Non-Resident Landowners won't have Community Council votes

An ordinance that would have given community councils the option include non-resident property owners and commercial land-owners to have a membership was defeated at Tuesday Night’s Matanuska Susitna Borough Assembly meeting.

The ordinance, 11-57 contended that people who own property and pay taxes should be allowed a voice in the local decisions in planning and land use. The ordinance also said that non-resident or commercial landowners deserve a say in Community Council activities because the Councils in turn report to the Borough.

The ordinance was met with opposition from Talkeetna, Trapper Creek, Chase, and Susitna Community Councils, who all agreed that the concept of one person, one vote was the basis for voting in the state of Alaska. Mayor Larry DeVilbiss, who proposed the ordinance, has stated that in select council areas, there are not enough resident land-owners to have effective councils, and that giving them the option to include non-resident or commercial property owners would improve their ability to conduct business with the Borough.

Community Council membership will remain open exclusively to residents living within the council boundaries, and specifically excludes non-resident landowners.