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For the second time since a new roof was installed on the borough downtown building, a leak has appeared in the ceiling of the Assembly Chambers. After the first leak appeared, the roofing subcontractor located and made repairs at the site of the leak. At last Friday's work session, another leak had stained the ceiling tiles in the chambers. According to Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht this is the second time the leak has appeared. The first leak happened in the early stages of construction...
The Petersburg Medical Center Board approved a budget of up to $250,000 plus design costs of $42,000 to renovate the basement kitchen at the hospital at a special meeting last night. The kitchen is located in the basement of the Long Term Care facility adjacent to the hospital. That building is located in the oldest section of the facility that was built in 1969. CFO Doran Hammett told the board that design and renovation expenses should be taken from the hospital's long-term investment...
Despite a high participation rate in the Petersburg Borough’s recycling program there is still too much recyclable material going to the baler facility, according to Public Works Superintendent Karl Hagerman. 95% of Petersburg’s 1,200 sanitation customers participate in the recycling program, but Hagerman says the waste diversion rate hovers around 16%. Hagerman wants to move that number to 30-50%. Recycling can make a significant difference in the cost of removing trash from Mitkof Island. The sanitation department pays $113/ton to ship garbag...
ANCHORAGE (AP) – An Alaska man suspected of killing two people during a robbery has been indicted on murder charges by a federal grand jury and prosecutors say they may seek the death penalty. John Pearl Smith II, 30, is charged with attempting to rob people he believed were trafficking in drugs, said Bryan Schroder, acting U.S. attorney for Alaska, at a press conference Thursday. Smith in home invasion cases tried robbing people at gunpoint in September 2015 and May 2016, Schroder said. Both were in the Matanuska-Susitna Valley north of Anchor...
March 30, 1917 – There will be English services at the church Sunday morning at 11:30 o’clock; Norwegian services at 7 o’clock in the evening; Sunday school at 10:30 a. m. Good Friday, Norwegian services at 7 p. m. At this service the Lord’s Supper will be administered. March 27, 1942 – With one candidate filing for mayor, and one for the school board, the only contest in the city election, scheduled for Tuesday, April 7, is that for a place on the Town Council. Here there are five filings, with three councilmen to be elected. March 31, 1967...
WRANGELL – Wrangell’s district representative for the State Legislature teleconferenced in late last week to update constituents on what’s going on in Juneau. Rep. Dan Ortiz (I-District 36) called in to Legislative Information Office locations in Ketchikan and Wrangell to explain ongoing bills and field questions on March 23. Likely the biggest issue on Alaska’s collective mind is its budget deficit, which by various measures is set to drain billions from the state’s savings this year. With spending left as is, the Legislative Finance Div...
The Sitka Sound herring sac roe fishery is closed for the season. The fishery was opened in northwest Sitka Sound on March 27 from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., and on March 28 from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon, as a controlled fishery. Preliminary hails from processors put the total harvest for these openings at 1,100 tons, with a cumulative harvest for the season of 14,600 tons. That was just under the guideline harvest level (GHL) proposed for the 2017 Sitka Sound sac roe herring fishery of 14,649...
The thought of hiring an out of town contractor to complete capital project work for the local utility is not fiscally sound and does less to benefit Petersburg’s beleaguered economy. Since the Power and Light Department has been operating without a third journeyman lineman for two years, it has been impossible for them to safely complete many construction projects they would normally take on. If PMP&L’s improvements were of a short-term nature, hiring a private firm to complete the work would be advantageous. However, the utility has pro...
Petersburg Power and Light is seeking to fill a vacant journeyman lineman position to enable the local crews to complete improvements and upgrades to the utility infrastructure. At a Friday morning work session Superintendent Joe Nelson told the Assembly his workers can complete the work at lower cost to the utility than hiring contract workers from Juneau. Nelson said Chatham Electric in Juneau could do the work at more than double the cost of local crews. A Chatham foreman would cost $175/hr and overtime would cost $242/hr. PMP&L’s foreman w...
Mar. 22 — Police responded to a disturbance call in the South Harbor and another on Birch St. Harassment was reported on N. Nordic Drive. Police made a traffic stop on S. 2nd St. A chimney fire was reported on Chief John Lott St. Mar. 23 — Suspicious activity was reported at Magills. Following traffic stop Jean S. McCay, 64 was cited for driving without a valid license. Police continue to investigate a report of suspicious activity on N. Nordic Drive. Mar. 24 — Police will file charges in court against a defendant observed in violation of co...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) – Alaskan Brewing Company’s plans to expand its Juneau-based facility could help spur the consolidation of the city’s waste services. The brewery is looking to purchase four lots owned by the City and Borough of Juneau for additional retail, storage or office space. The transfer would displace the city’s water utility and public drop-off area for household hazardous waste, The Juneau Empire reported. “We’re interested, so it could happen fairly quickly on our schedule,” said Alaskan Brewing Company spokesman Andy Kline, ...
Kake liquor store burglary reported – A burglary was reported at Kake Tribal Liquor Store on Sunday morning March 19. Forced entry was made through the back door. Alcohol valued at $983.23 was stolen and property damaged was valued at $600.00. Two suspects have been identified and the investigation by Alaska State Troopers is ongoing....
