Sorted by date Results 1 - 20 of 20
The availability and affordability of housing in Petersburg Borough and the effects of a changing age composition of the borough’s population were two emerging themes highlighted in a report released Feb. 20 by Agnew Beck, the consulting firm heading up the borough’s new Comprehensive Plan. The report outlines challenges and opportunities in nine key areas that spring from residents’ feedback at the consultants’ last visit to town in December as well as a community-wide survey that closed last month. Over 350 individuals, more than 10 percent... Full story
Petersburg Indian Association (PIA) announced the departure of Tribal Administrator Bobbi Scherrer in a press release yesterday. Scherrer’s position and two part-time positions will be eliminated from PIA due to a budget deficit. “My first act as Tribal Administrator was to formalize an operating budget for PIA,” Scherrer said in the release. “The 2015 finalized budget identified a deficit that required serious cuts.” Scherrer has been serving as the tribal administrator for about one month. In a February interview, she told the Pilot she... Full story
The Mitkof Middle School wrestlers are the 3A champs and they placed second overall in the Region V Tournament held Feb. 20-21 in Ketchikan. Five wrestlers earned champion titles: Brekin Davis in the 90-pound weight class, Israel Collison in the 95, Kole Sperl in the 85, Alex Worhatch in the 100 and Matthew Espeseth in the 210. Head Coach Rob Schwartz said it was both those top placements and the overall performance of all of the 23 wrestlers on the team this year that contributed to the... Full story
February 20, 1915 – There was a big attendance at the Firemen’s Annual Ball last Saturday night. The band opened with several numbers, and dance music was furnished by an orchestra of eight pieces. In a brief address, Mayor Finch expressed the thanks of the fire boys for the good attendance, and their appreciation of the presence of a big delegation of Wrangell folks. Arthur F. Stanhope responded in behalf of the visitors. February 23, 1940 – Delegates of the Vessel Owners Association and the Deep Sea Fishermen’s Union are holding their a...
After two years of work Petersburg Mental Health Services (PMHS) has earned a three-year accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF). This is the first such accreditation PMHS has earned from the international accrediting body. “This has been a process we’ve been working on for two years,” said PHMS Executive Director Susan Ohmer. The organization began undergoing the accreditation process in 2013 as part of a state mandate for grantees of behavioral health services. Since then PMHS staff, heade...
The Petersburg High School shop class recently finished making 19 new log books for the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) cabins in the area using the computer numerical controlled (CNC) router put into service at the school in the fall of 2013. The shop class, lead by teacher Nick Popp, has been using the CNC router to produce signage for the Petersburg Borough and other organizations around town. The partnership between the USFS and the school began the idea for such collaborations, and also helped...
JUNEAU (AP) — Alaska on Tuesday became the third U.S. state to legalize the recreational use of marijuana for adults, but it was a subdued milestone. Unlike in Colorado and Washington state, there were no street parties and public smoking displays in Alaska’s biggest cities. But backers of legal pot said the mild reaction was fitting because they are aiming to promote responsible consumption of marijuana as they work with lawmakers during the next few months in preparing its sale. “We wish people would just celebrate in a little less publi...
JUNEAU (AP) — Questions to ponder as Alaska legalizes marijuana: HOW DID LEGALIZATION HAPPEN? Alaskans voted 53-47 percent in November to legalize marijuana use by adults in non-public places. Possession and transportation of up to an ounce of pot, and growing up to six plants, half of which can be mature, are legal as of Feb. 24. The state has nine more months to create regulations for a commercial marijuana industry whose pot will be sold and taxed. BUT WASN’T POT ALREADY LEGAL IN ALASKA? Yes and no. A 1975 Alaska Supreme Court decision pro...
