2026-10-14 - Public Naming Commission

00:01Chair Hess.

00:02>> Here.

00:03>> Vice Chair Harrison.

00:07>> Here.

00:08>> Commissioner Gupta.

00:10>> Here.

00:11>> Commissioner Haller.

00:14>> Here.

00:15>> Commissioner Gilbert.

00:17It's my understanding that Commissioners

00:18Harrison and Morgan are excused.

00:20>> Yes.

00:21>> You have a quorum.

00:22>> Thank you. Thank you, Jasmine. Could I

00:24get somebody to read the land

00:26acknowledgement, please?

00:34Well,

00:35>> Thank you.

00:36>> I'll

00:37I'll volunteer.

00:39Or you can

00:39>> I I can read it. It's your duty and then

00:41sharing. Our land acknowledgement is a

00:43formal statement recognizing the

00:45indigenous people of a place. It is a

00:47public gesture of appreciation for the

00:49past and present indigenous stewardship

00:51of the lands that we now occupy. It is

00:54an actionable statement that marks our

00:56collective movement towards

00:57decolonization and equity. The public

01:00naming commission would like to

01:01acknowledge that we gather today on the

01:02traditional lands of the Dena'ina

01:04Athabascans. For thousands of years, the

01:06Dena'ina have been and continue to be

01:07the stewards of the land. It is with

01:09gratitude and respect that we recognize

01:11the contributions, innovations, and

01:13contemporary perspectives of the upper

01:15Cook Inlet Dena'ina.

01:19>> Thank you, Jen.

01:20Uh, could I get a motion to approve the

01:22agenda, please?

01:25Can I get a second?

01:27>> Second.

01:29>> Second, Kevin, that's seconding.

01:31>> Yes.

01:33>> All right. Any discussion?

01:38Any objection to the agenda

01:42uh, being approved?

01:45Seeing and hearing none, it is approved.

01:48Could I get a motion to approve the

01:49minutes of the September 9th, 2026

01:52commission meeting?

01:55>> I motion to approve.

02:01>> Um any discussion?

02:08Seeing and hearing none, any objection

02:11to approving the minutes as written.

02:16Seeing and hearing none, the minutes are

02:17approved. That brings us up to our first

02:21item of unfinished business, which is

02:23the continued public hearing for the

02:25Northeast Connector Trail honorary

02:27naming for the late Karen Bronga.

02:30Um I did want to make a comment. I know

02:33some of members of the commission we've

02:35had concerns about the provision in the

02:38code that talks about the 36 months

02:40posthumous. Um our role as a commission,

02:44we advise the assembly. The assembly

02:47makes the final decision. So our role is

02:49to determine does an applicant does does

02:53a group or an individual that uh submits

02:56an application for an honorary naming,

02:58have they made the case? Do we believe

03:00that facility should be named for that

03:03individual or family or group? And we

03:07would make that recommendation to the

03:09assembly. It would be up to the assembly

03:12how they name. They can name by

03:14resolution, which is the normal way to

03:17name. And the resolution could say that

03:19it does not take effect until 36 months

03:23posthumous. Or they can name by

03:25ordinance, which would take effect

03:27immediately and they do a

03:29notwithstanding clause regarding the 36

03:32months. So so our job is to advise them

03:35whether or not we support the proposed

03:39naming. It is up to them how they name.

03:42I just wanted to clarify that before we

03:44start uh

03:46uh the continued public hearings.

03:49Um any questions?

03:52Cool. Um so we're going to continue.

03:54We'll open the continued public hearing

03:56for the Northeast Connector Trail

03:58honorary naming for uh late Karen

04:00Bronga. Uh we discussed this last month

04:04briefly. We uh heard a lot of testimony.

04:07Uh in our packets now there are

04:09resolutions from two community councils

04:13sup- that both support the naming. I

04:15think one the vote was 23 to one. I

04:19believe some more public comments were

04:21received by Jasmine that all supported

04:24the naming.

04:26Um the community councils have supported

04:28it. The Parks and Recreation Commission

04:31passed a resolution supporting the

04:32naming. Um

04:34so far there have been no objections

04:37from any of the comments or testimony

04:39that have been provided. Um

04:43uh does anybody have any would anybody

04:45like to discuss this proposed naming?

04:51>> I uh this is this is Commissioner

04:52Heller. Um I had a I had a point of

04:55clarification. Um in the application

04:58process uh in the application process

05:01the so we do allow the resolution to be

05:04passed by the community council and just

05:07to clarify once it is passed by the

05:09community council

05:11they do have to submit the

05:13the material which they have but they do

05:15not have to fill out the application

05:18uh additionally. It's just a community

05:21resolution passed with

05:23uh additional material um that's

05:25requested via the process but they do

05:27not have to complete the full

05:29application. I just want to clarify that

05:31process first and foremost.

05:32>> No so

05:33so neither one of these community

05:35councils submitted the proposal. We are

05:38required by the public naming code to

05:41solicit comments from community councils

05:44where a facility proposed for naming

05:46where it is located, we need to reach

05:49out to the community council and

05:52give them the opportunity to

05:54provide a recommendation or comments.

05:57And in this instance, we reached out to

05:59all three of the community councils that

06:02touch on the trail or within 1,000 ft of

06:04the trail. Two of the community councils

06:06submitted resolutions, the third one did

06:08not.

06:11Um

06:12So, there also the

06:15The application was submitted by Parks

06:17and Rec, and based on comments from

06:21members of the community, the family,

06:24uh the proposed

06:26they changed the proposed name to the

06:27Karen Bronga Chugach Foothills

06:29Connector. So, at this time, is there

06:31anybody here that wants to testify on

06:34this item, since we are continuing the

06:36public hearing? Please come forward,

06:38state your name, and you have 3 minutes.

06:45>> Karen

06:46I'm Karen Bronga's sister.

06:49Karen was a force of nature. She touched

06:51so many people in Anchorage. She was a

06:53champion for education and her students.

06:56She helped the homeless, and at the same

06:57time pushed to clean up our parks. She

07:00coached and mentored young athletes. She

07:02helped build trails in Anchorage.

07:05Not just the connector trail, but in our

07:07teens, our family helped build the

07:09Kincaid and the Northeast Russian Jack

07:11trails.

07:13Um

07:14since her death, I have received so many

07:17emails, and people come up to me and

07:20tell me, just random strangers, how

07:23Karen touched their lives. And because

07:26Tom and Karen were so instrumental in

07:28planning and building the connector

07:29trail, renaming it in her honor would be

07:32such a nice gesture for someone who

07:34worked so hard for this city.

07:36And

07:37I was going to talk about what you

07:39talked about about the 36-month

07:42rule, and I just would really ask you to

07:45please recommend advise the um

07:49the uh assembly to pass it earlier. Um

07:53because of the tragic and sudden

07:55circumstances of her death, I just

07:58really think it would be um

08:00a good thing for the assembly to do. Her

08:02passing really shook a lot of people and

08:04I think that renaming sooner than later

08:06would help us all heal.

08:09>> Thank you. Anybody else wishing to

08:11testify on this item?

08:14Please come forward state your name.

08:22>> Hi, my name is Rachel Dooley. Um

08:25Sorry, I'm not a good public speaker.

08:27Karen Brunger was my aunt and um I just

08:31wanted to touch on the

08:34change in what the name change was going

08:37to be. I know it had originally been

08:39proposed as the

08:41Karen Brunger Northeast Connector Trail.

08:43The reason that it was changed to what

08:47you guys have the most updated is

08:48because the signage that is already on

08:51the trails is listed as the Chugach

08:54Foothills Connector Trail, which is why

08:55it was changed to the Karen Brunger

08:58Chugach Foothills Connector Trail

09:00instead of the Karen Brunger Northeast

09:02Connector Trail. So, that's the

09:03reasoning for the name change there.

09:06Um

09:07and then on the note of the uh community

09:11councils that met, the Basher Community

09:14Council was the one where there was the

09:16vote um and it was actually I pulled it

09:18up on the

09:20probably the packet that you guys have

09:22and it was 23 in favor with zero

09:23opposition. So, I just wanted to let you

09:25guys know on that.

