The Berkowitz administration is in leadership chaos, after the resignations of at least five department heads in recent days, including the Director of Payroll, Transportation, Health and Human Services, Public Works, and Information Technology. The job of Municipal Property Assessor is also turning over and the fire chief just quit.
In Health and Human Services, three high-level people have been forced out, according to sources.
In Payroll, a division of Finance, Cindy Becker has left her position as Payroll director, and Renee Behrendt is acting in that role.
In Information Technology, Chief Information Officer Zal Parakh is “in transition and looking for a new position in Anchorage or Minneapolis. In May, I ended a few years of formal Public Service to the citizens of Anchorage as the Municipality of Anchorage CIO/IT Director.” He had been hired by Mayor Ethan Berkowitz in January of 2016.
In Parakh’s place is Sioux-z Humphrey Marshall, who is now listed as director of the division, which has been moved into the Mayor’s Office. She was the Innovation Team program manager previously for the Muni.
On June 12, Mayor Ethan Berkowitz announced two other changes: Jamie Acton is Director of the Public Transportation Department and Natasha Pineda is the new Director of the Department of Health and Human Service.
Acton has been with the Muni since 2005, first as a recreation programmer for Parks and Recreation and later as mobility planner for the Public Transportation Department, and she served as a senior transportation planner for the Anchorage Metropolitan Area Transportation Solutions, where she was responsible for transportation planning and is the lead for all public involvement efforts. She will become Director of the department on July 2.
The acting director of Transportation is Bart Rudolph. Abul Hassan had served as Transportation director since July, 2016. Before that, he was superintendent of operations at People Mover for the Muni.
Natasha Pineda, the new director of HHS, was the deputy health official with the Alaska Department for Administration. Prior to working for the State, Pineda worked for the Muni as the community and family services division manager at HHS. Pineda also served as a program officer for the Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority, as a program coordinator for the SOA’s Division of Behavioral Health. She will take over as Director of DHHS on July 9.
Pineda replaces Melinda Freemon, who has been in the health field for more than 25 years and who was the executive director of the Clitheroe Center Drug and Alcohol Treatment program and Supportive Housing Division Director for the Rural Alaska Community Action Program.
City Property Assessor Bryant Robbins is also gone, and his job is being advertised. The Fire Department has a new chief, Jodie Ettrick.
She replaced Denis LeBlanc, who retired last month after less than three years on the job.
“Employees are in shock,” said one source familiar with the dismissal of three from the Health and Human Services department.
Recently, a report revealed massive cost overruns relating to the Muni’s computer and Human Resources computations, which has led to possibly over a million in penalties for miscalculated pay and benefits.
The Treadwell for Alaska campaign launched its first campaign video today on social media. In it, the candidate starts out by saying, “I hear you’re looking for a new governor.”
Treadwell touts his business and government experience, and covers the needed topics of the economy, opioids, the Permanent Fund dividend, and a gasline. Here’s the ad:
Over two days this week, Anchorage Police Department kicked off Operation Midnight Sun with federal, state, and local partners focused on a crime suppression sweep of violent offenders. This is an on-going operation.
Around 100 uniformed and undercover officers, including aerial support from Alaska State Trooper Help 3, split into eight teams and conducted a variety of crime suppression activities all over Anchorage. Since Monday, dozens of arrests were made and 400 grams of drugs were seized.
