Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 26
Though a ruling was made Jan.16 in the case of Fred Triem and Karen Ellingstad versus the Borough, the matter is still not settled. After having the case under advisement for several months, Superior Court Judge Philip M. Pallenberg affirmed the Borough’s determination that Triem and Ellingstad’s property on Wrangell Ave. was a “dangerous building” according to municipal code. Though this brought some sense of closure to the matter, which has been ongoing since summer 2013 when the Borough first sent notice to the homeowners to repair or demo... Full story
The Petersburg Borough Assembly is soliciting community input on a law going into effect Feb. 24 that allows the personal use of marijuana. The law also provides for the eventual commercial sale of the drug, though municipalities can choose to limit or ban commercial enterprises. Mayor Mark Jensen asked to begin a discussion of how the assembly and community would like to approach the new law at the Jan. 20 assembly meeting. "I personally feel it's important that as a Borough we start working... Full story
According to a Petersburg Police press release, on Jan. 28, Petersburg Police and Southeast Alaska City Against Drugs task force, with the assistance of the USPS and FBI, arrested Samuel Nelson, 51, of Petersburg, for alleged crimes involving distribution of methamphetamine, including Misconduct Involving a Controlled Substance in the Third and Fourth Degrees and Tampering with Evidence. Nelson is currently being held on $50,000 bail. Initial investigation revealed that Nelson allegedly imported a significant amount of methamphetamine into... Full story
Petersburg residents might slosh through the rainiest January on record, according to data from the National Weather Service. As of Wednesday afternoon, 19.5 inches of rain has fallen this month securing Petersburg at least a second place ranking for the rainiest January. Record rainfall for the month was 20.8 inches in 1985. Service Hydrologist/Meteo-rologist Aaron Jacobs said more rain is forecasted before the month’s end. “There’s a decent chance that we could break that record,” Jacobs said. Several records have already been broken....
January 30, 1915 – The extension of the sidewalk along the beach in the north end of town was completed last Saturday, and during the following day practically the whole town took a stroll over the new thoroughfare. The work of building the walk and trestles was all done by the owners of abutting property. The walk is not only a great convenience to residents along it, and to citizens generally, but it also makes a marked improvement in the appearance of the waterfront. January 26, 1940 – With the turn of the year the weather has been pre...
The transfer bridge of the new drive down dock drew quite a crowd during its Jan. 16 installation. Despite the downpour Petersburg residents came out, cameras in hand, to watch a large crane place the 140-long by 17-foot wide bridge. "It is rated to haul anything that can go down the highway," said Harbormaster Glo Wollen. Efforts continue on the construction and assembly of the float pieces, the next component slated to go into place. "Currently what Tamico is doing is they're putting the...
The state-sponsored Healthy Futures Challenge awarded $300 to second grader Martha Midkiff for her participation in the fall 2014 program that ran from Sept.-Nov. Midkiff was one of three kids selected from a state-wide drawing of participants in the program who submitted a physical activity log for each of the fall months. Midkiff's mother, Mary Midkiff, said the school sends the information on to the state on the kids' behalf and learning that Martha had won the drawing came as a pleasant...
U.S. District Judge Timothy Burgess granted a motion to give defendant Mark Weaver, 59, and his counsel more time to prepare before his case goes to trial at a Nov. 19 hearing. With the granting of the Unopposed Motion to Continue Trial, Weaver’s court date was rescheduled from Dec. 1, 2014 to March 2, 2015. In his written request to the court, Weaver’s attorney Phillip Weidner said more time was needed to effectively prepare for the trial. He also stated that the “defendant is seeking an attorney-client privileged expert evaluation” that wi...
City Creek trail stairway To the Editor: The Petersburg Parks and Recreation Department is working on evaluating the stairway at the eastern entrance to the City Creek Trail that connects to the City Creek Foot Bridge. The stairway is currently closed and a danger to the community in its current shape. Through the evaluation process we are seeking public comments on whether the staircase should be removed or if there is a community group interested in rebuilding it. The Parks and Recreation Department will continue to look for grants to rebuild...
Superior Court Judge William Carey sentenced 20-year-old Christafur Morrell to serve 23 months flat of jail time for Attempted Misconduct Involving a Controlled Substance in the 2nd Degree. He was also sentenced to pay police training and jail surcharges totaling $200 and the $500 cost of his appointed counsel, in addition to forfeiting the money seized during a police search. Morrell was indicted by a grand jury last July following an incident where local police seized around $75,000 worth of heroin. Morrell is not a resident of Petersburg...
January 21 A driver was issued a warning for speeding in a school zone. A warning was given for speed requirements. Assorted tools and a welder were reported as stolen from the back of a vehicle. A Birch St. resident reported someone had rummaged through their car but nothing was missing. A South Harbor boat owner reported someone may have accessed their boat. An officer issued a warning to a driver for an inoperable headlight. January 22 An officer responded to a report of a loud vehicle causing a noise disturbance. No disturbance was found. P...