09:27Um

09:28but we

09:31as part of the family were honored by

09:33the fact that um

09:36people are wanting to do this and we

09:39really appreciate it. I think it's not

09:40only

09:41you know, very much appreciated by us,

09:43but also by the community. She was a

09:45large um

09:46a large presence not only in

09:49East Anchorage, but in Anchorage in

09:50general and she was a uh

09:53strong believer and supporter in access

09:55to trails for anyone and everyone and so

09:58I think that um

10:00her involvement in getting the trail

10:01made as well as just kind of, you know,

10:04the way she lived her life of advocating

10:06for

10:07healthy activities and access to for

10:09everyone. Um I think it is would be a

10:12great honor for her um and would help

10:16not only the family, but more

10:17importantly the community heal as well.

10:19Thank you.

10:21>> Thank you. Anybody else wishing to

10:22testify on this item?

10:25Anyone at all? Anyone at all? Seeing and

10:28hearing none, the public hearing is

10:29closed.

10:30Uh what's the will of the body?

10:35>> Commissioner Heller moves to approve the

10:37motion to name the Northeast Connector

10:40Trail after um

10:42after uh

10:44who we just spoke about.

10:46>> Um would

10:47>> After Kern.

10:48>> So, the revised application was the

10:50Karen Bronga Chugach Foothills Connector

10:53Trail. Is that what you're moving?

10:55>> Uh yes, I move to approve uh

10:57to I I approve the name change move to

11:00approve the name change to the Karen

11:01Bronga Chugach Foothills Connector

11:04Trail.

11:05>> Trail.

11:06>> All right. Uh can I get a second?

11:10Okay, any discussion?

11:14>> And

11:15I got question is I see in the Parks and

11:17Rec the Anchorage Parks and Recreation

11:19letter

11:20it just says that the change the

11:23proposed name to the Karen Bronga

11:25Chugach Foothills Connector. It does not

11:27say trail after it. I just want to

11:30clarify. Let me ask the author of the

11:32letter. So, Jen, was it did you intend

11:34to put trail in there?

11:49I think we can move.

11:54Okay, so

11:56through the No trail. So, Kevin, your

11:58original would be with no trail. Sorry.

12:03>> They can't hear it on Teams.

12:05>> The what?

12:05>> They can't hear it on Teams.

12:08>> Oh.

12:10>> Hi, this is Jennifer from Parks and

12:12Recreation, and we submitted a letter to

12:17revise our original submission, and the

12:20revision would be the Karen Bronga

12:23Chugach Foothills Connector.

12:25>> Okay, so you were correct.

12:27>> Thank you.

12:29>> So, is that what you're moving?

12:31>> Uh yes, I move to I move the motion to

12:34approve.

12:37>> Okay, and Aisha, is that what you're

12:40good with seconding that? All right,

12:41discussion.

12:44Jen.

12:46>> I was just going to say I really has

12:48have struggled with this one because of

12:51the 36 months.

12:53Um

12:54and part of me still wants to say no

12:57just so that people will show up at the

12:59assembly meeting.

13:00>> [laughter]

13:01>> Um but the 36-month thing is it has been

13:04a struggle for me, but I think I really

13:08like the name change. I like matching

13:10signs that are already created, so you

13:12don't have to do new signs.

13:14Um there's a lot of plusses on how much

13:17community support is behind this. I can

13:20see how they're pushing, you know, for

13:21it to be an exemption, but I I just

13:24wanted to go on the record that it's the

13:2636 months is a struggle for me cuz I I

13:28feel like that's what

13:30this group was set up to

13:33prevent our city from continuing to do

13:36our municipality from continuing to do.

13:38Um

13:39but I think one of the things that

13:42besides the

13:43overwhelming public support that I hope

13:45to see more of at the assembly level, um

13:49I think her

13:51uh being a project champion for this

13:53project makes pushes it over the edge

13:56for me.

13:57She's not just someone that had like

13:59I've never met her. I don't know her,

14:01but she obviously was a phenomenal

14:03person that really made a lot of

14:04connections with a lot of people.

14:07And besides just being an amazing person

14:09that they want to name something after,

14:11she was the one that was the project

14:14champion for this specific project. And

14:17that to me pushes it over the edge of me

14:20getting past my 36-month obstacle

14:23because it's not just someone that you

14:25love that you want to name a building

14:26after. She's the one that like made this

14:28trail come into existence.

14:31>> Thank you, Jen. Any other comments from

14:33commissioners?

14:35>> I'd like to echo the same reasoning that

14:37I'm moving the motion for approval that

14:39Jen has given that she was connected to

14:42this in a more instrumental way and

14:44actually the project lead for making it

14:46happen. So,

14:48I just wanted to echo Jennifer's

14:49sentiments and uh

14:52I know the camera's being fixed right

14:53now, but I do see the ceiling. I'm not

14:56sure if that needs to be fixed.

15:00>> All right. Any other comments from

15:01commissioners?

15:03>> Yes, this is Kuku speaking. I wanted to

15:07second what Jennifer was saying around

15:11the apprehension around 36 months.

15:15I am a fan of Karen Bronga's work. I

15:19have followed it as someone who's been

15:21in Anchorage for 8 years. Um

15:24and

15:27I I think the apprehension is again

15:29coming back to this commission was

15:32formed

15:34one of the first conversations we'd had

15:36was naming

15:38places after people

15:40and where those boundaries lie and

15:45I can see that we have a lot of honorary

15:49naming proposals on our docket currently

15:53and it just I think my concern is that

15:56we're falling into a place of naming

15:58things in in spaces and community spaces

16:02after people

16:03across the board. Um that does not mean

16:06that I'm not in support of of the name

16:09change. Um I just wanted to share my

16:12apprehension around the the

16:16trend or the pattern that's that's

16:18coming up. Um and

16:21yeah, I I think that those are my my

16:24sentiments.

16:25>> Thank you, Annie.

16:26Any other comments?

16:30I'll just make a couple comments. As I

16:31stated, we are not

16:36as a commission, we're not going to say

16:37that we support

16:39overriding the 36-month rule. We're

16:42we're just advising the assembly whether

16:44we believe that the facility should be

16:47named for the individual. It is entirely

16:50up to the assembly how they name it if

16:54they name. Um

16:57even if we vote down a proposal, we

17:00still have to send a memorandum to the

17:02assembly advising them that we didn't

17:05support a proposal and they can still

17:09name it if they want to. So, we advise

17:12the assembly they that the action they

17:15take is entirely up to them. I I I did

17:18want to comment I actually have helped

17:20draft this code.

17:22Uh it used to be 12 months in the old

17:24code. I was the one that pushed to put

17:2736 months in, but I think as Assembly

17:31Council Dean Gates pointed out at a

17:34recent meeting that he attended,

17:37uh the code also recognizes there are

17:38times when you will override, you know,

17:42the Assembly will override if they

17:44believe there are exceptional

17:46circumstances they can override that

17:48provision. And I will say I worked with

17:50Karen as ombudsman when she was on the

17:53Assembly. I was disappointed she didn't

17:55run for re-election. I enjoyed working

17:57with her. Uh she was, you know, a public

18:00school teacher, a passionate advocate

18:02for for uh East Anchorage where I lived

18:06in Chugach Foothills for several years.

18:09Um

18:09and so I personally will support this

18:12proposal.

18:14Um are there any other comments?

18:17I will entertain a motion

18:22from

18:23Kevin moved.

18:25Aisha seconded.

18:26Um

18:28so would you call the vote, please?

18:31Jasmine.

18:34>> Chair Harris.

18:35>> Yes.

18:36>> Vice Chair Harrison.

18:38>> Yes.

18:41>> Commissioner Gupta.

18:43>> Yes.

18:45>> Commissioner Heller.

18:46>> Yes.

18:48>> Commissioner Gilbert.

18:49>> Yes.

18:50>> That passes 5 to 0.

18:52>> All right, we will send a memorandum.

18:54Jasmine and I will prepare a memo and a

18:56packet to send to the Assembly.

18:59That brings us to our next item of

19:01business which is the continued public

19:03hearing for the proposal to rename Eagle

19:06River Commons Park. Uh

19:10I believe it's Pepplefield Park.

19:15Pepplefield Park.

19:17Um, we

19:18uh

19:20had uh you know, extensive documents to

19:22review at the last meeting.

