The Alaska Contractor: Fall 2006

The race for Governor of Alaska 2006
THE
GOVERNOR
CANDIDATES’
VIEWS
ON AWARDING
CONTRACTS TO
ALASKA COMPANIES
“What would you do, if
elected, to see that Alaska
contracts go to Alaska
contractors?”
Disclaimer: The views expressed by candidates for Alaska governor, Tony Knowles,
Sarah Palin and Andrew Halcro, in the following pages are their opinons only and do
not necessarily represent the views of the Associated General Contractors of Alaska
or advertisers in its quarterly magazine, The Alaska CONTRACTOR.
Is state
government a
project partner
or another
hurdle?
By Andrew Halcro
Andrew Halcro, candidate for
governor as an Independent.
Today if you drive out to the Ted Stevens
Anchorage International Airport you’ll
fi nd a $56 million four-story car rental facility
under construction. The project represents the
fi rst privately funded project of its kind in the country
and is being built by Alaskan contractors.
It took my industry fi ve years from start to groundbreaking
to put the deal together and at some points in the process
we really had to wonder if the state government was
actually a project partner or just another project hurdle.
The fi rst key to ensuring that Alaska contracts goes to
Alaska contractors is to ensure that the projects happen to
begin with. A state government that understands the fi -
nancial risks involved and is more of a partner would go a
long way to increase a favorable environment for growth.
With federal funds on the decline, more and more projects
are going to be constructed with a mixture of private
and state dollars. This means that Alaska must have fi scal
stability to promote sustainable economic growth, which
will help maintain a healthy contractor marketplace. Fiscal
stability will help Alaska afford a steady stream of projects
that will help Alaskan contractors remain competitive.
In addition, the state needs to be more aggressive in
funding work training programs like the new Construction
Academy to ensure that we have local skilled laborers to
replace an aging workforce.
As part of my education plan, I’m proposing the state
invest more in helping local school districts make vocational
training a solid part of their high school course offerings.
With construction industry jobs paying wages that are 33
percent higher than other states, this provides a great opportunity
to attract, train and retain quality skilled laborers
from our own communities.
62 The Alaska CONTRACTOR Fall 2006
PHOTO: COURTESY OF HALCRO CAMPAIGN