Sorted by date Results 1 - 23 of 23
The State of Alaska Department of Education and Early Development (ADEED) cancelled statewide testing assessments last Friday. Multiple interruptions and glitches affected testing in Petersburg schools. According to a department press release, the computer based Alaska Measures of Progress (AMP) tests were interrupted beginning Tuesday when a construction worker accidentally severed a fiber optic cable at the University of Kansas. “The university houses the state’s testing vendor, the Achievement & Assessment Institute,” the release state... Full story
(Story updated at 5 p.m. Friday, April 8) A Cessna 206 crashed on southern Admiralty Island in Southeast Alaska on Friday morning. The Cessna is registered to Wrangell air service Sunrise Aviation, and had departed from Wrangell Friday morning. U.S. Coast Guard rescue controller Nick Meyer reported that the Cessna 206’s satellite distress signal went off at 9:28 a.m., and that the crashed plane was spotted at 11:25 a.m. about 20 miles southeast of Angoon. Petty Officer 1st Class Shawn Eggert with the USCG Public Affairs Detachment was able t... Full story
The Community Health Fair is kicking off this Saturday, April 9 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m at the Petersburg Community Gym. Around 30 vendors will set up information booths where you can check your hearing and blood pressure and receive vaccines. Public Health Nurse Erin Michael will give TDAP (Tetanus, Diptheria, Pertussis) boosters, but make sure you bring a copy of your shot records. Other vendors will present information about exercise, boat safety and independent living for older adults. Petersburg Medical Clinic Lab and Imaging director Liz... Full story
The Petersburg Ragnarök Rollers earned the championship at the team's second bout of the season last weekend in Ketchikan. Petersburg took on the Sitka Shee Devils and Ketchikan Rainforest Rollergirls during the one-day tournament, and it was two skaters' first competitive bout. "It was going into the unknown, but overall it was an amazing experience," says Sheena Cook, one of the girls skating in a bout for the first time. "I thought it was going to be super stressful, but everybody just kind... Full story
April 8, 1916 – The application for injunction in the matter of the Petersburg light plant came up for hearing in district court at Juneau before Judge Jennings. The case was handled for the town by Attorney John Rustgard and for the Petersburg Packing Company, plaintiff, by Attorney W. A. Holzheimer. Mayor Pryer and Councilmen Brennan, Hogue Johnson, Bruce, and City Treasurer Tveten were in attendance as witnesses for the defense; for the plaintiff company, L. Kracke and T. S. Elsemore. Owing to the case being called late in the afternoon, t...
Last week’s story about the state budget stated that municipalities across Alaska are already facing decreased revenue sharing from the state. In Petersburg that amounts to a loss of $30 million from the normal $60 million it receives in revenue sharing. Those numbers reflect statewide cuts, not local cuts. Locally, the Petersburg Borough is facing roughly $170,000 less in revenue sharing. The Pilot regrets the error....
The Petersburg Borough Assembly will begin approving a draft version of a marijuana ordinance at its first meeting in May after Assembly Member Eric Castro suggested they get going with the process. “In order to allow the entrepreneurs in town to give them the time before the state really starts to accept the permits I feel it’s our due diligence to get this ordinance passed however we see fit after the three readings to give the public the amount of time they need to come up with their business models,” Castro said. The assembly has been solic...
Petersburg Medical Center long-term care residents last month expressed an interest in increasing gardening opportunities, and possibly forming a gardening club. PMC activities coordinator Janna Machalek said residents have two tables in the solarium dedicated to gardening and several planters full of dirt. "The residents have planted kale, peppers, tomatoes, and radishes so far," Machalek said. "They have transplanted some mint and basil starts. Residents who are interested keep an eye on the...
Juneau — The Juneau Community Foundation announces that the Douglas-Dornan Foundation Fund is seeking 2016 grant applications. The Douglas- Dornan Foundation awards financial grants one time each year to non-profit organizations and their employees that benefit and enhance the health, education and welfare of individuals in Southeast Alaska. Examples of possible Foundation financial support include, but are not limited to: • Non-profit charitable organizations, social service agencies, childcare institutions, foster parent programs and ear...
March 30 A driver was given a warning for failure to use a turn signal. A caller reported hearing two gun shots fired. An officer responded. Kelsa M. Sperl, 17, was issued a citation for expired registration. An officer gave a warning to an individual for blocking the highway without having a person directing traffic. Marsha Fernandez, 65, returned to custody. A caller reported suspicious activity in a business. An officer reported a possible probation violation. A caller reported an individual yelling and flipping people off. March 31 Mary...
The Sitka Sound sac roe herring fishery closed for the season a little sooner than expected last week, without meeting the quota set by Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADFG). The preliminary total harvest for the season is approximately 10,000 tons, which leaves about 4,700 of the guideline harvest level (GHL) unharvested, according to a ADFG news release. The reason for the early closure on March 29 was test samples showing an increasing mix of smaller herring. The result of smaller herring is a decreased value of addition harvest. On...