19:25Um, the community council, Eagle River

19:27Community Council, I reached out to them

19:29three times. They declined to provide a

19:33uh

19:34um, any comments. Um, the

19:38Eagle River Parks and Recreation Board

19:41of Supervisors, which is the Parks and

19:43Recreation Authority for Eagle River,

19:46passed a resolution supporting it. And

19:49the Parks and Recreation Commission

19:52passed a resolution supporting the name

19:54change.

19:56Um, so I'm going to open the continued

19:59public hearing. If there's anybody here

20:01that wishes to testify on this item.

20:09>> Hello, I'm Patty Wilson on behalf of the

20:12Chugiak-Eagle River Historical Society,

20:14which is uh the sponsor and and

20:17submitted this petition. And I wanted to

20:20I

20:21thought that I was not the only one who

20:23had received um, something from the

20:26Eagle River Community Council. I thought

20:28it had gone

20:30>> I did not receive anything.

20:32>> Okay, well, I thought I had it in an

20:33email string, but um, I did um, take

20:37this to the um, Eagle River Community

20:40Council, received their their support in

20:43the meeting, and they followed with a

20:45letter. Should I

20:48>> Yes, provide it to Jasmine, please.

20:50>> Okay.

20:51>> So, the Eagle River Community Council

20:53supported the proposal.

20:54>> Yes. Yes, they did. They supported

20:58>> Thank you.

21:00I don't know how I didn't get that.

21:03>> Well, it's

21:04there's a lot of emails.

21:06>> [laughter]

21:06>> And I also wanted to submit um

21:10a document that the Historical Society

21:12did. It's called a brief history of

21:14Piples Field, just so that it would be

21:17in the record for the condition.

21:20And uh

21:27You did receive um

21:30the resolution from the

21:33the Eagle River Chugiak um

21:36Parks and Rec Board of Supervisors?

21:37Okay.

21:38>> Yeah, but they It's in our packet.

21:39>> don't know if I can get that. So

21:41>> No, it's in our packet and the

21:42resolution from the Parks and Rec

21:44Commission.

21:45>> Okay, great. Well, I just really would

21:48um

21:48I I think that this has wide support in

21:51the community and honors the early

21:54history of the area and the original

21:58purpose of that space. Um now it's a

22:01beautiful park where

22:03where kids play and people walk and um

22:07it's a very reminiscent of the the

22:11the former uses of it. After it stopped

22:14being a field, it became the first park,

22:17informal park, in the area. And uh I

22:20just uh we would the Chugiak-Eagle River

22:22Historical Society and the and

22:25members of the community would be very

22:27pleased if you would support this.

22:29>> Thank you.

22:30>> Thanks.

22:31>> Any other

22:33persons wishing to testify on this item?

22:37Anyone at all?

22:38Anyone at all?

22:40And hearing none, the public um

22:43hearing is closed. What's the will of

22:45the body?

22:49>> Um this is Jenny Jennifer Harrison. I'll

22:51make a move to

22:54change the park's name from Eagle River

22:56Town Square Park to

22:57>> It It's Eagle River Commons Park.

22:59>> Eagle River Commons Park. Oh, that's

23:00right. They submitted the one next to

23:02it. Okay, the Eagle River Commons Park

23:05to the Piples Field Park.

23:08>> All right. Any Can I get a second,

23:10please?

23:11>> Second.

23:11>> All right. Discussion.

23:15>> I did want to share that I have talked

23:17to several people from Eagle River that

23:19grew up there and they said everyone

23:22calls it that already. And that they've

23:24called it that like their whole lives.

23:26And so to me that is what I'm looking

23:29for in an application is for people to

23:31say, well, we already call it that.

23:33That's what everyone calls it and so

23:35let's make it official. Um so I was

23:38really um excited to hear that from

23:41long-time community members that grew up

23:43there.

23:44>> Any other commissioner comments?

23:49Well, I want to say 56 years ago, I

23:52remember playing football in Piples

23:55Field and we called it a park back then

23:57and we played baseball. I walked my

23:59parents' dogs there and I was always

24:02fascinated. I think it was Lee Jordan

24:05told me the story of the family and how

24:07they grew the vegetables and you know,

24:09they they moved there in the 1930s. It

24:12was uh it's a fascinating piece of local

24:15history in Eagle River and everybody

24:18does call it Piples Field. Um

24:21and

24:23the naming code does recognize that one

24:25of the things we need to look at is

24:27common usage.

24:29Um is it is it is something that people

24:32already call a location or call a

24:35an area or facility and in this case

24:39people, thousands of people, for decades

24:41have called it Piples Field. So I I'm

24:44going to support the proposal.

24:48Any other comments?

24:52All right.

24:53Uh could you call the

24:55the vote, please, Jasmine.

24:58>> Chair Harris.

24:59>> Yes.

25:00>> Vice Chair Harrison.

25:02>> Yes.

25:03>> Commissioner Gupta.

25:05>> Yes.

25:06>> Commissioner Heller.

25:08>> Yes.

25:09>> Commissioner Gilbert.

25:10>> Yes.

25:11>> That passes 5 to 0.

25:13>> Thank you.

25:14Um Jasmine will work on a

25:16memo and packet for the assembly. That

25:19brings us to our first new item of

25:22business, which is a public hearing on

25:23the proposal to name the Anchorage Water

25:26and Wastewater Utility Headquarters

25:28Building for the late Mark Primo. Um is

25:32there anyone

25:34here who wishes to testify on this item?

25:37Please come forward, state your name.

25:43>> Thank you. My My name is [clears throat]

25:45David Persinger and I'm the current

25:46general manager of Anchorage Water and

25:48Wastewater Utility. And I'm here today

25:50because of Mark Primo. I was hired as a

25:52intern, a student intern while I was

25:55going to school at UAA over 20 years ago

25:58and Mark Primo was the general manager

25:59then and his uh legacy and foresight for

26:03the utility has um

26:05really put the utility on a on the

26:07uh forefront in Alaska as well as as

26:09internationally and um

26:11wanted to give a little bit of a

26:12background on Mark. So, he he started

26:14out here in Alaska in the late 1980s and

26:17actually before he came to Anchorage

26:18Water and Wastewater Utility, he was

26:20very instrumental in uh working with uh

26:23the city on locating the Anchorage

26:25Regional Landfill, which is currently at

26:27its current location. They were trying

26:28to pick a a site for that and Mark was a

26:31very instrumental in that. He then moved

26:33into the Anchorage Water and Wastewater

26:34Utility as the engineering director and

26:36quickly became the general manager and

26:38was appointed by Mayor Fink. Um he was

26:41the longest-serving general manager at

26:43Anchorage Water and Wastewater Utility

26:44with over 20 years of service, six

26:46municipal administrations, and uh he

26:49really set the utility on the the path

26:51where we are today with uh his forward

26:54thinking, his strategy, looking at the

26:56big picture. He was always, you know,

26:58looking 10 years down the road, 20 years

27:00down the road. And not only for

27:02Anchorage Water and Wastewater Utility,

27:04which was was his baby for many years

27:06and the building that we are

27:09petitioning to get named after him was

27:11where he consolidated the the entire

27:13headquarters of the utility. He was also

27:15instrumental in purchasing our

27:17operations and maintenance campus over

27:18on King Street. What that allowed to do

27:20was the utility to consolidate into

27:22areas we had staff in in more or less

27:25one location, two two big facilities

27:27that that could better serve the public

27:29as well as being able to do our

27:30emergency response activities. Before we

27:32had our worm storage building, we had

27:34equipment parked outside. We had several

27:36instances where we weren't able to get

27:37equipment out and respond to

27:39emergencies. And so he saw that as a

27:40need and and set us on the right path

27:42for that. He also was very instrumental

27:44in setting us on a long-range financial

27:46trajectory, which is still in place

27:47today. Looking at our capital

27:49improvement programs and always making

27:51sure that that our rates are affordable

27:54and that they meet the needs of the

27:56community. Um

27:58in addition to that, Mark was really uh

28:00bigger than Alaska. We talk a lot about

28:03his his footprint within the the

28:04municipality of Anchorage as well as his

28:06work throughout the state of Alaska, but

28:07he was also involved in a lot of

28:09professional organizations like the

28:10American Water Works Association,

28:13Association of Metropolitan Water

28:14Agencies, Water Environment Federation,

28:17and the

28:18the international organization Water for

28:19People, which he was treasurer for for

28:21several years and went internationally

28:23to provide water and sewer services to

28:26underserved communities.

