Sorted by date Results 1 - 22 of 22
One could hear the proverbial crickets chirping after Petersburg Mayor Mark Jensen brought up the assembly’s previous request to have a discussion about the possibility of re-appropriating money from the Kake access road project. During its last Borough Assembly meeting in January, several assembly members were in support of such a reallocation and suggested a bulk of the money go to projects for Kake and Petersburg. State Senator Bert Stedman appropriated the $40 million in 2012 for the project that would build a road and ferry connection from... Full story
A plan to release millions of chum fry in Thomas Bay, a popular sport fishing area for Petersburg locals, was put on hold in early December until more information on the potential affects of the proposal can be gathered. The request from the Northern Southeast Regional Aquaculture Association (NSRAA) was tabled by the Northern Regional Planning Team with a unanimous vote of 6-0. NSRAA General Manager Steve Reifenstuhl says concerns from local sport fisherman and multiple unknown factors motivated the decision of the planning team. Now NSRAA is... Full story
February 5, 1916 – The Windham Bay correspondent of the Daily Empire reports that Captain Wyman and Mr. Wenzel, who recently made the trip from Petersburg to that point on the Salmon Queen, are sampling the ore of the Alaska Peerless Mining Company's property, which is located in the second basin. The property was formerly owned by Sam Newsander, of Seattle. Captain Wyman is an old-time prospector and miner having owned and operated properties in the interior. February 7, 1941 – A fish warehouseman's strike ended last Friday with the sig...
Life is an open book for Fr. Steven Gallagher, the new pastor of St. Catherine of Siena Parish in Petersburg and St. Rose of Lima Parish in Wrangell, and there is one common theme-public service. Fr. Gallagher, 63, is taking over for Fr. Thomas Weise who passed away in December of a heart attack, and the unexpected death resonates with Gallagher. "Father Thomas was a great priest in this area; he was 16 years younger than I am," Gallagher says. "We all have expiration dates." For Gallagher,... Full story
The Petersburg Borough Assembly is a short step closer to drafting a complete marijuana ordinance. Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht discussed the draft with the Borough Assembly at its February 1 meeting. “In a sense what you’ve got in front of you is a framework,” Giesbrecht said. “I hate to call it anything other than that because it’s still definitely a work in progress.” Borough Assembly member Jeigh Stanton Gregor and Borough Clerk Debbie Thompson are assisting in writing a skeleton of the ordinance that so far defines public spaces— whe...
Alaskans know the importance of oil to the state's economy and state government coffers. No question. Oil is huge. But with all the talk of oil, it's easy to overlook other parts of Alaska's economy. Commercial fisheries, for example. Fisheries anchored many Alaska communities years before the start of oil production. And they've continued to do so after oil began flowing through the pipeline. The continuing economic contribution of fisheries is perhaps more apparent in coastal Alaska communities, such as Ketchikan, than in the Railbelt and...
January 27 A caller reported an individual parking in a private driveway without permission. January 28 A driver was given a warning for speeding on Libby Straight. A driver was given a warning for speeding on Mitkof Highway. Andrea Weathers, 35, received a citation for speeding. A driver was given a warning for failure to stop at a stop sign. A caller reported a possible assault. The caller spoke with an officer. Terry J. Hasbrouck, 63, was arrested on charges of DUI and driving in violation of a restricted license. January 29 An officer gave...
The state’s case against Lars Christensen, who was facing charges of two counts of Misconduct Involving a Controlled Substance in the 2nd and 3rd degrees, was dismissed yesterday, Feb. 3. Federal and local authorities arrested Lars and his brother Lawrence Christensen last month for receiving and handling a package containing 25 grams of heroin and 36 grams of methamphetamine from the post office. According to the criminal complaint, Lars told police he didn’t know what was in the package but “…knew it was probably illegal. Lars admitte...
January 28 Steven Homer appeared before Superior Court Judge Carey for a petition to revoke probation. Homer admitted to an alleged violation and his probation was revoked and reinstated. January 29 Terry Hasbrouck appeared before Magistrate Judge Burrell on charges of driving under the influence and driving in violation of restricted license. The defendant pleaded not guilty to the DUI and the court dismissed the driving in violation charge. The court set conditions of release. February 3 Julia Schoenberg appeared before Magistrate Burrell...
Charlie Christensen's boat, the Angela Marie, sank on February 15, 1994. After hearing a recording of the mayday call, Christensen took to the podium. "That still leaves me a little shaky," Christensen said. His boat started sinking stern first and towards the door to the port side. "I firewalled the engine and turned the boat hard over so it would lay over the other way so the door would be up," Christensen said. "I went out the door on and top of it was where the survival suits were. I...
