Sean MacDonald is running for Fairbanks City Council Seat A.
This is MacDonald’s third time running for city council because the issues facing the city remain the same and he wants to make Fairbanks a better place to live. He said that he continues to see issues surrounding high costs of goods, housing, and energy, a lack of economic diversity and opportunities for people who want to live in Fairbanks, and he wants the city to be more pedestrian friendly.
MacDonald went to Lathrop High School, and studied film and video at Columbia College of Chicago. He has worked as a commercial producer for the local television stations for 15 years. He enjoys spending time outside and stays in Alaska for the beautiful summers. He enjoys watching movies, playing indoor soccer, reading, hockey and skiing.
How can the city better diversify its revenue streams? How do you feel about heavily relying on the city’s permanent fund?
Fairbanks needs to be more active in seeking federal funding for local programs and projects. The cooperation and funding methods used to demolish the Polaris should be normal practice and used to build up new construction and help make legacy buildings ADA compliant. I would also be in favor of a sales tax if it was coupled with a lowering of property taxes.
How do you keep the city competitive?
We need to invest more in the city. Creating an environment that is stable, clean, open to new ideas, and easy to navigate will go a long way towards bolstering Fairbanks’ competitiveness.
What is your plan to bring the Emergency Service Patrol (ESP) back?
The Emergency Service Patrol needs to be a normal city service, like the police or firefighters, and funded annually as part of our budget.
With abatement, no emergency service patrol and no warming shelter facility, how should the city address the populations that are displaced from the cities abatement policy?
In regards to abatement and people who find themselves on the verge of homelessness, the city government needs to make sure that individuals can keep their property and stay in their home. We all, as a community, benefit from warming shelters and the work that the Emergency Service Patrol does; Fairbanks needs to make sure they are kept in service.
What would you do to strengthen the relationship between the borough, city and school district?
The city needs to take a more proactive role when working with our other local governments. Being able to have direct control over our services, and providing services currently unavailable through the borough and school district, will go a long way towards strengthening our relationships.
What do you think the city should be doing with the Polaris site after it is torn down?
A city-managed park should be built on the Polaris site. Making the site a public space would enhance summer events like the midnight sun festival or a farmer’s market and would also, with some basic supporting infrastructure, open up more options for winter events downtown. Creating a public space there would also allow the city to focus on growth outside the core area. Fairbanks paid a lot of money for that plot of land and having it be a public space would benefit everyone in the city more than keeping it vacant or selling it off at a loss.
