Chilkat Valley News - Serving Haines and Klukwan, Alaska since 1966

After a 15-month process that included two rounds of searches and a job offer that was turned down in March, the Haines Borough might finally have a permanent manager.

The borough assembly voted unanimously Tuesday to offer the job, pending contract negotiations, to Annette Kreitzer, the remaining applicant after the other finalist withdrew earlier this month.

A retired Juneau resident, Kreitzer spent 18 years working as an aide and chief of staff in the legislature and as commissioner for the Alaska Department of Administration where she was responsible for 1,500 employees. She stressed her desire to bring stability to a job that has a high rate of turnover.

"Perception sometimes rules the day," Kreitzer told residents at a meet and greet Monday. "Fear gets out before the facts. My focus is really trying to make sure that the facts get out first. Your assembly sets the policy. The manager's job is to manage that but to make sure people have accurate information as quickly as they can have it."

The assembly interviewed her for a third time Monday at the public library. Paul Rogers asked if Kreitzer thought it was appropriate for managers to get involved in political issues. Kreitzer said it's inappropriate and that when she worked in the legislature she made sure to avoid belonging to advocacy organizations in an effort to avoid the perception of bias. She acknowledged that she is the assistant secretary of the Capital City Republicans. The Juneau political organization aims to support and elect Republican candidates. She said she would resign from that position should she take the manager job.

"You don't keep a position like that," Kreitzer said. "As a borough manager, you're working with everyone."

"You're all good people," Kreitzer said when asked how she could help the community stop talking past one another. "I think you all have good ideas, but I think over time people have been allowed to demonize one another."

Kreitzer also stressed the need to provide accurate information to policy makers no matter where the facts lead. She said when she had disagreements with elected officials she worked for, she wasn't afraid to make her views known in private.

"I've seen people in my career who were unwilling to deliver bad news....I've seen people who go along to get along, which is fine, but if you're trying to help people who are policy makers you need to be honest with them," Kreitzer told assembly members. "I would ask that of you, that you give me that opportunity to speak behind closed doors and that I can offer my opinion."

On Tuesday, assembly members said they received positive feedback from residents who met with Kreitzer and cited her professionalism and high ethical standards.

"I truly believe that community needs require community engagement and community problem solving," assembly member Cheryl Stickler said. "For somebody of her caliber to come on board and help lead and help us navigate through that, I think our whole community will benefit."

"One of the things we all agreed on was we need to find someone who can be a stable force through all of our assembly changeovers," assembly member Caitie Kirby said. "I think we found someone who's extremely capable of doing that."

Kreitzer told the assembly and the public that she wants to work for eight to 10 months to ensure she's a good fit with the community. Her husband will remain in Juneau while she rents housing during that time.

"I don't think it's any secret there has been a record of turnover here," she told residents. "You're here tonight to see if I'm a good fit and it's a two-way street. I think it's going to be a good fit but that's about as far out as I can see right now. There's no way I would have applied for this job and then turn around and leave people in the lurch."

If she accepts the job, she'll start in October.

The assembly began looking for a new manager in May 2020 after firing former manager Debra Schnabel.