A summary of the arrests, per Anchorage Police Department:
Felony Arrests/Charges (includes warrants): 58
Misdemeanor Arrests/Charges (includes warrants): 25
Stolen Vehicles Recovered: 5
Heroin: 230 grams
Methamphetamine: 140 grams
Mushrooms: 30 grams
Guns Recovered: 19, several of which were stolen
Cash: $3,720
Arrests included:
Orlando Holder
Orlando Holder, 32, arrested on June 18 in the area of Bragaw Street and Thompson Avenue. He was wanted on a felony warrant for Murder 2, Manslaughter and Misconduct involving a Weapon. APD Case: 18-23866
Versace Armani Sperl, 20, arrested on June 19 during a traffic stop in the area of Muldoon Road and Northern Lights Blvd. He was wanted on a felony warrant for Assault 3. On June 10, police say Perl threw rocks at his ex-girlfriend after a disagreement about their relationship. The woman tried to evade the rocks but was hit more than once, the police report said. In the June 19 traffic stop, the driver, a male juvenile, was also arrested on a misdemeanor, no bail warrant. APD Case: 18-24466
Jeffery Painter, 37, was arrested on June 19 for dealing drugs in the area of 5th Avenue and Gambell Street. Officers seized 6.23 grams of methamphetamine, 2.27 grams of heroin and 1 stolen handgun. He faces multiple charges of Misconduct Involving a Weapon 2, Misconduct Involving a Controlled Substance 2, Felon in Possession and Theft 2. APD Case: 18-24585
Zach Russi
Zachary Russi, 20, arrested on June 19 during a traffic stop in the Northway Mall area. Russi fled in the direction of the trailer park across from the mall. He was located with the assistance of the K9 Unit and AST’s Helo 3. He had two outstanding warrants for Burglary and Misconduct Involving a Controlled Substance. APD Case: 18-24593
Nyajal Borjung, 19, was arrested on June 19 on an outstanding warrant for Engage In Riot. She was located in the 7700 block of DeBarr Road. APD Case: 18-24617
James Sullivan, 53, was arrested on June 19 in the 100 block of Bragaw Street. He was wanted on an outstanding warrant for Misconduct Involving a Weapon. APD Case: 18-24639
Allen Ala, 18, was arrested on June 19 after Dispatch received a report of a stolen vehicle in the area of North Bunn Street and Thompson Avenue, in the Mountain View neighborhood. Officers, with the assistance of Helo 3, located Ala driving a grey Chevrolet Blazer in the 400 block of Pine Street. He was taken into custody, questioned by detectives, arrested and transported to jail. He faces multiple charges including Vehicle Theft 1, Theft 2 and Violations of Condition of Release. APD Case: 18-24549
Andrew Baugh, 49, arrested on June 19 in the area of 15th Avenue and Eyak Drive. Baugh was inside a silver Ford Pickup in the parking lot of an apartment building. Officers discovered an adult female performing oral sex on Baugh. He faces a charge of Soliciting Prostitution. APD Case: 18-24642
Dominik Spivey
Dominik Spivey, 20, and Nigel Ivory, 22, arrested on June 19 during a traffic stop in the 5600 block of Debarr Road. Spivey was wanted on two felony assault warrants and one felony drug warrant. Spivey and Ivory fled on foot and were later captured with the assistance of the K9 Unit. Inside the silver Ford Explorer Ivory was driving, officers found multiple handguns. Both face additional charges including Misconduct Involving a Weapon and Resisting Arrest. APD Case: 18-24641
Brandon Balaoro
Brandon Balaoro, 23, was arrested on 6/19 in the 6900 block of Trafford Drive. He was wanted on an outstanding warrant for Misconduct Involving a Weapon. APD Case: 18-24764
Christopher Gowen, 44, and Sonja Burke, 33, were arrested on June 19 after a traffic stop in the Fred Meyer parking lot on Northern Lights. Gowen and Burke face a charge of Misconduct Involving a Controlled Substance. Burke also had two outstanding felony warrants. Officers also seized 14 grams of heroin and 20 grams of meth. APD Case: 18-24635
In November, Gowen was one of eight people indicted in a major heroin and meth trafficking ring that police had spent nearly two years investigating.
Mary Weatherman, 37, was arrested on June 19 after attempting to sell drugs to an undercover officer at the Twin Dragon. She faces charges of Misconduct Involving a Controlled Substance. Officers seized 1.75 grams of heroin. APD Case: 18-24647
Four male juveniles were arrested on June 20 near the Kincaid Chalet after fleeing from a stolen vehicle. At 7:13 a.m., on 6/19, APD took a report of a 2015 red Ford Escape being stolen from a residence on the 1800-block of Cindylee Lane. The vehicle was parked with a spare key inside when it was taken. At 8:53 a.m., Police Dispatch received a call that someone had fallen off a car while it was moving in the parking lot of the Dimond Center.