Petersburg lost its first game to Mt. Edgecumbe Wednesday night. The Lady Vikings started off slow as Mt. Edgecumbe jumped off to an early lead in the first half, Petersburg down 21-29 at the half. "We started out slow again in the third," Head Coach Dino Brock said. "At one point they had an 18 point lead." But Petersburg rallied as Brock had his team beef up the defensive pressure. "We started pressing them. We had the game down to a couple possessions at one point and made a nice run getting...
January 21 Magistrate Judge Desiree Burrell denied a bail request for Marsha Fernandez at a bail review hearing. January 22 John Staples appeared before Magistrate Judge Desiree Burrell for an arraignment. The defendant pled not guilty to a charge of Violating Conditions of Release. The court set bail at $500 and set the following condition of release: defendant cannot consume alcohol, including medicine which contains alcohol not approved by the court. January 26 Superior Court Judge William Carey presided over a divorce proceeding for Iralee...
The Vikings faced off against Fairbank’s Lathrop High School Thursday night where they jumped out to an early 12-8 lead in the first quarter. “Lathrop is really athletic and fast,” Head Coach Rick Brock said. “The game was close throughout. Our half court defense confused them for a little while.” Lathrop fought back in the second quarter and led the game 22-19 at the half. The Vikings held the momentum in the third, scoring 20 points. “It was a one or two possession game until the end,” Brock said. “We made a couple of key free throws dow...
Petersburg Medical Center CEO Liz Woodyard announced that the hospital is considering hiring an occupational therapist to replace physical therapist Leslie Stancliff who announced her retirement from the facility. “One of the things we’ve looked at as far as services is what are our needs and I think an exciting opportunity for us is to look at is perhaps hiring an occupational therapist instead of a physical therapist,” Woodyard said. Physical Therapy Manager Ellie van Swearingen explained the role of an occupational therapist as opposed to ph...
At last Thursday’s meeting, Petersburg Medical Center’s Interim CFO Doran Hammett updated the board on recent efforts to increase cash on hand at the facility by decreasing accounts receivable (A/R) days –the amount of time it takes for a patient to pay money owed for services rendered. Hammett said that PMC’s accounts receivable days have historically been very high for PMC. “Gross A/R days have ranged from 106 to 145 (days) over the past two years,” he said. “Looking at this last fall we realized that we had gotten to a point in our patien...
Rock-n-Road Construction razed the Alaska Airline warehouse at the airport two-weeks ago. According to station manager Dave Booker the building was condemned. The airline is leasing space next door from Tom Greenley, and hopes to have the building replaced sometime this summer. Construction should get underway this spring. Booker said the new building will be slightly larger and located a bit farther from the roadway. The old warehouse was designed and built by the late Fred File around 1971...
Meeting in Wrangell last week, the Alaska Board of Fisheries elected to maintain the current Southeast Alaska Area Dungeness Crab Fisheries Management Plan. A trio of policy proposals would have repealed the plan and its early closure thresholds, returning management of the fishery to size, sex and season, as used elsewhere. “I understand the reason this proposal was put forward,” board member John Jensen said of Proposal 58. “Size, sex and season has been a very good way to manage fisheries for a long, long period of time in South...
WRANGELL — The Wrangell area will be without an Alaska Wildlife Trooper for the foreseeable future, according to the state agency’s Juneau office. The vacancy was created by the transfer of Trooper Scott Bjork to the Juneau area earlier this month. Citing budgetary constraints, head of Southeast Detachment Lieutenant Jon Streifel confirmed Monday the post will remain unfilled until the department knows what the upcoming budget will look like. “It’s a new transition,” he said. As the new legislative session convenes this week in Juneau, s...
The need for a clear “fish first” policy in Alaska tops the list of priorities compiled by the Fisheries Transition Team for Governor Walker. The group also stated that “fish and fishermen in Alaska are viewed as barriers to development,” and that there is “irreplaceable optimism” that fish can coexist with development at any scale. Fisheries was just one of the topics that 250 Alaskans brainstormed about in 17 teams that newly elected Walker convened in late November. Their task was to identify the top five priorities in diverse categories,...
The Community Advisory Board of American Seafoods Company announced it will be accepting applications for its Alaska community grant program. The deadline for applications is Feb. 17. Since its inception in 1997, the CAB has granted over $1.25 million to organizations and programs in Alaska. For this particular application, small grants totaling $38,000 will be allocated to community projects addressing issues such as hunger, housing, safety, education, research, natural resources and cultural activities. The majority of awards range from $500...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) – President Barack Obama is proposing to designate the vast majority of Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge as a wilderness area, including its potentially oil-rich coastal plain, drawing an angry response from top state elected officials who see it as a land grab by the federal government. “They've decided that today was the day that they were going to declare war on Alaska. Well, we are ready to engage,” said U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, chair of the Senate energy committee. The designation would set aside an addit...
University of Idaho Gina Meucci has been named on the University of Idaho, in Moscow, Dean’s List for the Fall ‘14 semester....