28:28Um

28:29wrapping up,

28:30Mark had a much larger than life legacy

28:33that is still being played out today.

28:36And we would be honored to name our

28:39headquarter quarters building at 3000

28:41Arctic as the AWU headquarter

28:44Mark C. Premo Headquarters Building.

28:46Thank you.

28:48>> All right. Thank you, Dave. Thank you,

28:49David. Anybody else wishing to testify

28:52on this item, please come forward.

29:02Please state your name.

29:04>> I'm Joseph Primo.

29:09And no prouder son.

29:12Uh just as I have, I'm sure that many of

29:14you have reviewed the 59 pages of

29:18letters of recommendation.

29:21>> [clears throat]

29:22>> Uh

29:23the names of I within those signatures

29:25are compelling enough.

29:27And the [clears throat] words written by

29:28those great many great people are even

29:29more compelling to say the least. They

29:31inform this commission of a great many

29:33deeds, titles, accomplishments, and

29:35awards of my father.

29:37They speak to his prowess as a

29:38charismatic business leader and his

29:40ability to to dissect large complex

29:42problems and come up with creative and

29:44practical solutions.

29:46They speak to his greatness.

29:48But I ask you,

29:50what is it to truly be great? Is it our

29:52accomplishments, accolades, strengths,

29:55merits, or is it merely the reputation

29:57that precedes us?

30:00Those all play into defining a man, but

30:01Mark was a lot more.

30:03There was courage to do what was right,

30:05to fall on his sword, refusing to give

30:07in to near-sighted political agendas

30:09that sought to undermine what he and his

30:10team built at AWU over his tenure of two

30:12decades,

30:14thus resigning his post.

30:16He and his people quite literally built

30:17the national golden standard for how

30:19municipal infrastructure-based

30:21departments should be run and operated.

30:25There was a devotion and actual love he

30:27held for his employees, of which I can

30:29personally attest that I saw I never saw

30:31him walk into a room or a job site and

30:34not know everyone's name

30:36and what their personal story was.

30:38He understood that this organization was

30:40only as good as its people.

30:42He made sure to know them all.

30:44And then there was his mentorship. To

30:46me, his son,

30:48this rings true above all others.

30:50He was wise beyond measure and a tech

30:52and as technically proficient as the

30:54best of them. When he saw potential in

30:56you, he understood that in order to

30:57unlock that meant unshackling the keeper

31:00of that potential, you.

31:02He would invest heavily both in time and

31:04effort. He did all this in earnest.

31:06His mission, your mission was his

31:08mission. Your fight was his. As long as

31:10you showed your effort and interest, he

31:12would match you lockstep. All the while,

31:15his intention was for you to succeed and

31:16surpass him in every way possible.

31:20The wards that he chose know of what I

31:22speak. I know [snorts] I'm not the only

31:24one here this evening.

31:27When the This is why 3000 Arctic

31:30deserves the name of Mark Charles above

31:31the doorway.

31:34>> [clears throat]

31:34>> When the dust of his generation settles

31:36and someone, perhaps a young engineer, a

31:38newly hired administrator,

31:40or his granddaughter, sees the name Mark

31:43Charles Primo above the door, they will

31:45ask, "Who was he?"

31:46We will remember and tell their stories.

31:49We will tell the inspirational leader

31:50and charismatic charismatic man that he

31:53was. And that he taught us everything we

31:55know.

31:56I will tell not of the only the greatest

31:58man I've ever known, but of the most

32:00decent, kindest, and most compassionate.

32:03His legacy written above those doors

32:05will embody what we should all strive to

32:06be.

32:07He will teach us as long as 3000 Arctic

32:09shall stand. Thank you for your time.

32:12>> Thank you.

32:13Anyone else wishing to testify on this

32:15item? Please come forward, state your

32:18name.

32:21>> Uh thank you. My name is Frank Rast. Uh

32:24I'm a retired civil engineer. Mark Primo

32:26hired me 43 years ago to come to Alaska.

32:30He was my friend and mentor. And I can't

32:32I could tell you an hour how much what I

32:35learned from Mark, but through through

32:37Mark, I was involved in the Clutina

32:39Pipeline Phase 3 project, the Clutina

32:41Water Treatment Plant, the Ship Creek

32:44Water Treatment Plant expansion,

32:46reservoirs.

32:47Mark transformed the water utility. He

32:50brought in the greatest people to

32:53transform that water utility and make it

32:55into the organization it is now.

32:57Uh

32:58without Mark, the water utility would

33:00still be in the dark ages. So, I think

33:03it's fitting the

33:04uh

33:05name the headquarters building after

33:06Mark and thank you for your time.

33:09>> Thank you. Anyone else willing to

33:11testify

33:12wishing to testify on this item? Please

33:14come forward, state your name.

33:17Last but not least.

33:19>> [laughter]

33:20>> I'll try and keep it short.

33:21>> All right, go ahead.

33:23>> Uh Mr. Chairman, members of the

33:25commission, my name is Tim Potter.

33:27I was a

33:29um

33:30city planner and development specialist

33:33at Dal Engineers for 40 years uh before

33:36I had a stroke and then retired.

33:39Um but

33:41Mark as everybody has said and

33:45has endorsed the idea uh in this

33:49document

33:50was

33:51so special and we were lucky to have him

33:56because as has been indicated, he set

33:59the tone and the direction of the

34:01utility

34:02in a great direction. He understood the

34:05importance of data

34:07in making decisions, in mapping, and

34:10accurately having access to that

34:12information.

34:15He also understood and knew and really

34:18promoted the utility

34:21as a municipal asset of the customers

34:24and the city itself

34:26and that approaching it that way as an

34:29asset that needed to be managed that way

34:33was the best way to maintain its

34:36sustainability well into the future.

34:39And

34:41you know, it doesn't seem like that

34:44should be such a mystery.

34:46But it was a huge transitional time as

34:50far as AW

34:51goes as far as I'm concerned.

34:54That

34:55that looking at the utility and its

34:58infrastructure

34:59and proposed improvement as an asset

35:02management system meant that you would

35:05repair, maintain, extend as appropriate

35:11for the needs of the city and the

35:14bankroll.

35:15If you simply put the pipes in the

35:17ground and let them rot

35:19then you get to replace them all

35:22at a much bigger price.

35:25And you have the downfalls that occur

35:27when say all the

35:31wood stave pipes in downtown fail

35:35uh and you basically have to shut down

35:38the downtown

35:40uh in the middle of winter trying to

35:42deal with that situation.

35:44And um he found a way to through a

35:47phased approach

35:49get that taken care of.

35:52And you'd replace the required pipes and

35:56infrastructure

35:58on a scheduled basis that made sense

36:02and allowed you to do it before the

36:04system failed.

36:07Lastly

36:09one of the most impressive things that

36:11anybody, an employee at AW,

36:14ever said to me

36:15is that you know, when it snowed or we

36:18had weather

36:20and the mayor and the state would

36:23announce that only essential personnel

36:26would need to be at work.

36:29Everybody,

36:31secretary, techs, everybody,

36:35believed, because Mark believed it, that

36:39they were essential personnel.

36:42And everybody stayed. Nobody left early

36:46on the days they would come in to work

36:49because they were essential part of the

36:52team. And Mark was amazing.

36:56As his son indicated, knowing

36:58everybody's name of the employees that

37:00work for him.

37:02And he he led

37:05by example.

37:07And I miss him very much. This is an

37:10appropriate honor

37:12uh to he, his family, and the city of

37:15the whole.

37:16Thank you.

37:21>> Thank you, Tim. Anybody else wishing to

37:23testify on this item?

37:26Anybody? Anyone at all? Seeing and

37:28hearing none,

37:29public hearing is closed. What is the

37:31will of the body?

37:42>> Um

37:43I'll I'll go ahead and make the motion.

37:45Let me make sure I say it right. To uh

37:47name the AWWA headquarters building

37:51after Mark C. Primo.

37:53Uh so it's now Mark C. Primo AWWA

37:56headquarters building.

37:59>> Can I get a second?

38:00>> Second.

38:01>> All right. Discussion.

38:06>> Um

38:07I just wanted to say that one of the

38:08things that I really appreciate reading

38:11about was the way that he knew all of

38:14his employees' names.