Officers responded and were able to determine from surveillance footage that a pedestrian met people in a vehicle in the parking lot. The pedestrian was speaking with one of the passengers in the vehicle through the open right rear window. It appeared the driver tried to drive off multiple times and the pedestrian was preventing it. Eventually the driver began to drive way and the pedestrian grabbed onto the side and the roof of the vehicle. The driver traveled through the parking lot at a high rate of speed when the pedestrian flew off and landed in the middle of the roadway (near the bus stop on the west side of the mall) with a head injury.
The vehicle involved was the one reported as stolen the day before. The pedestrian was transported to the hospital. Several hours later, at 10:17 p.m., Police Dispatch received a call from a citizen who stated they stopped to check on a vehicle that was parked near the Kincaid Chalet at Little Campbell Lake on Raspberry Road. The occupants ran on foot when the citizen approached them. A computer check by Dispatch revealed the vehicle was the stolen Escape.
All four suspects, who are juveniles, were located by police in the woods at the Raspberry Road trailhead and taken into custody. Criminal charges for all four were forwarded to the Department of Juvenile Justice. APD Case 18-24498 and 18-24688
Donovan Dennis, 27, was arrested on June 20 after a traffic stop in the area of 32nd Avenue and Boniface Parkway. He was wanted on two outstanding warrants for parole violations. APD Case: 18-24729
Jeffery Painter, 37, was arrested on June 20 after being spotted in a stolen vehicle at Fred Meyer on Dimond Boulevard. The officer followed the Subaru until backup officers could arrive. The vehicle was followed to Lowe’s on Old Seward where the suspect backed up into a parking space. Several patrol vehicles surrounded the vehicle; the driver jumped out and ran. Officers gave chase and captured the suspect near the Steam Dot on O’Malley Center Drive. He faces multiple charges of Vehicle Theft I and Theft II. APD Case 18-24732
Robert Price-Schruefer
Tara Ginn, 34, and Robert Price-Schruefer, 33, were arrested on June 20 during a traffic stop in the 400 block of Gambell Street. Schruefer had two outstanding felony warrants for probation violation on charges of Forgery, Misconduct Involving a Weapon and Misconduct Involving a Controlled Substance. He had been wanted since March. He was found to be in possession of brass knuckles, $280 of counterfeit $20 bills, five credit/debit cards that didn’t belong to him and .10 grams of heroin. He faces additional charges of Forgery 1, Misconduct Involving a Weapon, Misconduct Involving a Controlled Substance and Theft 2. Ginn faces a charge of Misconduct Involving a Weapon after officers found a loaded .357 revolver. Officers also seized 9 grams of heroin, a digital scale and .52 grams of methamphetamine. APD Case: 18-24756
Terence Anthony, 52, was arrested on June 20 during a probation check in the 1700 block of Russian Jack Drive. Anthony was found to be in possession of a handgun inside his apartment. Officers also seized 124.7 grams of heroin and $1,720 cash. He faces charges of Misconduct Involving a Weapon and Misconduct Involving a Controlled Substance. APD Case: 18-24765
Andrew Swaney
Andrew Swaney, 45, was arrested on June 20 after a report of a suspicious person in the area of 11th Avenue and Cordova Street. After officers made contact with Swaney, they ran a background check and discovered he was wanted for multiple felony warrants including Domestic Violence and Theft. APD Case: 18-24787
Brandon Cockburn, 39, arrested on June 20 after leaving the scene of a collision at the intersection of Cordova Street and 6th Avenue. Cockburn was driving a 2002 Dodge Caravan northbound on Cordova Street and ran a red light. He was struck by a 2000 Honda motorcycle eastbound on 6th Avenue. Cockburn was located and faces multiple charges including Assault 2, Driving without a driver’s license, Driving without Insurance and Leaving the Scene of a Collision. APD Case: 18-24772
Earlier this month, Cockburn was facing multiple charges including Distribution of Child Pornography. APD Case: 17-8688
Those partners include Alaska State Troopers (AST), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), United States Marshals, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), United States Postal Inspection Service, Anchorage District Attorney and the United States Attorney.
DIVISION OF ELECTIONS TRYING TO MAKE IT CLEAR, FAIR
Division of Elections Director Josie Bahnke has a challenge on her hands this summer: Design honest and transparent Primary and General Election ballots that make it clear to voters how each candidate got his or her name on the ballot, as it pertains to the Democrats.
