Mat-Su Borough Assemblymember Rob Yundt has announced his candidacy for State Senate. Yundt ran unopposed and was just reelected to the Borough Assembly in fall 2023.
He has built a successful homebuilding business in the Mat-Su Valley. His Senate platform focuses on a variety of issues, including educational opportunities, hunting protections, and economic development. Except fish passage upgrades, his voting record and actions show support for development over natural resources.
Only after significant public pushback did Yundt support a review of the waterbody setback requirements through establishment of a Board. Initially, Yundt supported a reduction in those requirements without further review. Seven of the nine members of that Board are from the development community.
During the months-long waterbody setback discussions, Yundt was penalized in 2023 for Clean Water Act violations for his construction activity on two private parcels in the Wasilla area. After not correcting the issues, the Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, fined Yundt and his company $107,000.
Despite significant public outcry, he voted in support of a gravel ordinance that would have left public comment out of the process. It also would allow significantly more gravel to be extracted before triggering a permit. That legislation was immediately vetoed by Mayor Edna DeVries.
During an interview for Must Read Alaska Show, Yundt says he’s proud that the Borough has now built schools without taking on debt. He also says he was responsible for introducing legislation supporting term limits for Assembly members and the mayor. Borough voters overwhelmingly supported that legislation during the November election. He supports lowering the Borough mill rate and claims responsibility for the lowest one in years. He also says he prioritizes Alaskan businesses over out-of-state businesses.
Yundt continues to support the West Sustina Access Road, despite the Borough’s own surveys showing public pushback on the project. The full Access Road would support non-Alaskan and non-U.S. mining interests and would cost more than $450 million. The first 15 miles that would be built by the state would cost taxpayers $82.5 million.
Leading with inaccurate information about free transfer sites that don’t exist, Yundt convinced other Assembly members that free landfill days would make the program more fair. The free landfill days cost the Borough $890,000, which will now be paid through higher transfer site and landfill fees.
Should Yundt beat incumbent David Wilson in the Senate primary and go on to win the Senate seat, the District 4 Assembly seat would be open. According to Borough Clerk Lonnie McKechnie, Assembly members would vote on the replacement for that seat to fill out the duration of the term.
When Jesse Sumner’s seat became open after his election to Alaska’s House of Representatives with only months left of his Assembly term, Sumner recommended Dmitri Fonov as his replacement. The Assembly appointed Fonov to fulfill Sumner’s term and he was subsequently elected to the Assembly by Borough residents. Yundt’s term on the Assembly would not end until November 2026.
