Unalaska, AK – In an unusual move, the state Department of Environmental Conservation will be paying Mayor Shirley Marquardt's way to a shipping safety conference in Anchorage later this month.

In a surprise decision earlier this month, the council had voted 4-2 to deny Marquardt's request to represent the city at the Aleutian Islands Risk Assessment framework meeting on October 30 and 31st. In the past year, Marquardt has made shipping safety improvements one of her signature issues. Pete Garay of Alaska Marine Pilots spoke on Marquardt's behalf at last night's council meeting, at which the council voted unanimously to accept the state's offer.

"She's been intimately involved in this project from the beginning with the emergency towing system," Garay said after the meeting. "She's been a catalyst for bringing a lot of people together."

In denying Marquardt's request at the October 9 meeting, several council members had argued that the city's money would be better spent sending a non-elected city official. At the time, the outcome of the mayoral election was still undecided.