With so many people running as “don’t ask, don’t tell” candidates the Democrat Primary or via petition in the General, it’s not easy to give voters a straight explanation of how the candidates were vetted: Did they go through a primary, or just get 100 or so signatures on a petition to run in the General?
The Division of Elections issued a new draft for the General Election ballot today, possibly moving closer to following a judge’s orders to make the ballot clear. Judge Phillip Pallenburg ordered the division last fall to not follow the Alaska Democratic Party’s plan for their ballot, because it was dishonest with voters.
Here is what the new General Election ballot looks like, with Democrats having extra letters by their names to indicate what party, if any, they belong to. In this latest version, unlike previous versions, Republicans do not have extra letters by their names:
Normally, it’s simple: Recognized parties in Alaska are Republicans, Democrats, Libertarians, and Alaskan Independence Party.
A recognized political party “is an organized group of voters whose candidate for governor received at least three percent of the total votes cast in the preceding general election or whose number of registered voters is equal to at least three percent of the total votes cast for governor.”
HOW IT BECAME COMPLICATED
But there’s Gov. Walker — the simple carpenter who keeps changing parties and affiliations. In 2014 he was a Republican, and then became an undeclared.
By 2018, he said he would remain an undeclared but would run on the Democrats’ Primary ballot.
But a month later, he decided to be a petition candidate on the General Election ballot. He calls it the “Unity” ticket, or labels himself an “Independent.”
The Division of Elections plans to call Walker and his running mate Byron Mallott “No-Party Candidates.”
The Division of Elections current draft is still under review, but must consider these anomalies:
P.J. Simon, District 1 House, an undeclared candidate going to the General Election ballot via petition. At this time, the Division will list Simon as a “No-Party Candidate.”
Tim Lamkin, District 4 House, a nonpartisan candidate going to the General Election ballot via petition. At this time, the Division will list Lamkin as a “No-Party Candidate.”
James Squyres, District 9 House, a Republican-registered candidate going to the General Election ballot via petition, and avoiding the Republican Primary. Squyres will be listed as a “No-Party Candidate.”
Stephany Jeffers, District 12, an undeclared running in the Democrats primary, who will advance to the General Election and appear with a U next to her name, but as the Democratic Party nominee.
Democrats secured the right to allow registered undeclareds, nonpartisans and Democrats to run in their primary in April.
According to Tuckerman Babcock, chairman of the Alaska Republican Party, it is reasonable to accommodate that approach by identifying those Democratic Primary candidates as N, U, or D in the Democratic primary. But when it comes to the General, those candidates are now Democratic nominees — no more and no less.
“In the General Election, the law only requires incontrovertible information — which party are you the nominee of, or did you arrive as a petition (no party) candidate?” Babcock said. “It is not relevant in the General Election to further try to share an individual voter registration because it has a nothing to do with how they got to the General Election ballot. Voter registration can change daily and any registration information on the General Election ballot is potentially incorrect and confusing.”
The Division of Elections currently has been through a couple of iterations of how they were going to handle this confusion. An earlier draft of the ballot had a letter by each candidate’s name, regardless of the party, shown here:
The Anchorage municipality’s business software system, SAP, has by now cost taxpayers in Alaska’s largest city more than $90 million — most of it under the watch of Mayor Ethan Berkowitz. He promised to fix it if he became mayor, but the problems are compounding, according to a report that is under wraps at City Hall.
SAP has been problem-ridden for years, but now word is leaking about yet another problem.
The Cliff Notes explanation: The SAP computer system doesn’t understand all the different union contracts and how they pertain to worker overtime.
Over the years, the various union contracts have become so complex that it is all but impossible to properly compute pay. Even the old software, PeopleSoft, had trouble with it.
The public employee unions have no incentive to simplify the negotiated rules, and the programming in the new SAP software didn’t come with those complicated contracts pre-loaded.
Since SAP is managed by out-of-state contractors, they also have no incentive to fix it. They’re making bank.
Normally, an employee would get paid a certain amount based on straight time, and another rate based on overtime. But the unions have their own “if-then” logic rules based on seniority and on what days the overtime was accrued, as well as the time of day it is accrued.
