Anchorage Tomorrow

Anchorage Tomorrow, Inc.is a 501(c)(4) non-profit corporation organized to “encourage and promote the creation, maintenance, expansion, and staffing of municipal facilities for the citizens of the Municipality of Anchorage, Alaska”. We are supported by engineers, architects, contractors, sports groups, environmental groups, park users, library supporters, interested citizens and members of the community.

Anchorage is a young and growing community that needs to pass the 2011 bond package to keep up with our community’s growing infrastructure needs. Anchorage can afford these bonds because:

Anchorage tax levels are low compared to most U.S cities. A 2008 study of tax rates and burdens ranked Anchorage 1st of 10 cities having the lowest overall tax burden of 3.6% compared to a national average of 8.5% (income, property, sales, automobile). In 2009, Alaska has had the lowest state and local tax burden (6.3%) when compared with all states for the last 30 years.

The Municipality is scheduled to pay off almost $26.1 million worth of existing General Obligation (GO) bonds in 2011, which equates to almost 72 percent of the proposed 2011 GO bond amount of $ 36.2 million. The net increase in annual debt service is estimated at $ 2.9 million, which equates to approximately $2.87/month for an assessed property value of $300,000.

The Municipality's proposed ballot proposition debt is within the debt burden range associated with AA rated credit. The Municipality's rating from Standard and Poor's is AA and from Fitch Ratings it is AA+.

The aggregate amount of the bond propositions is the lowest that Anchorage has seen in over a decade while the need to rehabilitate existing infrastructure is as pressing as ever. Passage of these bonds will enable the Municipality to keep from getting further behind in maximizing the life of our infrastructure.

Moreover, Anchorage Tomorrow believes this year’s “package” for roads and public transportation provides a unique nexus of stimulus and opportunity for Anchorage residents because:

“Shovel-ready” - More than 75 percent of this year’s proposed bonds would be used to fund construction contracts in 2011 that would flow directly into Anchorage’s workforce.

Attracting new grants - Recognizing the challenges associated with attracting State and Federal grants in the current economy, the Municipality would place itself in the strongest possible position to pursue these scarce funds by committing local matches to these soft monies. Our bond propositions are matched almost “dollar-for-dollar” with grant requests and thus offer the promise of additional stimulus from external funding sources.

Funding Responsible Rehabilitation - The need to preserve and extend the life of our local infrastructure is reflected in the allocation of bond funds for rehabilitation projects.