A better Anchorage is on the ballot

A competent local government

It’s past time for leadership out of the Mayor’s Office. As mayor, I’ll make sure our local government works well and works for you.

A community you’re proud to call home

That means safe streets and trails, good schools, real solutions to homelessness, and a vibrant, affordable city where people want to live.

Starting with the basics: Competence and trust

Good governance is the foundation for a high-impact Municipality that works on behalf of the people of Anchorage. I’m the only candidate ready to get to work on day one. As mayor, I will:

Some Municipality departments are at as high as 40% vacancy. The most severely under-staffed departments include the Anchorage Police Department and Anchorage Health Department. When our Municipality is under-staffed, services go under-delivered. We need to hire up our departments with qualified individuals.
It’s time to put an end to hiring and firing scandals, and make the Municipality a place where people are proud to work. As mayor, I will set the tone for a positive work culture from the first floor of City Hall to the 8th.
As mayor, I’ll appoint qualified, competent, ethical individuals for top positions in local government. Anchorage residents deserve an end to the string of appointment scandals, and a return to competent government led by qualified individuals.
As mayor, I will evaluate the Municipality’s existing private contracts, and I’ll end the practice of last-minute, sole source contracts that cost taxpayers more. It’s time to negotiate better contracts on behalf of residents.
We must avoid cost-shifting, such as when the Municipality plows State roads using Municipal resources. We need to allocate local resources for local needs, and we need look to bring in State and federal resources to work alongside local revenue in Anchorage.
I’ll make sure that core government services — from snow plowing and road maintenance to permitting and contracting — are provided efficiently. At its best, our local government provides the core services that make our city run — from clear streets and quality infrastructure to new housing and local businesses.
As mayor, I will communicate consistently with the public and partners, including the Assembly. It’s time to work together for the best interests of Anchorage.
I will also set and share annual budget priorities clearly, and publish the annual budget, so that residents know where their tax money is going.

“We’ve got to get the basics right. But we can’t stop there.

I know we can do both: We can get the snow off our streets and make sure those same streets are safe and welcoming, home to affordable housing and strong local businesses.”

Suzanne LaFrance, Candidate for Anchorage Mayor

Let’s make Anchorage a place you’re proud to call home.

I’m committed to moving Anchorage forward, to making our community safe, affordable, and thriving for everyone who lives here.

Safe streets and trails

Public safety is the #1 job of local government. As mayor, it will be my top priority.

Hire up our public safety departments, including filling 50+ open positions at the Anchorage Police Department
- Prioritize competitive wages.
- Implement longevity increases to improve retention.
- Advocate for defined benefit retirement for public employees at the State level to improve hiring and retention.
- Develop opportunities for part-time and flex work for non-sworn staff to increase attractiveness of positions.
Continue to build and invest in crisis response programs like APD’s Crisis Intervention Team and AFD’s Mobile Crisis Response teams that provide targeted mental health crisis support and use public safety resources more effectively. Invest in AFD’s Mobile Crisis Response to be a 24-hour service.
Use crime data to identify neighborhoods where crime incidence is high and focus community violence prevention efforts in these areas.
Better Access to Treatment
Prioritize substance misuse and mental health treatment via existing voter-approved funding through the alcohol tax.
Funded Year-Round Shelter Plan
Develop and release a funded plan for shelter during the first 100 Days in office.
Stand up year-round shelter system, including congregate and non-congregate options, to reduce instances of people sleeping on Anchorage’s streets and greenbelts. Bring public and private funding together, and leverage Municipal resources including land and facilities, to address homelessness.
More Housing At More Price Points
Bolster efforts to add more housing that’s affordable to more people, including supportive housing and housing for very low income households (see “Housing” below).
End the practice of last minute, sole source contracts that cost taxpayers more for the same service.
Build up the Municipality workforce: Use the “meet and confer” provision of the contract with the labor union to increase starting base pay for operators to $25/hour.
Conduct a comprehensive equipment audit of existing Municipal snow plow equipment. Communicate any additional needs far in advance of first snow
Work closely with the State DOT to develop plans for coordinated snow response. Review respective road maintenance responsibilities and consider transferring responsibility for some roads to the Municipality, as Anchorage has changed since road responsibilities were determined.
Work closely with the Anchorage School District to develop plans that prioritize keeping kids safe and in school.
Develop and communicate a Coordinated Snow Response Plan well in advance of the first snowfall.

A local economy that works for everyone

A strong local economy starts with good jobs, strong local businesses, and a high quality of life people can afford.

