At a morning press conference for newly sworn in Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson, his Chief of Staff Craig Campbell announced that he had resigned from the Alaska Railroad board of directors. Campbell was the chair of the seven member board. Campbell made the announcement after I asked Bronson about an ongoing lawsuit the Alaska Railroad filed against the Flying Crown last year about a land title issue. The Flying Crown is a homeowners association in South Anchorage. The lawsuit, filed in federal court, is about the Alaska Railroad’s right-of-way, which abuts the Flying Crown’s small runway.

The Municipality intervened in the lawsuit on June 9 on the side of the Flying Crown. I asked if the Municipality would be continuing with the lawsuit, and if Campbell would be involved. Bronson said he would let Campbell answer that, where Campbell stated he had resigned from the board last night. Bronson then said he intends to move forward with the Municipality’s intervention in the lawsuit. Enstar and MTA attempted to intervene in the lawsuit but the judge denied it.

After the press conference, Campbell said he requested an ethics opinion from the State of Alaska on the matter. He said they told him it would be a conflict to be in both positions. Campbell also said he has recused himself from any railroad related issues in his new role as chief of staff. Campbell said he would provide the ethics opinion and his resignation letter. The story will be updated when I receive those. Campbell was appointed to the board by Governor Mike Dunleavy (R – Alaska) in 2019. Dunleavy will chose his replacement.

A previous version of this article stated that board had eight members. It has seven. Bill Sheffield is a chairman emeritus but does not sit on the board.