38:16And also that there's so many um

38:20long-term employees and

38:23um

38:23and national uh

38:26partners that that submitted letters.

38:29That just shows that he really cared

38:31about people and that people wanted to

38:33work for him long-term.

38:35And um Alaska is not an easy place to

38:39recruit engineers to and to encourage

38:41them to stay.

38:43And so to hear that uh he was successful

38:47at recruiting engineers here and

38:49convincing them to stay in Alaska and be

38:51part of his team. I never met the guy,

38:53but he sounds like he was a great guy.

38:55And so that's why I

38:57did the motion.

38:58>> All right. Any other commissioner

39:00comments?

39:03>> Just want to say I appreciate the uh

39:06one thing that stuck out to me

39:07um

39:09uh echoing Jen, but is uh it's what dads

39:11do and a man is only as good as his word

39:15and um

39:16think that's extremely true and it's uh

39:20it one thing that's nice about a lot of

39:21this is seeing the the history of how

39:23things have been brought up and uh

39:26again, as we kind of talked about with

39:27the connector trail, too. Um you know,

39:30it seems it seems that Mark was uh

39:33just super instrumental in building out

39:36the Anchorage wastewater um utility and

39:40and kind of expanding it kind of that

39:42project base and building it out and

39:43things like that. So um

39:45yeah, uh

39:47uh

39:48but great uh great submission.

39:51>> All right. Any other comments from

39:53commissioners?

39:57All right. I will say I first met Mark

39:59when I was president of the Fairview

40:01Community Council. Uh he impressed me

40:04then and then I worked with him.

40:06Uh I learned more about fog, fat, oil,

40:09and grease than I thought I would ever

40:12need to know and the stories of people

40:14throwing brooms and towels and bicycles

40:18into the pipes.

40:20Um

40:21in my day job as ombudsman, I deal with

40:24a lot of complaints from members of the

40:27public and I frequently interact with

40:29AWWU, but you would be surprised at the

40:32small number of complaints we receive

40:36regarding AWWU, and I believe that's

40:38directly related to Mark's leadership to

40:42the organization that he built over his

40:4521 years and his impact still affects

40:51AWWU to this day.

40:53Um so, I I personally will be supporting

40:55this proposal. Um

40:58Jasmine, can you call the for the vote,

41:00please?

41:03>> Chair Harris?

41:03>> Yes.

41:04>> Vice Chair Harrison?

41:06Yes. Commissioner Gupta?

41:08>> Yes.

41:09>> Commissioner Heller?

41:11>> Yes.

41:12>> Commissioner Gilbert?

41:13>> Yes.

41:13>> That passes 5 to 0.

41:15>> Thank you. Thank you for coming to

41:16testify. Jasmine, you and I can prepare

41:19a memo and a packet to send to the

41:21assembly. So, when we recommend these,

41:24the way it works, we will send them to

41:27the assembly. They will calendar them on

41:30a consent agenda for introduction and

41:33then they can't hold their public

41:35hearing any sooner than 21 days after

41:37introduction. So, if we get these to the

41:40assembly for the November 4th meeting,

41:43then they would schedule a public

41:44hearing in December.

41:47Um that brings us to our final item of

41:50new business, which is a proposal to

41:53name the Anchorage Assembly Chambers for

41:56the late Dick Traini. Um

42:00is there anybody here who wishes to

42:03testify on this item? Please come

42:06forward, state your name for the record.

42:20>> And we're not going to hold you to 3

42:21minutes, Sandy.

42:22>> [laughter]

42:23>> I appreciate that. But I could go on for

42:26a long time if I

42:29go on.

42:31Mr. Chair and members of the Naming

42:33Commission,

42:34>> Is your microphone on?

42:35>> [clears throat]

42:38>> Okay.

42:40>> All right, is this

42:41better?

42:43Can you hear me better now?

42:45>> Can you move it closer to possibly

42:48>> Maybe it's my short

42:49>> Yeah.

42:51>> Okay.

42:52So, Mr. Chair and members of the Naming

42:55Commission, I'm

42:57Thank you for the opportunity to come

42:59and and honor that is being proposed for

43:01my deceased husband,

43:04Dick Traini. When we first moved from

43:07mid to midtown,

43:10uh we attended the community council

43:12meeting, our first being there, and we

43:14were a little surprised to see a

43:16proposal that would uh

43:19take um

43:20a road into two neighborhoods from Lake

43:23Otis to go out to Tudor to avoid the

43:25Tudor-Lake Otis

43:27um intersection, which was not It was

43:30one way each way at that time.

43:33And so we got involved Dick got involved

43:36in that and he ended up for as a chair

43:38of the community council for

43:40some years.

43:42And he

43:44just got involved and um he was well

43:46educated to be to be involved. He had a

43:49bachelor in political science, he had a

43:51master's in public administration, and a

43:53professional cert- certificate

43:55certificate of planning. So, he had the

43:59knowledge and the

44:01work ethics that he wanted to do to um

44:05make our city make the municipality

44:07better

44:08and

44:11people urged him to run for it for the

44:13assembly. And when he was elected, he

44:16worked hard. He did a lot of research on

44:19on

44:21ordinances. One in particular that I

44:23remember, he spent months doing this. It

44:26was on the drunk driving law, which at

44:28the time when it was passed from the

44:29assembly, it was the toughest law in the

44:32nation.

44:33And he'd spend a lot of time contacting

44:36cities to see how they worked their

44:38their drunk driving ordinances and how

44:42what's going to be improved or or what

44:45they saw that that

44:47worked and didn't work and it took a

44:50a good time for him doing it. He's the

44:53one that did the research. I'm sure he

44:55had assembly staff doing helping too,

44:57but he did a lot. I can remember him

44:58calling and talking to people and he

45:00printed out all these ordinances or

45:03these laws that had been passed in other

45:04cities.

45:05And

45:07that was how he took his job as as an

45:10assembly member.

45:13He [clears throat] researched and

45:14studied. He did quite a variety of

45:19of things and some of them came from

45:21neighbors, a mom calling to say we need

45:23this.

45:28Seeing things around

45:31as a list of some of the things he did.

45:34City anti-stalking law.

45:37Under law

45:39um

45:41preventing

45:43underage dance, which was a phone call

45:45from a mom that hey, what can we do? My

45:4716-year-old daughter's doing this and I

45:51can't can't do anything.

45:54Youth court.

45:55Um

45:57soliciting prostitutes from automobiles.

46:00Uh

46:02tougher penalties for uninsured and

46:04unlicensed drivers,

46:06um

46:08and when he was there, they made another

46:10community council, Midtown Community

46:12Council, which wasn't in existence then.

46:15Uh he did Americans

46:18Disability Commission, off-leash dog

46:22parks, and that one's kind of

46:23interesting. Um

46:25he'd gone to San Diego for a conference

46:28for for assembly,

46:30and they'd been talking about dog parks,

46:32and there was a lot of controversy both

46:33ways on that. And he visited a dog park,

46:36and he came back, and they wrote it an

46:38ordinance, and it passed in 2 weeks.

46:40Um

46:42so he

46:43he did quite a variety of different

46:44things. Abbott Loop Community Park and

46:46ball fields,

46:48uh laws pertaining to carbon monoxide

46:50detectors, tobacco tax to

46:55use um

46:56to discourage tobacco use by minors,

46:59uh second hand smoke in workplaces,

47:01expanding time for veterans to

47:03to obtain their disability exemption,

47:06um

47:08the list would go on and on.

47:10Um

47:12he served as a chair for many years,

47:15and sometimes the the

47:19it had been a

47:20kind of a thing that you would serve for

47:221 year. Well, at least several times I

47:24know he served for 2 or 3 years that.

47:26And he

47:28he liked that. He had the time for it.

47:30Um

47:31he works came down and and spent a lot

47:34of time here every day,

47:36and

47:37he one of the things that he really

47:39strongly believed in was that working

47:41with everybody.

47:43And a lot of people have commented to to

47:46me

47:47and the family over time that um

47:50he doesn't look at

47:52um

47:53people what party they belong to and

47:55all. It's supposed to be part

47:56nonpartisan, and that's how he treated

47:59it. He worked with

48:01people and

48:04no matter where they're at, and

48:07he didn't let that stop.

