Six votes allow Palmer to buy Matanuska Maid block

That's all it took to turn the election-day defeat of the City of Palmer's $3 million bond proposition to purchase the old Matanuska Maid block into a victory.

The measure to take possession of the 8.7 acres on South Valley Way had trailed by 24 votes after the ballot count on election day, Oct. 5. By the end of the week, however, 73 absentee, early and questioned ballots in favor of the proposition beat out the 43 votes against it, for a final count of 421 votes for the bond and 415 against it.

A total of 116 absentee, early and questioned ballots were counted Friday.

"That was a squeaker, wasn't it?" outgoing Mayor John Combs said Monday. "It has rankled me for a long time that the city of Palmer didn't own the water tower since it's such an important symbol of the city's historic past. There's a great deal that could be done with the property that can be to the community's benefit. But it's going to take a lot of thought and, of course, a lot of money."

The seven parcels containing the boarded-up Mat Maid creamery warehouse, the cinder block Power House and the historic hatchery building are owned by an Anchorage attorney, the Palmer Arts Council and a local resident, respectively.

Crowley Petroleum Distributors also owns one of the parcels near the water tower for one of its Valley offices.

All property owners have indicated they would be willing to negotiate with the city in the transfers of the parcels, Combs said.

Combs' successor, incoming Mayor DeLena Johnson, said Monday she was happy to learn that the community will now have a say in what becomes of the property.

"I would like to see it retain its cultural significance," said Johnson, who restored the colony-era Trading Post and is the executive director of the Palmer Museum and Visitor Center.

"What's amazing is that the final tally shows you the power of voting."

New City Manager Doug Griffin, who served as city manager of St. Marys and Valdez before venturing to the Valley, said the city needs to find out first if any of the parcels require environmental remediation before bonds are sold.

"We'll then start entering into negotiations in good faith with property owners," Griffin said. "I'll be talking with a lot of people who are smarter on these issues than I am to put together a plan for acquisition."