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Bethel City Manager Requests Out Of Contract

Adrian Wagner

City manager Ann Capela has given Bethel City Council her 90 day notice.

“I have some physical challenges;  I just struggled being in the Arctic climate since I’ve been here. And it isn’t for everyone and it’s proven to be very difficult for me physically," Capela said.

Capela says that she plans to work for the city for the next three months, assuming the city council lets her out of her contract without penalty.

In those three months, Capela says her major goal is to set up the next manger for success, which includes her legacy project: the expansion of Bethel’s sewer lagoon.  

Credit Adrian Wagner
Ann Capela displaying sewer project grant plan

“I’m still waiting for the funding of one very crucial piece of the sewer project," Capela said. 

While Capela says her health is the reason she's leaving, she also says she encountered many unexpected challenges in Bethel.

“The turnover of people, of employees here at the city of Bethel —  the city is exposed to not being able to complete crucial tasks,” she said.

But she says overall she does not regret her time in Bethel and wants to see the city succeed.