48:09In fact, um one thing that I one of my

48:12sons remembered cuz he was there with

48:13it, uh assembly

48:16person,

48:17they were talking about um getting um

48:21uh

48:21>> [clears throat]

48:24>> the um

48:26Oh, I lost my

48:27word.

48:28>> [laughter]

48:29>> Um

48:30getting fit uh tasers for the police

48:32department, and one of his fellow

48:34assembly members said she would not do

48:35that

48:36unless she saw it done in in person, and

48:39so

48:40he

48:41was tased by the police department, and

48:43she agreed that was a vote they needed

48:45to pass to get tasers for the police

48:46department that they really wanted.

48:50Um he [clears throat] one of the strong

48:52things he

48:53really felt is that everybody

48:56should be able to testify. They take

48:58their time to come out and testify, and

49:00there was one ordinance that was very

49:02controversial at the time, and they did

49:04>> [laughter]

49:05>> I'm sure you remember that.

49:07They did weeks of testimony.

49:10If they wanted to talk,

49:13he felt that they should honor their

49:14talking and and let them have their say

49:18in what they wanted, and that's I think

49:20was his whole

49:22idea in both working with other assembly

49:24members and with the public. He was very

49:27thought the public policy is very

49:28important, and

49:32comment I often heard when when people

49:34would comment to me

49:36throughout the years is that he

49:38he was very polite when he talked as

49:41assembly chair, and I think as assembly

49:43member, too, that

49:45he wanted them to talk

49:47because they want they took their time

49:49and effort and

49:50part of the public process.

49:53Um

49:54>> [clears throat]

49:54>> and I

49:56think that um

49:58as I was listening on the other naming

50:00things that he put a lot of time

50:03my

50:04um children remember a lot of time uh

50:07being at the assembly when a particular

50:09spent a lot of times in the back

50:11[laughter] room.

50:12And

50:14would uh even times she was little she

50:16would remember we'd go down the road,

50:18"Oh, that's a zoning exemption." You

50:21know, "Zoning violation." And she would

50:22remember things that So, they grew up

50:24with this and when we were talking as a

50:27family and planning

50:29my husband's funeral and

50:31the celebration of life

50:33they remembered that and they had good

50:36They Somebody asked him, "Well, how did

50:38you feel?" He said, "That was our life.

50:40We We didn't take it for granted for

50:42anything else." And

50:43you know, he would

50:45um the kids would be out in public with

50:47him and he'd they'd get a little

50:49deterred

50:50deterred for um their time was uh

50:53going because people would stop and talk

50:56to them and tell them the things they

50:58liked. Neighbors would drop in the house

51:00and he respected everybody and he

51:02um

51:04worked on a lot of

51:06a lot of uh

51:08issues that people brought to him that

51:10it and they

51:11found that they were important to them.

51:14And so, I think this the time that he

51:16spent was

51:18seems like a lifetime of of

51:21Yes, for sure many years between the uh

51:24community council and then um

51:27the Assembly and we moved to the valley

51:31a few years ago

51:33because our children moved there.

51:35And our grandchildren, we have out of

51:38our eight children we have five in the

51:39valley and one in Anchorage, but in

51:42order to uh

51:44be part of that uh we moved in. He got

51:46involved, too. He remembered that, uh,

51:49when he was on the assembly, they made

51:50two positions for, uh,

51:53valley people to be on the port

51:55commission. And so, up to the time that

51:57he had a stroke, he was attending the

51:59port commission meetings and was

52:01involved in our local community council

52:03still. There are so, I think it would be

52:06a good way to honor his legacy and

52:10and be an example of his life that he

52:13did as his public servant to let

52:16everyone

52:17work together and have their time to

52:19speak.

52:22>> Thank you, Sandy.

52:24Anybody else wish to testify on this

52:27item?

52:34>> Thank you. I'm Rick Traini. Thank you,

52:36um, Chairman and Commissioners. I just

52:38wanted to speak on, you know, behalf of

52:40my family in support,

52:43urgent support for this, uh, resolution

52:45for my father.

52:46Uh, you know, my mom did a a

52:48great job, you know, recounting some of

52:50his time on the assembly and and I don't

52:53want to recap that. I I do want to speak

52:56though to,

52:57my perspective of my father was that he

53:00wasn't a politician.

53:02He was a policy maker. He cared about

53:04policy. He cared about good policy.

53:07And it didn't matter, you know, as

53:08people have said, whether, you know, you

53:10were Republican or a Democrat, the

53:12assembly is not partisan and I believe

53:15that he exemplified

53:17that approach, which is consistent with

53:19the municipality's charter.

53:21And he spent the better part of, you

53:24know, 40 years in in assembly chambers

53:28and, uh, was the chairman

53:30many times and, um, you know, when the

53:33assembly, you know, honored my father

53:34after his passing, there's a lot of

53:36testimony, um, from assembly members

53:38that, you know, he modeled how to be a

53:40chairman, how to be [clears throat]

53:42involved, how to listen to constituents,

53:45how to

53:46you know, as my mom said, extend the

53:47hearing, you know, multiple weeks. I I

53:51don't believe anybody could come forward

53:52and say, you know, my dad made them feel

53:55less that when um they testified. And

53:58that was very important to him.

54:01And I I think it's appropriate

54:03that he modeled behavior that, you know,

54:06I would expect, you know, from you know,

54:09citizens representing, you know, the

54:11Anchorage districts and communities and

54:14um

54:16I think that example of how to be

54:18nonpartisan, how to work across the

54:20aisle, how to make policy at that first

54:23level that affects people's homes and

54:26schools and police and security and

54:28education. I think that's important and

54:31I know that there is a

54:33you know, a 3-year requirement and I

54:35mean, I appreciate your consideration of

54:37this and consideration of

54:40you know, what he did and I think it

54:42would be a fitting

54:43memorial to my father that um

54:47there are, you know, and people do um

54:50come from communities and they do care

54:52about the communities and that type of

54:55uh character [snorts]

54:56and behavior is is I think is what I

54:59believe should be modeled and and and

55:01you as a commission can send that

55:03message as well that you know, this is

55:05what we want as a representative

55:07democracy from, you know, community and

55:09community people and how to represent

55:12the citizens of Anchorage.

55:15>> Thank you, Rick.

55:16Anybody else willing to

55:18wishing to testify?

55:20Tim, come forward and state your name.

55:24>> My name is Tim Potter.

55:26Um I didn't know this was on the agenda.

55:29Um

55:30but

55:31seeing it on the agenda, I felt I needed

55:33to say because as the assembly and

55:37Dick indicated uh when I retired that I

55:41had probably set the record for sitting

55:45through more Assembly public hearings

55:48than anyone in town.

55:51And with that knowledge

55:54and I I don't disagree with him. I did.

55:58He

55:59was a non-political

56:03extremely

56:05active and focused person.

56:08And the general public has no clue how

56:12much time

56:14a good Assembly person spends

56:18focusing on issues, dealing with

56:22constituents and the general public, the

56:25administration

56:27on issues.

56:29Whether you liked it or not, you had to

56:32respect him

56:34because he respected you.

56:37And he was fair. He listened.

56:41That's all I could ask and want of an

56:44Assembly person as I was getting

56:47projects through the city.

56:51I will say that

56:55in looking back over time

56:57he was likely the most effective

57:00[snorts] chairperson of the Anchorage

57:02Assembly

57:04that I ever witnessed.

57:07Um he ran a good meeting.

57:10He kept people on task.

57:13He let people speak.

57:15He went out of his way to be fair

57:18but also called people out that weren't

57:22playing

57:24by the rules.

57:26And

57:27um we actually

57:29when he ran a meeting, the meeting got

57:32done

57:33and it usually went very well and people

57:37got their chance to speak

57:39and were heard.

57:41I think that this is a very appropriate

57:44memorial for Dick Traini.

57:47Um

57:48so that when I go back to the Assembly

57:51Chambers, which I don't do as anywhere

57:53near as much as I used to, I usually

57:56watch it online,

57:58but to see his name on the wall or the

58:01door

58:02over Assembly Chambers,

58:04um it would definitely make me feel good

58:07because more than anyone that served on

58:11the Assembly over the 40 years that I

58:13was actively involved on almost a daily

58:17basis,

58:18he exudes what we would want

58:22any Assembly member

58:24to do and and do that job.

58:27Uh thank you.