After watching a U.S. Coast Guard video clip of their rescue, skipper Steve Berry recounted his experience last summer when the Kupreanof sank off Cape Fairweather. "I wake up every morning and I have to realize the boat went down but my crew didn't," Berry said. Berry noticed a slight list and thought he should change the fuel tanks to counter balance the vessel but it didn't help. He soon called a nearby Icicle vessel, the Gordon Jensen and the U.S. Coast Guard. Berry said it was around 3:30 a...
The Petersburg Land Selection Committee reviewed their preliminary land selections this week and added rationale to justify borough ownership of the land. The committee has identified over 1,300 acres available to the borough through the general land grant entitlement. The addition of rationale for selecting acres will greatly help the process and comply with the intent of the land entitlement program, according to Liz Cabrera, Borough Planning Director. "I think it's hard to say 'we want land...
Last week's story regarding the local budget and revenue sources, reported that seniors don't have to pay sales or property taxes. It should be noted that seniors are exempt from paying up to $150,000 in property taxes but pay taxes on home valuations in excess of that amount....
Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht gave the following report at Monday’s regular Assembly meeting: There has been increased homeless activity, with squatters in vacant or abandoned buildings. The public is reminded to secure outbuildings. An investigator from the Alcohol Beverage Control Board visited Petersburg last week. The tabletop exercise for the new Emergency Action Plan for our Blind Slough Hydro was held on Thursday of last week Officers Rowley and Preston will be receiving mandatory certification training in Sitka in February. In prepar...
Alaska Power and Telephone (AP&T) began serving Southeast customers in 1957 with the purchase of the telephone company in Skagway. Today, AP&T serves 40 communities spanning from the Arctic Circle to Metlakatla. The company recently released their 2016 telephone directory, but AP&T director of marketing Mark McCready says the days for the phonebook might be numbered due to a decline in landline users. One of the main reasons for the decline is a younger, more technology driven customer base....
Alaska’s halibut stocks are showing signs of an uptick and fishermen’s catches will not be slashed for the first time in 15 years. Fishery managers on Friday set the coast wide Pacific halibut harvest for 2016 at 29.89 million pounds, a 2.3 percent increase from last year. “This was probably the most positive, upbeat meeting in the past decade,” said Doug Bowen of Alaska Boats and Permits in Homer. “The feeling is the stocks are up and the resource is stabilizing and recovering, and it’s the first meeting in a long time that there weren’t any...
The Sitka black-tailed deer hunting season is now closed in Southeast Alaska. All hunters who obtained deer harvest tickets, even those who did not hunt or harvest a deer, must now return completed hunt reports to Fish & Game. If you haven’t submitted your hunt report for last fall, please do so immediately. Hunt reports may be submitted by mail, in person at a Fish & Game office, or online at hunt.alaska.gov. The information provided in hunt reports helps biologists estimate changes in area-specific deer harvest and hunting effort, monitor p...
Gonzaga University Carolyn Kvernvik has earned placement on the Gonzaga University President's List for fall semester 2015. University of Minnesota Twin Cities Kristinn J. Thorsteinson, a junior at the Carlson School of Management, was named to the Dean's fall semester 2015 list at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities....
Highest Honor Roll 12th Grade: Joshua James Andrews, Ruby M. Brock, Kelly S. Engell, Stuart H. Medalen, Chauncy Nicholas Sandhofer, Kylie G. Wallace. 11th Grade: Casey A. Bell, Alexandra K. Bless, Emma Irene Chase, Ethan Tell Cummins, Sydney R. Guthrie, Izabelle A. Ith, Brandy M. Mulbury, Jason Ray Regula, Mariah D. Taylor, Cole Riley Young. 10th Grade: Flahavan H. Abbott, Kathryn L. Brock, Helen E. Martin, Julia S. Murph, Alice E. Neidiffer, Marissa A. Nilsen. 9th Grade: Alyssa B. Guthrie, Lora H. O’Brocta, Louden J. Sandhofer, Gillian L. W...
Almost 30 people showed up to the library for a book signing and reading event on Monday night, and those in attendance had the pleasure of experiencing two thought-provoking writing styles from very talented authors who are also friends. Ernestine Hayes is the award wining author of "Blonde Indian," a memoir about life struggles and overcoming obstacles like discrimination, poverty and alcoholism. Hayes has a way with words worthy of making the most respected poets envious. Hayes read about a...
