Spring Speaker Series: Sitka's Housing Stats & Solutions

About the Presentation

Join us for our Spring Speaker Series on Wednesday, April 22nd. Meilani Schijvens from Rain Coast Data will present data on Sitka's housing, its impact on our population decline, and how our numbers compare to other communities in Southeast.

Next, Randy Hughey and Amy Kramer-Johnson, from Sitka Community Land Trust, will share an update on the progress they have made in housing development. 

About the Speakers

Meilani Schijvens, Data Director, Rain Coast Data
View the Slide Deck
Meilani Schijvens is the owner and Director of Rain Coast Data and a lifelong Alaskan focused on economic development. She has led award winning projects including the Southeast Alaska Economic Plan and has authored widely used regional reports such as Southeast Alaska by the Numbers. Before founding Rain Coast Data in 2014, she held leadership and research roles with Southeast Conference, McDowell Group, the Juneau Economic Development Council and the State of Alaska. She holds a Master of Science from the University of Oregon and brings decades of experience in research, public outreach and economic analysis across Alaska.

Randy Hughey, Executive Director, Sitka Community Land Trust
Randy earned undergraduate and graduate degrees in Vocational-Technical Education from Oregon State University and has substantial experience in the construction industry. He taught construction trades and computer-aided design for twenty years in Alaska, serving the remainder of his career in education in technical program development. Most recently, he served as project co-manager for the construction of an 8,500-square-foot, $2.9 million addition to the Technical Center at Sitka High School.

Amy Kramer-Johnson, Sitka Community Land Trust
A 30-year resident of Sitka, Amy has over 20 years of experience working in Sitka’s non-profit sector as well as owning her own small business. Her experience in fundraising, grant management, program supervision, volunteer coordination, community engagement, and donor outreach have been the cornerstones of her work for over two decades. In October of 2024 Amy joined the Sitka Community Land Trust team as grant manager.