Built into the union contracts are steep penalties against the employer for any payroll miscalculations. The union contracts specify that if payroll is miscalculated, huge awards go to the affected workers. These are not small bonuses, but extremely generous ones.
It appears that a major swath of the municipal employee sector has had their pay and benefits miscalculated by the SAP system, and they are due thousands of dollars per employee in penalties, with some employees looking at as much as $40,000 or so in awards — not for work performed, but simply because a minor miscalculation by the SAP system led to penalties piling up day after day.
The fire union contract charges $50 a day for every day an error has not been corrected. AMEA employees are awarded a $60 daily penalty, and there are over 500 of those employees. Several of the municipal employee unions have filed grievances over the more than 1,000 adjustment requests.
Note: We’re hoping some enterprising news organization will have the staff resources to get their hands on the report, which is a matter of concern to property taxpayers. Must Read Alaska will get around to submitting a public records request eventually.
Gov. Bill Walker has struggled with his video campaign messages since launching them in May. They’ve been off-putting in different ways. None has been tone perfect.
His first video, showing him shoveling snow endlessly, focused on making fun of his critics. They were clowns, in his eyes.
His second video was spooky dark and gloomy, with a gangster vibe. His third effort was a video about a football game, but used rugby shots from the Bush Company rugby team playing in Anchorage. Awkward to include the strip-club’s rugby club.
The fourth, for Fathers Day, was a copycat video of a now-famous campaign ad from Texas. It was derivative at best.
But this week, he has an ad that actually nails it: In it, Bill Walker and his brother are shown as two working-class carpenters, coffee mugs in hand, as they travel around the state in a pickup truck that has a cracked windshield and they put up his campaign signs together. His brother narrates about their hard-scrabble upbringing, and how Bill Walker is just a carpenter-laborer who loves the state and the campaign is a family affair.
The argument is a stretch, because although Walker is handy with tools, he’s a multi-millionaire with income properties around the state and a home in Hawaii. But this is about messaging, and the message is that he is a real Alaskan:
WHAT ABOUT THE DUNLEAVY AD?
While Walker was sandbagging campaign signs along the roadways, the Dunleavy for Alaska camp has gone in a different direction, and rather than a drill, they bring a salmon to the message fight — and no candidate in sight.
The ad for Dunleavy shows you how to properly fillet a fresh-caught red salmon — one that you might catch on the Kenai this weekend, for example. The Facebook ad that rolled out Thursday evening stars radio talk show host Rick Rydell, who is a well-known fisherman, with a gleaming salmon, a work table, and a sharp knife. A river is the backdrop.
Rydell makes quick work of the salmon in less than two minutes. It’s not bloody, but it’s a one-of-a-kind campaign video that says, in essence, “We’re pretty sure you want to be fishing right now and this is how you save as much protein as you can.”
https://youtu.be/rDS9v19HI_c
It may be the first campaign video in Alaska history that has nothing to do with elections, and everything to do with “how to hack” the Alaska way of life that Alaskans cherish. And avoid those pin bones.
One of the best Facebook comments on the Dunleavy fish fillet video was the searing observation, “Walker’s video was How to fillet a PFD in half.”
That may have been the most accurate slice of all.
DETAILS: MAKES $95K TO PROMOTE ‘STAKEHOLDER CHANGE MANAGEMENT’
Must Read Alaska asked the State of Alaska for details about the hiring of the Innovation Stakeholder Change Manager. Here are the answers provided to our request about the circumstances surrounding the hiring of the former executive director of the Marquette, Michigan Chamber of Commerce to drive systemic change in the bureaucracy of the State of Alaska:
Jason Schneider was hired May 11, 2018. However, he had resigned his job in Marquette, Michigan in February and told reporters he was not able to discuss his new position that he had accepted out of state. His official start date, however, was in May.
Schneider was hired by the Chief Information Officer, Bill Vajda, in the Office of Information Technology, which is in the Department of Administration. The governor’s Chief of Staff Scott Kendall approved the hire.
Schneider reports to Ryan Mitchell-Colgan in the Office of Information Technology.