February 18 A caller reported individuals stealing property. February 19 An officer responded to a verbal disturbance. Ira H. Morgan, 29, was arrested on charges of Assault IV Domestic Violence. February 20 Police received a report of an individual entering a residence and trying to rough up the resident there. Suspicious activity in North Harbor was reported. A minor parking accident was reported in the Mountain View Manor parking lot. An officer responded to a report of suspicious persons trespassing. The suspects moved on upon officer...
February 19 Magistrate Judge Desiree Burrell granted Ex Parte Stalking Orders for Michelle Parker against Jase M. Payne and Dustin L. Haviland. A long-term hearing was set for March 11. February 20 Ira Morgan appeared before Magistrate Judge Desiree Burrell for an arraignment. The defendant pleaded guilty to a charge of Assault IV Domestic Violence. Bail was set at $2,000 and the defendant must comply with the following conditions of release: receive a mental health evaluation, no contact with involved parties, do not leave Petersburg and other...
Lieutenant Governor Byron Mallott filed an emergency regulation Feb. 24 defining what “in public” means in the Alaska statute that make the consumption,possession, transport and transfer of marijuana legal. A meno from Mallot’s office reads: “Alaska Statue 17.38.010 expressly makes it unlawful to ‘consume marijuana in public.’ Alaska Statute 17.38.040 defines ‘consumption’ as ‘the act of ingesting, inhaling, or otherwise introducing marijuana into the human body.’ But AS 17.38 does not define ‘in public.’” “This emergency regulation is nec...
An enhanced Clausen Museum will reopen to the public March 3 after being closed since mid-January for staff to work on projects. Director Brittany Zenge has been taking inventory of the museum's collection and building new displays, along with making preparations for a new discovery center that will allows kids of all ages to learn more about the natural world of Mitkof Island. Zenge took the director position last October and said the revamp is a response to feedback she's heard about the...
Petersburg High School sophomore Brandy Mulbury will be traveling to Washington D.C. this summer to participate in the National Student Leadership Conference (NSLC). The NSLC invites a select group of high schoolers from across the U.S. and around the world to participate in summer programs that develop leadership skills and allow students to further explore their interests while giving them an experience of college life. Mulbury will stay on the campus of American University as a participant of...
The Petersburg Girl Scouts participated in World Thinking Day on Saturday at the Catholic church. This year's theme was "we can create peace through partnerships." The local troop participated in the worldwide event by making a peace wreath from construction paper cutouts of their hand prints and doing a collaborative art project. Pictured are (front row, from left) Stella Walton, Hannah Slavin, Samara Olson, Andrea Weathers, Alicia Kittams, Torey Fry, Ashley Eilenberger, Julia Murph, Paulina...
JUNEAU (AP) — Alaska’s minimum wage will rise to $8.75 an hour Tuesday, giving a pay increase to thousands of workers. Voters in November overwhelmingly approved raising the minimum wage from $7.75 per hour to $8.75 per hour, effective Jan. 1. Because the state constitution calls for ballot measures to take effect 90 days after election results are certified, the raise doesn’t take effect until Tuesday. A second increase, to $9.75 per hour, is scheduled to take effect Jan. 1 under the initiative. The minimum wage is to be adjusted for infla...
JUNEAU (AP) — A review of the commission that regulates commercial fisheries participation in Alaska details inefficiencies, a backlog of permit applications and options for restructuring. The report requested by former Gov. Sean Parnell reviewed operations of the three-member Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission. That board decides how many fishermen can participate in a limited fishery and who receives the permits. Parnell requested the review in August after the Legislature sought its own audit. It was written by Tom Lawson, former d...
Last year was one of the busiest years ever for Alaska brokers who help fishermen buy, sell and trade fishing permits and quota shares. “I was really happy to see such a good mix of permits we were selling – it wasn’t just one thing,” said Olivia Olsen of Alaskan Quota and Permits in Petersburg. “We had a lot of Dungeness crab permits, charter halibut permits, salmon and shrimp permits, sea cucumbers, and then whatever IFQs we could find.” Salmon permit sales peak from March through May, and early indicators point to lower salmon prices this...