Housing
- Bring a pro-housing culture to City Hall and work closely with MOA Planning and the Assembly to remove red tape and simplify code to encourage new housing.
- Build on work with ADUs, triplex/four-plex reform, and parking minimums to allow for gentle density.
- Expand tax abatement to incentivize new housing development in Anchorage.
- Identify reasonable policies to limit the growth of short-term rentals that negatively impact the availability of housing, while protecting the economic opportunity available to local hosts.
- Empower existing entities including the Anchorage Community Development Authority to develop public-private partnerships to add new housing units in Anchorage.
- Leverage Municipality-owned land for public-private partnerships.
Childcare
- Use Prop 14 startup to identify community priorities for how cannabis tax funding can increase access to childcare in Anchorage.
- Look to identify additional funding via State, federal, and private philanthropy to address childcare quality and cost.
- Improve wages for childcare workers, who can make more money today working for a local fast food restaurant. Explore improved benefits and retirement for childcare workers.
- Build up the long-term pipeline of childcare workers. Look to partner with ASD, King Tech, and UAA on training and internship programs. Explore tuition forgiveness for childcare workers.
- Support statewide ballot initiative to raise the minimum wage. Ensure local implementation if passed. Consider a local minimum wage ordinance if not.
- Work with local partners to increase apprenticeship programs that train the next generation of skilled workers.
- Work with local unions to ensure jobs in Anchorage have competitive wages, benefits, and worker supports to attract and retain skilled workers in our city.
- Implement policies in Municipality Contracting and Procurement that benefit good operators with good pay and working conditions.
Convene a local business roundtable to identify barriers to business startup and growth in Anchorage.
Develop an easy-to-use platform on the Municipality’s website that helps businesses launch and access resources to thrive.
Leverage Municipality assets to support local businesses, such as through opening public spaces to events that bring businesses and patrons together, increasing the availability of outdoor seating, and embracing policies to encourage off-season/winter patronage.
Work with Visit Anchorage and other partners to develop strong branding for Anchorage that boosts local pride and boosts tourism.

A quality of life that makes Anchorage an attractive place to live

From education to energy, it’s time to invest in our future.

Excellent, well-funded schools
- Advocate directly for an increase to the BSA, as well as inflation-proofing and forward funding. Bring local partners together to advocate with one voice.
- Advocate directly to the State for a defined benefit retirement system for public employees.
- Build a close working relationship with the Anchorage School District and School Board. Improve coordination between Municipality and ASD, including on snow removal.
- Ensure that the Municipality isn’t passing off costs to the school district, further harming the District’s ability to attract and retain educators.
Healthy kids & families
- Staff up the Anchorage Health Department (currently at 40% vacancy).
- Develop a “First 1,000 Days” program (from conception to age 2) through AHD that supports a public health approach to supporting parents and young children, when these investments have the highest ROI.
- Use Alcohol Tax revenue to invest in prevention of childhood abuse and maltreatment.
- Partner with tourism groups to rebrand Anchorage and market to visitors and residents alike.
- Invest in neighborhood cores with a focus on walkability and traffic calming, including decoupling 5th and 6th Avenues downtown and creating a more walkable boulevard on 4th.
- Improve bike safety and infrastructure. Identify grants to build on bike safety and accessibility pilot projects.
- Increase access to outdoor amenities through infrastructure improvements.
- Identify partnerships to improve transportation to outdoor amenities, such as buses that take residents and visitors to commonly used trailheads, to reduce vehicle traffic and wear and tear on roads.
- Work with Alaska Native artists and culture bearers, and the Anchorage Park Foundation, to embed Dena’ina culture and enhance indigenous place naming in Anchorage.
- Launch a place naming project focused on Municipal buildings, starting with City Hall.
- Improve language access across Municipal communications, making key communications available in a range of commonly used languages, including Alaska Native languages.
- Empower Municipality Equity Department with internal and external goals to increase equity in Anchorage.
- Access rebates and subsidies for green energy improvements to municipal buildings.
- Clearly communicate opportunities for residents to access rebates and subsidies for making climate-friendly improvements, including solar panels and weatherization.
- Improve resilience to natural and human-caused disasters in Anchorage, building on the Resilient Anchorage Roadmap.
- Go after federal funds via Inflation Reduction Act, Infrastructure funding, and other clean energy programs to implement in Anchorage.
- Convene a summit of climate partners in Anchorage to identify specific opportunities to advance a local innovation economy around clean energy.

Getting more for what we’re paying for

I will respect the tax cap and lead with fiscal responsibility – but that doesn’t mean we can’t do more. We can get better services from what we’re already paying for.

Many of the priorities highlighted here are already budgeted for (e.g., filling existing positions in Municipal departments). Others will require public-private partnerships. And some can be funded by taking a more innovative approach to funding our local government.

Rather than thinking about how we cut up the existing pie of limited resources, we should bring in more state, federal, and private dollars to work alongside local taxpayer dollars to achieve higher impact. We can also think strategically about how to leverage local dollars, including new voter-approved revenue sources like the alcohol tax and cannabis tax.

Other similarly sized cities are bringing in hundreds of millions of dollars and doing more as a result. Anchorage can too, by going after public and private funding and spending funds more strategically, so that our local dollars are working smarter.