Anchorage

Samoan community presses Anchorage mayoral candidates on issues

Concerns about housing affordability, Medicaid expansion and youth involvement emerged as focal points Monday night at what was described as the first ever mayoral forum organized by members of Anchorage's Samoan community.

The forum was tied to a sense among Samoans in Anchorage that concerns and issues are not being heard by city leadership, according to a community leader. In an interview earlier Monday, Chief Tagomoa Viliamu Pili recalled serving as a liaison to the administration of Mayor Rick Mystrom in the late 1990s. Mystrom held meetings in his office and listened to concerns, Pili said.

Pili said he would like to see the same level of interest from the city's new mayor, especially as his community's population continues to grow. Census data show that the Anchorage Samoan community doubled in size between 2000 and 2010 to nearly 6,000 people, and makes up about 2 percent of the municipality's population.

During the forum, Palesitina Mafuao, a Samoan member of the congregation at St. Anthony's Catholic Church, asked the four candidates who participated in the forum if they would commit to meet with Samoan elders within two months of taking office. All four -- Ethan Berkowitz, Amy Demboski, Andrew Halcro and Timothy Huit -- agreed.

Mafuao also asked the candidates about their plans to help Samoan youth feel included and challenged. She said that recreational and after-school programs, which might keep young people from becoming involved in crime, are lacking.

Berkowitz also said he would support moving the high school start time back so kids begin afternoons in class rather than on the street. Demboski and Huit said they want to see more after-school programs.

Halcro, who told the audience he used to be an altar boy at St. Anthony's, highlighted his efforts as the president of the Anchorage Chamber of Commerce to meet with members of the city's minority groups, including Samoans.

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A prominent member of the Samoan community, Mao Tosi, has endorsed Halcro.

In response to a question about Medicaid expansion and health care affordability, only Demboski said she does not support Medicaid expansion. She cited her background working for dental corporations and said low reimbursement rates may lead some providers to stop taking Medicaid altogether.

Berkowitz said that if he were elected mayor, he would seek a waiver from the federal government so Anchorage could apply for Medicaid expansion separately from the state.

Other questions revolved around bullying, the difficulties of using the city's website to track Assembly votes and city business and the absence of a community outreach coordinator in City Hall. And, as in other forums, the shortage of affordable housing in Anchorage was one of the top issues.

During a segment in which audience members approached the candidates and asked questions at a microphone, Lusia Iosefa talked about her experience looking for public housing assistance and found that the waiting list was up to a year. She asked candidates to make affordable housing a priority.

All four candidates agreed. Berkowitz said the city should follow recommendations laid out by previous task forces on housing; Demboski and Halcro both cited a need for tax credits to provide incentives for redevelopment.

After the forum, Iosefa said she was generally impressed with the candidates' answers.

"My hope is whoever gets elected will follow their words," she said.

Samoan members of St. Anthony Catholic Church spearheaded the forum with the help of the Anchorage Faith & Action Congregations Together, a faith-based organization that works to mobilize local religious communities. Two other AFACT-member churches, First Covenant Church and Anchorage Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, also sent representatives to ask questions.

Mayoral candidates Dan Coffey and Dustin Darden were invited, but neither appeared. The Rev. Laga Ola'aiga, a Seattle priest fluent in Samoan and English, served as the moderator.

Devin Kelly

Devin Kelly was an ADN staff reporter.

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