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Recent Press

  • “This town is my home. It’s where I’m raising my children. It’s where I’ve built a business, created jobs, and watched young people take pride in earning their first paycheck. I’ve seen families make it through a tough winter because of the money they were able to make in the summer. This isn’t theory. This is real life, and it’s happening right here in Sitka.

    In my own business, the visitor season means survival. It means being able to offer jobs to locals—jobs that pay for childcare, medical bills, rent, utilities and countless other necessities of life. I’ve watched teens gain confidence in their first summer jobs, watched parents pick up hours that fit their family schedules, and watched older workers supplement their fixed income. These aren’t luxury jobs — they’re lifelines. This is not about ‘private profit.’ This is about people.”

  • “Dear Editor: I noted with appreciation Mr. McGraw’s letter in this space of March 14 as regards the upcoming vote on restricting visitor numbers from the cruise ship industry.

    Some further consideration ought to be given by prospective voters on this measure for a couple of points:

    1) Enforcement of this policy by the city if enacted would seem to present some difficulty in execution and perhaps involve added personnel costs.

    2) More significantly, enforcement by the city of such a stricture could quite likely not withstand legal scrutiny, scrutiny that for my part I would encourage affected businesses to pursue. Our instant city administrator and erstwhile city attorney both wisely touched on potential rocks and shoals here. The cause of action might be unreasonable restraint of trade, unreasonable inasmuch as the businesses involved pay all taxes and fees amerced by local government and are thus entitled to use of public infrastructure in the course of their enterprises as needed. Such court actions have enjoyed some success in other venues and might well do so here.

    3) Sitka as a cruise ship destination requires extra transit time, transit time in the Gulf, enlarging fuel consumption and the possibility for visit cancellation to Sitka owing to heavy weather; we see enough of this as is. I don’t think it a stretch to posit that further complication to the cruise lines attending Sitka might disincline them to continue our town as a port of call.


    On a more prosaic level, private enterprise suffered greatly here during the lock-down regime of some years ago. Tourism revenue increases are bringing these businesses a chance to recover and reestablish. At the same time, accompanying sales tax revenue increases are a boon to city deferred maintenance and capital projects, which may await funding that may not be available externally. 


    I won’t deny that some days during cruise season of late the town has been more crowded than I like. That said, I’d like to manifest neighborliness by allowing those tourism-related businesses in town to prosper when they can, while they can.”

  • “I strongly urge all citizens to read the citizens initiative. At face value, this initiative looks like it does establish a cap and daily limits, but the formal processes built behind the scenes are going to cost the city money and staff to implement. Those processes also don’t work for the industry, so likely will push most operators away from Sitka as a port. Some of the popular things in the citizens initiative are already present in the MOU, like quiet days. The reality is that the impact of this will catastrophically hurt the whole community and lead to repercussions that we don’t even know. This citizens initiative was done without the necessary research to know it’s repercussions and I strongly urge everyone to be informed before you put your name to this proposed legislation. Please also read the MOU and see the items within that document and see the steps that are already being taken to improve Sitka for the whole community.”

  • “The proposed cruise cap would not just trim a few government positions; it would wipe out hundreds of private-sector jobs, from seasonal employees to year-round workers in retail, restaurants, transportation, and shore excursions. It would also significantly reduce tax revenues that fund city services, including schools, roads, and emergency response. If the loss of Forest Service jobs is worth protesting, shouldn’t we also be just as concerned about a ballot measure that could harm even more Sitka families and businesses?

    It’s understandable to be upset about government budget decisions, but we must be consistent in our support for a strong local economy. Cutting cruise tourism in half would be an entirely self-inflicted wound, causing far more damage to Sitka’s working families than the budget reductions being protested.

    I urge our community to think carefully about the long-term effects of the policies we support. If we truly care about protecting jobs and the stability of Sitka’s economy, we should oppose measures that would deliberately undermine them.”

  • “Petitions are a democratic tool, but they are not above critique. Encouraging people to refrain from signing is as valid a democratic act as urging them to sign. Both reflect civic engagement and ensure that critical issues are debated thoroughly, which is essential in a healthy democracy.


    Cruise tourism is a cornerstone of Sitka’s economy, supporting local jobs, businesses, and public services. A cap could jeopardize this vital economic engine, potentially limiting opportunities for future generations. Moving this petition to a vote could also harm Sitka’s image as a welcoming cruise port. Similar ballot initiatives in the past have caused cruise lines to rethink their presence in Sitka, diverting ships to other ports and reducing opportunities for our community. Even the perception of Sitka as an unwelcoming community could significantly influence future decisions about ship deployments.”

  • “Over the last two years, we’ve seen incredible growth in new tourism-related businesses. It brings me joy to see familiar faces – friends I grew up with – returning to Sitka to start families and build livelihoods in ways that weren’t possible a decade ago. These businesses are addressing the very infrastructure concerns many have raised. However, beyond the initiative, the revised commercial land use plan adds another layer of complexity. Much of the debate about our visitors centers on the need to spread them out and get them beyond downtown – exactly what my company does. 


    Yet, we (and other operators) are now facing caps on how many guests we can take out of town. This restriction will only ripple back, forcing more people into the downtown area, which is exactly what everyone agrees we want to avoid. Unfortunately, these combined challenges mean that many of these new businesses will be the first to close if the initiative passes, forcing young families to leave Sitka in search of other opportunities.”

Press releases

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