The Petersburg Cheer Squad finished off its season with a third-place win at State on March 22, after taking first place at Region V the week prior. "It's only our second year going back, since 2008," coach Becky Fortna said of the state-level competition. Due to the size of its squad, Petersburg High School competed in the large co-ed division, going up against three other teams. Fortna explained her cheerleaders had put on a good performance during the meet, and the time overall was...
Petersburg Medical Center hosted a luncheon to recognize employees for their service to the hospital on March 7. Miriam Swanson has served 25 years; Jennifer Bryner and Jenna Olsen for 20 years and Elizabeth Hart for 15 years. Recognized for 10 years service were Mamie Nilsen and Elise Kubo. Five-year employees were Angela Bertagnoli, Liz Thomas, Liz Woodyard, Helen Boggs, Shara McMullen, Mark Tuccillo, Skip Hallingstad and Elen Aase....
WRANGELL – The Wrangell Borough Assembly passed on first reading several ordinances related to marijuana, including an additional excise on that cultivated on the island. Under one proposed code change, a new section would affix a $10 tax per ounce on “the sale or transfer of all marijuana from a marijuana cultivation facility … to a retail marijuana store or a marijuana product manufacturing facility.” “The cultivator pays the tax,” explained city clerk, Kim Lane. It and the other ordinances were put together by a committee made up of Lane,...
KETCHIKAN (AP) – Construction is expected to start later this year on a nearly $6 million overhaul of University of Alaska Southeast Ketchikan’s Regional Maritime and Career Center. Wendy Miles Horn, the university’s assistant director of business operations and special projects, said the work is needed because the two buildings that make up the facility are inadequate, cramped and don’t measure up to U.S. Coast Guard and maritime-industry training standards. The renovations call for creating adequate space to house the industrial labs of the...
On March 27 Prince of Wales based Troopers received a report of an assault that had occurred several months prior. Due to the relationship of the suspect and victim, the alleged assault has been determined as domestic violence. The suspect in the alleged assault, Curtis Eisel, 47 of Craig was discovered to have three outstanding warrants for his arrest. Eisel was later located at a residence in Craig where he was arrested on the warrants and transported to the Craig jail. The investigation into the reported assault is ongoin...
The required permits are not yet in hand, but the U.S. Navy is moving full steam ahead on its plans to conduct war training exercises in the Gulf of Alaska for two weeks in early May. Meanwhile, nine coastal communities have so far signed resolutions asking the Navy to instead conduct its training between September and mid-March, times that are less sensitive to migrating salmon, birds and marine mammals. Several more communities have indicated they will do the same by month’s end. “It’s not that we don’t want the Navy to do their training – it...
WRANGELL – This year’s annual Tent City Days celebration will start tomorrow, opening up with the dog show at 5 p.m. Celebrating the town of Wrangell’s rustic beginnings, the annual late-winter festivity was held a bit later than usual this year due to scheduling conflicts. “I ain’t competing with the Super Bowl,” event organizer Kelly Gunderson joked. Involved with the festival in past years, she took organization of the celebration off the hands of Penny Allen, who in recent years has been working to revitalize it as a local event. For ma...
JUNEAU (AP) – Everyone has enemies. Cats have dogs. Mice have cats. Dust mites have vacuum cleaners. Seth Irwin has Scotch Tape. For the past few weeks and for a few more Irwin is preserving and protecting some of Alaska’s most precious documents. “Tape is my nemesis,” he said. “I spend a lot of time taking tape off of things. Painting conservators work with Monets; paper conservators deal with tape, and staples and rust . all the things office workers might put on documents.” Irwin might not be dealing with precious paintings, but the paper c...
JUNEAU (AP) – Alaska Gov. Bill Walker is sponsoring workers’ compensation legislation aimed at making it easier to determine whether someone is an employee or an independent contractor. Walker’s bill creates a new definition for independent contractors to determine if employers have to pay to insure against on-the-job injuries, KTOO-FM reported. The legislation has drawn criticism from Alaska’s Small Business Association, which says the new definition is too narrow for industries that rely heavily on independent contractors, such as constructio...
Chief Financial Officer Doran Hammett predicts March will be one of the strongest revenue months for Petersburg Medical Center. The prediction is based on all Long Term Care beds being filled and patient census numbers in February. Hammett added that March revenue could exceed March income for the past two years. “Cash is strong,” according to Hammett and PMC is showing a $500,000 positive cash flow as of Feb. 28 with 93.3 days of cash on hand. Cash on hand reflects the length of time the hospital can pay for operating expenses using only its...
Emma Lavaughn Young Llewellyn, 95, passed away at home in Petersburg, Alaska on March 25, 2017. She was born on October 18, 1921 in Monterey, Texas to Medford and Emma Parrott. She grew up in Nacogdoches County until the family moved to Houston during the Depression years. During those bad economic times she and her sister joined the All-Girl Band and played and sang at root beer stands in Houston. Lavaughn played the banjo. Lavaughn married Elroy Young Sr. in 1938 and they had one son, E.L.... Full story
Petersburg Boy Scout Troop 1024 spent spring break building igloos at Ravens Roost. Five Scouts, Owen Anderson, Tausauni Ieremia, Lathum Johnson, Reed Anderson and Britton Erickson were accompanied by Scout Master Jeff Erickson and adult leaders Bob Carter and Jason Anderson. The hike up to Ravens Roost is treacherous in any condition and was even harder with four feet of snow. Due to weather conditions they were delayed a day yet the second day they started up the hill not knowing if their...
