Petitioners have reportedly been chased away from the city owned Soldotna Regional Sports Complex; now community members have asked the City of Soldotna to clarify their codes.
The subject was addressed at this week’s Soldotna city council meeting, where City Manager Mark Dixson stated…
Dixson: “When we rent out the Sports Center facility the lease agreement, the rental agreement, includes the entire property.”
Kate Vey testified saying she was threatened with arrest while she was collecting signatures.
Vey: “I’m actually going to ask for clarification, if public property is rented out to a private entity, I don’t know if you’ve ever consulted with a lawyer if that’s actually okay. If a private entity wants to completely omit all the public political comments or petitioner collection it seems like they should rent out a private entity.”
Mayor Nels Anderson said it is a pertinent question that he would like clarification on as well.
Borough Residents Against Annexation petitioners got permission from Soldotna’s police chief but were also chased away according to the group’s president Brian Olson.
Olson: “The next time that there’s a city owned thing, if the city wants to have a lawsuit because they want to eject petitioners who are peacefully collecting signatures on the city sidewalk in front of the sports center, that’s what’s going to occur.”
