This article is republished from www.dermotcole.com with permission.
The Anchorage Daily News says Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson has proven himself to be “unqualified, incompetent and out of his depth” during his year-and-a-half as mayor of the state’s largest city.
The newspaper backed this up with a powerful editorial, one of the best I’ve seen in years, which stops short of calling for his resignation.
The piece consists of a detailed timeline of more than 30 particulars from June 2021 until last week. These aren’t about policy disagreements, but about management, operational and leadership failures.
Here are the bookends:
“Late May/early June, 2021: Bronson ally Larry Baker contacts municipal attorney Patrick Bergt in an attempt to get domestic violence-related charges against his business partner Brandon Spoerhase dismissed, according to a letter Amy Demboski releases in December 2022.”
“Feb. 6, 2023: Human Resources director Niki Tshibaka resigns, citing “an increasingly toxic, hostile, and demoralizing work environment,” which — until the moment of his resignation — he was responsible for maintaining. Among other claims in his resignation letter, Tshibaka says he was only given one day to vet former Health Dept. director Gerace’s fraudulent credentials.”
Dermot Cole has worked as a newspaper reporter, columnist and author in Alaska for more than 40 years. Support his work here.