Ten members of the Petersburg High School track and field team traveled to Anchorage to open up the 2016 season last weekend. It was the team's first time partaking in the Big C Relays, an event put on by the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Coach Brad Taylor says the indoor event is one of a kind, drawing over 1,000 track and field athletes, and the largest meet Petersburg has ever participated in. There was a team from California that made the trip north and brought 50 athletes, joining 1A/2A...
Petersburg Borough Assembly members face tough decisions when it comes to funding local community service organizations, especially amid concerns over decreased state funding. The decrease in revenue from the state along with the possibility of an increase in public employee retirement (PERS) contributions dominated much of the discussion Monday as the Borough Assembly advanced the budget in its second reading. The Senate Finance Committee proposed a bill last week that would increase local PERS contributions from its current 22 percent to...
JUNEAU (AP) — The Alaska education department announced Friday that it is canceling its computer-based statewide student assessments this year, citing technical disruptions and concerns with the validity of the results. Federal rules call for state education departments to administer standards-based tests for students in grades three through eight and once in high school, but they also say the tests are to be high quality, valid and reliable and of adequate technical quality, interim Commissioner Susan McCauley said. “I do not believe at this p...
JUNEAU (AP) — State officials in Alaska are proposing a program to address high-cost health insurance claims in hopes of stabilizing rising rates on the individual policy market. Just two companies — Premera Blue Cross Blue Shield and Moda Health Plan Inc. — serve the individual market in Alaska and have filed for double-digit rate increases each of the past two years. State officials say that's not sustainable. They hope that reviving a high-risk pool to handle claims for the costliest conditions will bring some relief. The idea is to sprea...
JUNEAU (AP) — A House fisheries committee advanced a rewrite of Gov. Bill Walker's fisheries tax bill on Tuesday, diverting half of the potential revenue into a seafood marketing fund. The bill, one of six proposed taxes on industries from Walker, could raise an additional $18 million in revenue by adding a one percent tax increase to portions of the commercial fishing industry. The new language requires that one-half of the tax increase to be deposited into a newly created Alaska Seafood Marketing Fund. The legislature is also given the o...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — The Alaska Oil and Gas Association has announced that the state had its first year-over-year increase in oil production in more than a decade. KTUU-TV reports that the figures provided by the Alaska Department of Revenue show that oil production between April 2015 and March 2016 was nearly one percent higher from the previous year. The state has not seen a yearly increase in oil production since 2002. A spokeswoman for the associatoin, Sarah Erkmann, says the growth can be attributed to tax changes approved by the s...
ANCHORAGE (AP) — A Wasilla man fleeing Alaska State Troopers was taken into custody after he was shot by a homeowner. The 24-year-old man was treated and released for a non-life-threatening injury and remained jailed Thursday. Troopers forwarded details of the shooting to the district attorney's office for review. The incident began when an officer just before 4 p.m. Wednesday tried to stop a pickup for an equipment violation in Wasilla. The driver sped off and passed a school bus with red lights activated. The man jumped out, ran through y...
JUNEAU (AP) — The Alaska House has rejected Senate changes to a marijuana bill and voted to have House and Senate negotiators work on a compromise. The version of HB 75 that passed the House last year is different from what passed the Senate in February. The Senate version incorporates provisions sought by the Marijuana Control Board to allow for national criminal history checks for marijuana business applicants. It lowers from the House bill the household limit for marijuana plants and would prohibit pot businesses from operating in u...
Alaska fishermen can send an SOS call directly to the Coast Guard, but many are not hooking up to the new lifeline. Digital Selective Calling (DSC) instantly signals a distress call over VHF radios to other vessels, and the feature has been a required part of the hand-held units since 1996. In Alaska, the ability for mariners to hook up with the Coast Guard was acquired just last year when transceiver and antenna ‘high sites’ in Southeast and South Central regions came on line (more are scheduled soon). “There was a lot of rumor going aroun...
The 6th Annual Circle of Life Run/Walk will take place April 23 at Sandy Beach, and the entire community is invited to participate. The event offers the opportunity to celebrate the lives of those who have battled cancer and remember loved ones lost. “It is a time to grieve, a time to find healing and a time to celebrate,” says Michele Parker. “It really is a community event where people can bring their kids, strollers, dogs. It's for everyone.” Parker says the event represents the hope that those lost to cancer will never be forgotten. It also...
WRANGELL - In an agreement reached March 24, the University of Alaska will be cooperating with Petersburg High School and the Wrangell Ranger District to conduct research at LeConte Glacier. Under the arrangement, the project will be undertaken by university researchers making third-party use of the high school's special use permit issued by USFS' Alaska regional office. The university's study will monitor the dynamics, glacial runoff and subglacial discharge of LeConte Glacier. It discharges...
