Wrangell Politics

Sometimes, if we’re lucky, we get to witness moments of theatrical brilliance that occur in real, everyday, actual life. I experienced such a moment Tuesday night during a five-hour city council meeting.

Just to give you a little background – there has been conflict in Wrangell the past month or so having to deal with Wrangell Seafoods, Inc. (a local fish processor), the city manager, and the not-yet-built community cold storage. They are all linked in various ways, but the bottom line is (or one of the bottom lines), people have been doubting the city manager and accusing him of not doing his job properly. With his annual evaluation coming up, there is a buzz around town that some council members are trying to get him fired.

At every city council meeting, there is a ‘persons to be heard’ section, when members of the public can talk on any agenda item. Last night there were a number of persons to be heard, one being the city manager’s daughter, who also happens to be a business owner and the wife of Jeff Angerman. The Angermans are one of the predominate families in town.

I’d also like to mention that there are a number of times when I’ve sat through a city council meeting and have felt like I was in the middle of some made-for-TV movie about Small Town, Alaska. It’s a really eerie sensation.

This is what she said, so passionately improvised – one couldn’t have scripted it any better:

“To say that I’m disappointed is quite an understatement. The things that have been going on in this town and on this council are embarrassing. And I know that it is a thankless, unpaid job and I applaud all of you for taking the time and putting your effort and caring about this community but what are we doing that is going to move us forward and do something positive for this town? I am so tired of hearing us fighting against each other. We’re our own worst enemy and I don’t understand it. I’ve heard people throw around accusations about cronyism and corruption and Facism and those words are fighting words and they are said by people in leadership positions for a specific reason and that is to get us all inflamed. So, I have to say I am inflamed, so it worked. But it’s easy to throw around those words without having proof, fact. As many of you know, I have a conflict of interest when it comes to the city manager because he is my father. I’ve heard his name get bashed around in this town, in the paper, in public meetings that he has some ulterior motive. I’ll tell you, because I have known him probably longer than any of you – his only ulterior motive is that he cares about this town. He cares about the seafood industry, the schools. He was a teacher and a principal at our school for years. He’s been in little league. Every volunteer organization in this town that you can think of, he’s been in and in a leadership position. He doesn’t do it for his own financial gain. He does it because he loves this town. He loves his children and he wants his children to be able to live here. While you all sit up there and do God knows what and fighting, he is on a trip up in Anchorage fighting for more money for this town and still trying to do his job without putting out all of these fires. Now you tell me, what is more productive? Because I don’t get it. I told him three years ago, ‘Give that up.’ You talk about a thankless job. It takes him away from us, away from his family. I’d love to have him back as a father and not as a city manager. He doesn’t get any respect, no thanks. He’s not perfect. He’s not a saint. You think he’s made mistakes, he probably has. But I ask you to look at the big picture and that is Wrangell, all of Wrangell. Every industry whether it be seafood, mining, tourism. He is working his butt off for this town and, you know what, if you don’t appreciate it, fire him, because then I can have my dad back."