58:31>> Thank you, Tim. Anybody else will

58:33wishing to testify on this matter?

58:35Senator Gray-Jackson, welcome.

58:37>> Thank you.

58:38Um thank you, Mr. Chairman and

58:40commission members for this opportunity.

58:43And I also want to thank you for

58:44providing my um notes from my form that

58:47I submitted cuz it's going to make it

58:48easy. I'm just going to read them.

58:50Dick Traini's service to the

58:52Municipality of Anchorage represents an

58:53extraordinary chapter in the history of

58:55our local government. Naming the

58:57Anchorage Assembly Chambers the Dick

58:59Traini Assembly Chambers would

59:01permanently recognize a public servant

59:03whose decades of leadership,

59:05institutional knowledge, and commitment

59:07to the people of Anchorage helped shape

59:08both the Assembly and the community it

59:10serves.

59:12Dick came to Alaska in 1971 while

59:14serving in the United States Air Force

59:15and made Anchorage his home. Before

59:18seeking elected office, he became deeply

59:20involved in his neighborhood, serving

59:22for eight years as president of the

59:23Campbell Park Community Council. That

59:26community level service reflected an

59:28approach he carried throughout his

59:29public life.

59:31Government works best when elected

59:33officials remain accessible and

59:35connected to the people they represent.

59:37Dick was first elected to the Anchorage

59:39Assembly in 1991.

59:41Over several periods of service spanning

59:43nearly three decades, he served a

59:45combined 19 years on the assembly,

59:48making him the longest-serving assembly

59:50member in Anchorage history.

59:52His colleagues repeatedly entrusted him

59:55with leadership of the body, elected him

59:57as assembly chair five times. He served

1:00:00as chair during portions of the 1990s,

1:00:032000s, and 2010s, giving him a unique

1:00:06role in the evolution of Anchorage

1:00:08municipal government.

1:00:09His influence extended far beyond the

1:00:12number of years he held in office. Dick

1:00:14was known for his command of municipal

1:00:16government, his respect for the

1:00:18legislative process, and his ability to

1:00:20work with colleagues who held different

1:00:22political perspectives. He understood

1:00:25that the assembly chambers belonged to

1:00:27the public, and that every person who

1:00:28came before the body deserved the

1:00:30opportunity to be heard and treated with

1:00:32respect. And I can't think of anybody

1:00:37in Anchorage or in this state more

1:00:39deserving of having [clears throat]

1:00:40their name on the

1:00:43on the assembly chambers. So, I'm

1:00:45hopeful that this board will support

1:00:47that effort. Thank you again for the

1:00:49opportunity.

1:00:50>> Thank you, Senator Gray-Jackson. Anybody

1:00:53else wishing to testify on this matter?

1:00:56Anyone at all?

1:00:58Anyone seen and hearing none, the public

1:01:01hearing is closed. What is the will of

1:01:03the body?

1:01:12>> Hi, this is Commissioner Heller. Um

1:01:14I, for myself, I vote to approve the

1:01:19assembly chambers renaming as the Dick

1:01:21Traini Assembly Chambers.

1:01:23>> So, are you introducing a making a

1:01:26motion?

1:01:27>> Uh yes, I apologize. I motion.

1:01:30>> Can I get a second?

1:01:34All right. Isa seconded. Any discussion?

1:01:42>> I just wanted to clarify it has not been

1:01:4536 months, right?

1:01:47>> No.

1:01:48That was going to be my next question.

1:01:50>> So, I will make some comments. I

1:01:54need to

1:01:55compose myself here.

1:01:57I first met Dick

1:01:59when I was

1:02:01president of the Fairview Community

1:02:03Council.

1:02:04At that time, Downtown District had one

1:02:07assembly member. We felt a little

1:02:08cheated, but we knew with Dick, we

1:02:11actually had a second assembly member.

1:02:13And he always would tell me that he was

1:02:16Fairview's second assembly member.

1:02:19He worked extensively with our council.

1:02:22And at the time, Sandy was teach

1:02:24uh special education teacher at Fairview

1:02:27Elementary School. Taught there for many

1:02:29years, so they were very involved in my

1:02:32community, my neighborhood. And later, I

1:02:34was hired by Mayor Begich to work for

1:02:38the city. And in 2012, I became the

1:02:41municipal ombudsman, uh which is part of

1:02:44the legislative branch. And technically,

1:02:46my my boss was Dick. And I think he

1:02:50reappointed me two or three times. But

1:02:53what I really appreciated about Dick was

1:02:58as others have said, he was not a

1:03:00politician. He was a public servant. And

1:03:03with him, it wasn't about power or

1:03:06authority or it was about making a

1:03:10positive difference in this community.

1:03:13And I know he worked with our community

1:03:14council, he and Allan Tesche, which was

1:03:17a unique partnership. And then he had a

1:03:19partnership with Elvi Gray-Jackson later

1:03:22on. And And you know, I would say with

1:03:24those two partnerships, he managed to

1:03:26make some tremendous differences in this

1:03:28community. Uh he and Allan, with help

1:03:31from the community council, crafted AMC

1:03:348.80, which is excessive uh police

1:03:37responses that we used to help get rid

1:03:40of some terrible uh absentee landlords

1:03:43in Fairview. He uh the the uh smoking

1:03:47ban in public places. And more

1:03:49importantly, I remember personally a

1:03:51story. I remember Dick and Elvi standing

1:03:55right over there where Senator Jack

1:03:56Gray-Jackson is sitting now in September

1:03:592015

1:04:01when he signed the equal rights

1:04:03ordinance adding gender identity and

1:04:05sexual orientation as protected classes

1:04:08under Title 5. And he used four pens to

1:04:11sign it, and he handed out three of

1:04:12them. And I think I was sitting there

1:04:14looking kind of pathetic, and he tossed

1:04:17me the fourth pen that I have framed

1:04:18[snorts] on my office wall to this day.

1:04:21So, I don't think people realize, most

1:04:27members of the public, how much of their

1:04:30everyday lives in the municipality are

1:04:34shaped to this day by a lot of the work

1:04:37that Dick did with, you know, some of

1:04:39his colleagues like Allan Tesche and

1:04:41Elvi Gray-Jackson. And

1:04:44when you think about it, when he finally

1:04:47left the assembly, I think it was in

1:04:482019,

1:04:50um

1:04:52the municipality had only existed for 43

1:04:54years, and he had served nearly 20 of

1:04:56those 43 years as a member of the

1:04:58assembly. And um

1:05:03I have always been grateful for his

1:05:05friendship and his leadership and his

1:05:08mentorship. And what I really

1:05:10appreciated about Dick, he knows how

1:05:12hard my job can be some days as

1:05:14ombudsman. You know, when people

1:05:16threaten to kill you or yell at you or

1:05:18cuss and swear at you or the

1:05:20administration, you're on their bad

1:05:22side, and he would come by the office

1:05:24and sit down and say, "How are you

1:05:26doing? Are you okay? Do you need

1:05:29anything?" And I knew that he really

1:05:31meant that. For Dick,

1:05:34what was important to him was faith,

1:05:37family, friends,

1:05:39public service, and his gun collection.

1:05:42So, um personally, I think this is

1:05:46uh and I will note that it's not naming

1:05:50the building or an entire building after

1:05:52him, it's naming an interior feature,

1:05:55which is one of the preferred

1:05:57uh

1:05:58things policies in the public naming

1:06:00code is to name interior features. And I

1:06:04I would love to see the chambers named

1:06:07for Dick, so that when people, young

1:06:09people, in the future come in and they

1:06:12read his story and they learn about him,

1:06:15uh they will have an understanding of

1:06:17how one person's public service can

1:06:20impact an entire community.

1:06:29Any other comments?

1:06:32All right.

1:06:34Go ahead.

1:06:35>> I I feel like I should make this comment

1:06:37before we do the votes. Um

1:06:41I would really like to see more

1:06:44um

1:06:46come out about him, and I feel that if

1:06:49I vote no because of the 36 months,

1:06:53that it will encourage uh more

1:06:56discussion about him and more stories

1:06:58shared about him when this goes

1:07:00uh to the assembly. And so, I just

1:07:02wanted to, I guess,

1:07:04explain why uh when it comes around

1:07:07why I'm

1:07:08cuz I I think it will pass anyway. I

1:07:10think the assembly will pass it, but I

1:07:13would just like to see more stories uh

1:07:15come out about him and um more letters

1:07:18and just more more in the record so that

1:07:2143 years from now people will know why

1:07:24it's why it's named after him.

