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a result, Sitka may lose as much as 50% of the privately provided medical 

 services. Social services including nonprofits such as the drug and alcohol 

 abuse programs will be reduced if not eliminated due to loss of local 

 contributions. Membership organizations, which employ a significant 

 number of service workers will layoff workers because local support for them 

 will decline. 



Federal government support employment will also experience layoffs because 

 such employers as the Postal Service will have reduced workloads. State 

 employment will be relatively unaffected except in the critical social service 

 area where less population means less support from state programs. 



Impacts on Other Basic Industries 



One might not think the seafood industry would be affected by an APC 

 closure but industry experts identify a number of negative impacts. Since 

 seafood processors are heavy users of electricity and water and have millions 

 invested in real property, any increase in electrical and water rates and 

 property taxes will hurt economically. But increase of the 46% to 94% 

 magnitude in these costs could cause some shut downs in Sitka's largest 

 employer, seafood. A processor closure would in turn trigger losses in the 

 resident harvesting fleet. Fishermen base in Sitka for a number of reasons but 

 a critical one is the presence to of the most aggressive and responsive large 

 processors plus a number of other processors and buyers. Were the processing 

 sector reduced, the resident fleet would shrink to some degree. 



The leading processor estimates their costs will rise by $100,000 to $200,000 per 

 year to cover increase utility rates. Further, the City and Borough of Sitka 

 becomes less capable of providing the necessary expansion and maintenance 

 of port and harbor facilities critical to the fishing fleet. It also will have 

 reduced ability to develop city waterfront property to aid development of 

 seafood industry infrastructure. Since both forest products and seafood are 

 users of industrial support services (vessel repair, mechanics, machinists, 

 industrial parts and supplies, expediting and shipping, etc.), the loss of forest 

 products business will significantly reduce the industrial support services 

 now available to the fishing fleet and processors. This in turn makes Sitka a 

 less desirable port and could cost the local economy money in two ways. One 

 is the business which must go outside the community to other locations and 

 the other is the possible loss of some vessels which currently home port in 

 Sitka. Also, much employment in the seafood industry is seasonal and /or 

 part time. These jobs are often filled by the dependents of people with more 

 stable year-around jobs, particularly those in the APC mill which are the 

 conununity's highest paying. When the mill closes and those families leave, 

 the available labor force for the processors and harvesters will shrink. 



The tourism industry in Sitka has lots to offer visitors because many 

 businesses and facilities exist to serve other markets. One mainstay of the 



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