeting of project participants within the next several weeks to formulate a strategy for moving forward on this project.

Public Safety

Public Safety Commission 

The Commission has not met this quarter but plans to meet in March.

VPSO Program

The Borough has been actively seeking to take over the administration of the VPSO Program in our region since the demise of Maniilaq Manpower.  The Alaska Dept of Public Safety has rebuffed all of our attempts.  When Maniilaq offered to take on the contract for the remainder of the fiscal year,  DPS, through the troopers, balked again.   We have learned that the contract has been offered to Kawerek (Bering Straits) and Tanana Chiefs (Doyon) non-profits.    In discussions with Colonel Julia Grimes,  of the Alaska State Troopers, we learned that the DPS has plans to reduce from 9 to 3 the number of non-profits who administer VPSO programs.  Colonel Grimes indicated the state would be divided into three districts (northern, central, and southern) with a single non-profit in each district running all VPSO programs in that district.  This plan aims to reduce administrative expense and put more officers in the field, according to Grimes.   Maniilaq Association was told at a recent meeting in Junuea that Northwest Arctic Borough’s VPSOs will soon be administered by  a Southeast Alaska non-profit.  An Anchorage Daily News article last week indicated that a Kodiak non-profit might end up managing NAB VPSOs.   Obviously, there is a lot of conflicting information out there on this subject, and we need better information.  

Representative Joule’s office was contacted to find out what progress has been made on the request to change statutory language to allow Borough’s to manage VPSOs.  No progress has been made on this to date.  The aide who spoke with us was unaware that a bill requesting language change was requested.   He did offer to help apply pressure to change DPS policy.

Fire Department Development

Staff has begun meeting with village volunteers to reorganize village fire battalions.  Interest and enthusiasm have initially been high.  Response by local individuals to actually organize has been poor.   Paperwork for the Borough’s registration with the State of Alaska has been submitted.  Department staff is working on the grant application for the FEMA Fire Fighters Assistance Grant.

Local Emergency Planning Committee 

The LEPC  attempted to meet January  21^st.  A quorum was not present, and a brief work session was conducted.   Tom Bolen and Andrea Greene of Public Services staff both traveled to Juneau on January 27-29 to attend the LEPCA and SERC meetings.   This is an LEPC grant requirement.   Tom is the LEPC Chair and a member of the SERC (State Emergency Response Commission) and Andrea is the LEPC Coordinator.

EMPG Program

The Division of Emergency Services has offered an EMPG grant to the Northwest Arctic Borough in the amount of $12,500.  This s an increase of $2,500 over last year’s grant.  The resolution to accept these funds is part of your  February packet.

Also in your packet is a resolution to accept $13,000 in FY 03 Homeland Security Grant funds.  This grant offer was made to us after we withdrew our Round  1 Homeland Security Grant Application last year.  This funding will be used to put on a multi-agency  Weapons of Mass Destruction response drill , here in Kotzebue later this spring.  Public Services in conjunction with the LEPC will plan and coordinate this drill.

The Department staff is currently working on the Federal FY 04 Homeland Security Grant.  Under this grant application, the City of Kotzebue Police, Fire, EMS, and Public Works, as well as Maniilaq EMS,   Maniilaq Medical Center, Crowley Marine Services, Kotzebue Electric, and Teck Cominco are all eligible to apply for equipment, training, or exercise funds  related to preparing for, preventing, or responding to a terrorist event involving chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, or explosive elements.

Trail staking

Trail staking activity is 95% complete with Buckland, Shungnak, Kivalina and Kotzebue still working on portions of several trails.  Additional work was done to mark pressure ridges on Kobuk Lake after reports of dangerous conditions were received.  Individuals from  Kivalina, Noorvik, Selawik, and Noatak have all participated in hauling  tripod poles to their respective villages as a way of putting money in the hands of residents  instead of cargo air carriers.    Trail stake crews continue to improvise when it comes to following standards for tail marking.

Search & Rescue

Public Services Department attended the most recent NANA Regional Search and Rescue meeting in order to discuss the SAR Grant currently administered by the Borough.   Acting on input by the Regional SAR board members the Borough will  reserve $30,000 of grant funding for supporting extended searches,  spend approximately $25,000 on equipment upgrades for village search and rescue organizations, and will use the remaining funds ( $5,000) for training.

We also offered to assist NANA Regional SAR in revising their Bylaws.

Public Works

 Final report from the Northwest Arctic Water & Sewer Symposium is under development and will be available at the next Assembly meeting.

Northwest Arctic Borough Staff Directory

Northwest Arctic Borough
P.O. Box 1110 Kotzebue, AK 99752
(907)442-2500 (800)478-1110 Fax:(907)442-2930

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