1:07:26>> So, the assembly will hold a public

1:07:29hearing.

1:07:30And once again, I just want to remind

1:07:32you we're not

1:07:33we're commenting on whether or not we

1:07:36believe the facility should be named for

1:07:40somebody, not how the assembly does the

1:07:43naming or whether they name it. That is

1:07:45entirely up to them. So, the 36-month

1:07:48rule, if it's up to them whether or not

1:07:51they name by resolution or they name by

1:07:53ordinance. So, we're not commenting on

1:07:56that when we make the recommendation.

1:07:59We're just commenting on whether the

1:08:01case has been made to name or not. Uh

1:08:05any other comments?

1:08:08>> Uh Jennifer, uh this is Commissioner

1:08:10Heller. Jennifer, does that

1:08:13change your potential

1:08:17vote? Uh the only reason I ask is

1:08:19because I

1:08:22I I know that we're making a

1:08:23recommendation. Like for example, I I

1:08:25personally believe that the assembly

1:08:27chamber should be named after him. Um

1:08:30I I think it's a I think it's great. So,

1:08:32what I'm hearing though, just to

1:08:33clarify, is that we're making a

1:08:35recommendation for it to be named, but

1:08:38we're not actually making determination

1:08:41for the 36 months. And that's actually

1:08:43up to the assembly if they choose to

1:08:45waive the 36 months or not. That's not

1:08:48us saying that we recommend that it

1:08:49doesn't because of the 36-month rule.

1:08:51We're saying that we recommend it gets

1:08:53changed, and then the assembly's the one

1:08:55who's actually deciding on that.

1:08:59Is that correct?

1:08:59>> Correct. And in the memo that in the

1:09:01packet that goes to the assembly for

1:09:03this proposal and for the Karen Bronga

1:09:06proposal, we will point out that we are

1:09:10not recommending

1:09:12how the assembly names it is entirely up

1:09:14to the assembly. That is not our role.

1:09:19>> So, Jennifer, if I could ask for maybe

1:09:22some more clarification on that part.

1:09:26From from you if you have more insight.

1:09:29>> Sure.

1:09:30I just um

1:09:33I just don't feel like the case has been

1:09:35made. I feel like

1:09:38um

1:09:38I mean, I just feel like there could be

1:09:40more community council support for this

1:09:44for this body that represents the whole

1:09:46city.

1:09:48Um it's not just a park in one

1:09:50neighborhood. It This This room This

1:09:53assembly chambers represents the entire

1:09:55city. Um and I just feel like there

1:09:58could be a stronger case.

1:10:01>> But,

1:10:02our code says that we only

1:10:05contact, reach out, and ask for an

1:10:08opinion for our feedback from the

1:10:10community council where the facility is

1:10:12located, and the Midtown Community

1:10:14Council did support it. So, I did not

1:10:17reach out to any other community

1:10:18councils because the code doesn't

1:10:20require it. But, at the assembly's

1:10:22public hearing when they hold a hearing,

1:10:25other community councils could

1:10:26potentially weigh in if they choose to.

1:10:29But, we are not required to reach out to

1:10:31any other community council.

1:10:39>> Um hi, this is Kuku speaking here. I

1:10:42again, but do we do we see the the issue

1:10:46that that Jen's bringing up is that the

1:10:48space is

1:10:52I understand that it's not in our code.

1:10:55But, does it really I mean, at point I

1:10:58feel like it really doesn't matter as

1:11:00much of whether

1:11:04>> [snorts]

1:11:06>> whether we are fully convinced

1:11:10on the naming of this very public

1:11:14Anchorage wide space.

1:11:17Um

1:11:21Yeah, I'm actually

1:11:24not sure where I'm going with this, but

1:11:26I just I just wanted to validate I guess

1:11:29or second um Jen's note about getting a

1:11:33little more support from Anchorage wide

1:11:37community members about this. And I also

1:11:39acknowledge Daryl that at the public

1:11:42hearing when the assembly does have it,

1:11:45that there will be other people. Um but

1:11:49at this point I'm just not not not clear

1:11:51as to then what is

1:11:56I don't know.

1:11:58I guess I'm yeah.

1:12:00Thank you for your time.

1:12:07>> I will also note that this hearing was

1:12:09publicly noticed

1:12:11in multiple locations and if other

1:12:13community councils had desired to weigh

1:12:15in, they could have.

1:12:16Um

1:12:21Can I get a motion?

1:12:25Okay.

1:12:26Um

1:12:27Jasmine, call the vote, please.

1:12:30>> Chair Harris.

1:12:31>> Yes.

1:12:32>> Vice Chair Harrison.

1:12:34>> No.

1:12:35>> Commissioner Gupta.

1:12:39>> Yes.

1:12:41>> Commissioner Heller.

1:12:44>> No.

1:12:46>> Commissioner Gilbert.

1:12:47>> Yes.

1:12:49>> That passes three to two.

1:12:51>> Thank you.

1:12:52That concludes our business for the

1:12:55evening. Now it's we'll go to member

1:12:58comments.

1:13:05>> I guess I just wanted to share

1:13:08um

1:13:11your comment that you made earlier about

1:13:14being concerned that all four of our

1:13:17election um are all people.

1:13:21Um

1:13:21I I really hope that uh other

1:13:25other proposals come our way that have

1:13:28more names uh that aren't just people

1:13:31cuz I I am concerned about the trend.

1:13:34Um

1:13:35and I'm not sure if later we should have

1:13:37a work session about how to encourage

1:13:40more in involvement, I guess, in the

1:13:43naming of things.

1:13:44>> I appreciate that. The good news is in

1:13:46November we'll be having a public

1:13:48hearing holding a public hearing for

1:13:49proposal that doesn't include anyone's

1:13:52name.

1:13:56>> Mm

1:13:57>> [clears throat]

1:14:00>> Yeah, I wouldn't mind having a I

1:14:02wouldn't mind uh

1:14:03referring this to maybe more of a I I

1:14:07wouldn't mind referring this maybe more

1:14:08to a committee

1:14:10conversation or like thinking a little

1:14:12harder about it because I

1:14:15uh

1:14:17Again, I for myself I I understand why

1:14:20it went from 12 to 36, but at the same

1:14:22time I'm kind of like

1:14:24does it really need to be 36 or should

1:14:26it go back to a lesser time uh frame for

1:14:30like a year and things like that? So, um

1:14:33I think uh

1:14:35I think getting the clarification that

1:14:37it's the assembly making decision

1:14:40does help, but I think that there's also

1:14:44like the honoring the spirit of like

1:14:47what was put forward prior but I'm not

1:14:49I'm also opening I'm also open to like

1:14:51reopening that conversation up and

1:14:53talking through maybe things maybe need

1:14:55to shift again cuz that's a you know

1:14:57we're constantly changing and that's

1:14:59what we need to kind of evaluate so I'm

1:15:01open to having that larger of a

1:15:03conversation as a kind of smaller group.

1:15:08>> All right, any other comments?

1:15:14Any

1:15:16public comments? Any comments from

1:15:18members of the public?

1:15:22Miss Hodge Growden, come on down.

1:15:27Welcome.

1:15:32>> Hodge Growden.

1:15:33I just wanted to say thank you.

1:15:40Okay, I'm Celeste Hodge Growden

1:15:43and I just want to publicly say once

1:15:45again thank you for moving in this

1:15:48direction.

1:15:50Dick Traini, as I've shared and will

1:15:53continue to say

1:15:55has done more

1:15:58for Alaska, not just Anchorage. He is

1:16:02the rock for so many and for so many

1:16:05communities and so

1:16:08I'm excited

1:16:10and I am hopeful and again I just say

1:16:13thank you.

1:16:15>> Thank you, Celeste. Any other members of

1:16:17the public want to comment?

1:16:23Seeing and hearing none, can I get a

1:16:24motion to adjourn?

1:16:30Second?

1:16:31>> Then I'll second.

1:16:32>> Any opposition?

1:16:33Seeing and hearing none, we are

1:16:35adjourned. Thank you.

1:16:38>> Thank you.

1:16:40>> Thanks, everyone. Have a wonderful

1:16:41evening.