According to the state, his position is temporary and exempt and thus was not required to be posted. He earns $95,420 a year at Range 21C. From his own social media postings, the job description was still being negotiated in March.
Vajda, who hired him, is the former city manager for Marquette, Michigan. Vajda is the State of Alaska’s first Chief Information Officer, in charge of consolidating the state’s information technology functions into a single entity.
Schneider’s job description currently reads:
“The Innovation Stakeholder Change Manager position works under the Portfolio, Planning and Policy (P3) section and will focus on stakeholder change management across all agencies, promoting innovation. The goal is new and improved communications, metrics, business models and/or processes. P3’s focus is to prepare the critical infrastructure and mapping for OIT, creating and implementing organizational goals. The position will work with the Chief Technology Officers on technology requirements and work with stakeholders to drive awareness, proficiency and adoption of innovation processes and platforms. The position is critical to OIT to meet its goals of operational performance and management and implementation of service levels commitments and key performance indicators.”
In 2016, Gov. Bill Walker instituted a hiring and travel freeze, but that was quietly forgotten after a few months. Three years after he took office, Walker still has a $700 million annual deficit, balanced with money was used from the Constitutional Budget Reserve. In addition to hiring a Senior Climate Change Advisor, he has beefed up the Department of Health and Social Services due to the crush of applicants that have swamped the department since he expanded Medicaid to able-bodied adults of working age.
Today, there are 220 jobs advertised with the State of Alaska.
The Anchorage League of Women Voters asked the State to allow Anchorage voters to use the municipality’s new vote by mail system in the General Election in November, as muni voters did in the April 3 municipal election. The League had sent a resolution in May to the Division of Elections Policy Work Group, making the request.
The Division of Elections’ answer is “no.”
The explanation given is that to change the existing precinct-based system for state elections would require legislation to significantly modify Alaska State Statutes. such as AS 15.20.800. Voting by mail. (a) “The director may conduct an election by mail if it is held at a time other than when the general, party primary, or municipal election is held.”
Based on this and other state statutes, the Division of Elections said it will conduct the 2018 elections as “vote in person at a precinct voting location” with early and absentee voting opportunities still available, as usual.
Anchorage went to a mail-in ballot, plus had strategically placed drop boxes for those who wished to avoid the post office. In addition, there were a few in-person voting sites before and on Election Day, to help those who were uncomfortable with the mail-in process. The entire election timeframe took weeks to complete and doubled the cost of elections in Anchorage.
But absentee ballots have been the norm for years, and will continue to be used the Division said. It just requires a bit of extra work on the part of voters: They must apply for their ballots in advance. The deadlines for applying for an absentee ballot are:
Primary Election: August 11
General Election: October 27
Dick Randolph introduces Mike Dunleavy at a fundraiser this week.
Randolph is a volunteer co-chair of the Dunleavy for Governor campaign.
VOLUNTEERS THE KEY TO SUCCESS
So many volunteers, and only 61 days until Alaska’s Primary Election is in the rear view mirror. It’s already a busy time, but the fun has just started. There are parades, postcards, and phone-calling ahead. In other words, the volunteering season is here.
The Alaskans for Dunleavy campaign has added over 100 volunteers in the past week alone, bringing the total to 600 statewide, from Ketchikan to Kotzebue.
That information was revealed during a “Meet Mike” event held at the home of former Mayor Dan and Lynette Sullivan in Anchorage on Wednesday. Every day, more and more volunteers are signing up, said campaign manager Brett Huber. It’s evidence of the strength of the grassroots support for Dunleavy, he said, and for a primary campaign is nearly unheard of in Alaska politics.
Dunleavy said that the best way for people to volunteer is to go to the website, AlaskansforDunleavy.com, where there’s a signup box with various options, such as knocking on doors, being part of the digital response team, making phone calls, displaying a yard sign, or hosting an event at your home.
Is a 600-person volunteer army too much of a good thing? The challenge for any campaign is to keep people busy doing things they like to do, or at least don’t mind doing. But campaigns are not glamorous ventures — they require a lot of elbow grease and phone calls. Many of the volunteers in this year’s campaign cycle may not have ever been part of a political campaign before.
For political candidates interested in getting better at managing a volunteer army, Must Read Alaska recommends reading:
