The Anchorage Community Development Authority doesn’t like Gov. Dunleavy’s budget and appears to be blaming him for the failed economy of Anchorage under the ACDA’s watch over the past four years, although Dunleavy has been in office just three months.
Andrew Halcro, who heads the authority, wrote, and posted on Twitter:
At ACDA, our vision is for a prosperous Municipality of Anchorage facilitated by innovative community development and public parking. We work to make that happen by delivering quality development and public parking services within the Municipality of Anchorage.
ACDA has worked diligently the last four years to foster redevelopment in downtown Anchorage. Governor Dunleavy’s proposed budget shifts millions of dollars in higher property taxes to local developers in a market that is already challenged by some of the highest construction costs in the country.
The Governor’s proposed budget would severely impede our ability to execute our mission by making new construction and redevelopment less attractive, by shifting costs to property owners.
He prefaced his letter with: “Governor, please take your foot off our throat.”
Halcro is a former member of the House of Representatives and was a candidate for governor in 2006, getting 9.5 percent of the vote in the General Election. He ran for mayor of Anchorage in 2015, but lost and received a political appointment from Mayor Ethan Berkowitz.
ACDA is a municipal corporation that works toward “responsible development and redevelopment in Anchorage by forming partnerships and working with the community. ACDA also operates EasyPark which provides value to downtown in the form of affordable, convenient, and secure parking options.” One of Halcro’s signature achievements is a rooftop basketball court above the 5th Avenue EasyPark Garage.
It appears that Halcro wants either an income tax or to raid the Permanent Fund. Or something else. He doesn’t offer a solution, just states an objection. Halcro advocated for an income tax when he was in the Legislature, so at least he is consistent.
