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The borough assembly voted in favor of amending borough code to add language for a civil emergency response in the ordinance's second reading at the assembly meeting on Wednesday. Ordinance #2020-19 updates language in the civil emergency provisions of municipal code to reflect the conception of the Petersburg Borough. Additionally, the ordinance adds language that isn't present in the municipal code that establishes actions the borough manager or incident commander can take during an...
American Cruise Lines has cancelled their voyages through Southeast Alaska this summer leaving Lindblad Expeditions as the last cruise line with port calls in Petersburg this summer. ACL had originally planned to make about 11 stops in Petersburg this summer, with the American Constellation making the cruise line's first stop at the end of June, according to a statement made to the Pilot in May by ACL CEO Charles B. Robertson. Paul Taiclet, vice president of ACL, said on Monday the decision to...
A visitor from outside of the state with COVID-19 was identified at the testing site at the James A. Johnson, according to a joint-statement between the Petersburg Borough and Petersburg Medical Center. The individual arrived in Petersburg on June 30, but overloaded laboratories in Washington led to a delay in the results of the test. According to the joint statement, the individual spent a few days with friends who were also non-residents at a United States Forest Service cabin in Beecher's Pas...
The borough assembly voted in favor of a memorandum of agreement between the Petersburg Borough and Petersburg Medical Center for an asymptomatic testing program at their assembly meeting on Wednesday. The agreement would allow the borough to fund an asymptomatic COVID-19 testing program through PMC with money from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act for cannery workers who live in town year round. The program is estimated to cost $177,800. There are no preventative measures...
Petersburg Police Chief Jim Kerr spoke in support of the Petersburg Police Department, in statement to the Pilot, while condemning the actions of Derek Chauvin, the Minneapolis police officer that held his knee on George Floyd's neck while in police custody. Kerr denied the Pilot an in person interview to talk about the ongoing national conversation about police reform, citing the opportunity for an officer to have what they say interpreted the wrong way in the current climate; however, he did s...
Upgrades to the Raven Trail are about 80 percent done, with construction expected to be completed by the end of the summer, said Petersburg District Ranger Ted Sandhofer. Reconstruction of the trail first began last summer. The second and third mile of the current Raven trail will be reconstructed to address steep, muddy and slippery locations on the trail, according to a decision memo released by the USFS. Sandhofer said the remaining work consists of replacing wooden steps with aluminum steps...
The borough assembly unanimously approved two emergency ordinances at a special meeting Thursday morning that cleared up a quorum problem. Ordinance #2020-20 retroactively establishes a quorum for the May and June assembly meetings, despite the assembly not meeting in person. Ordinance #2020-21 allows the assembly to telephonically establish a quorum for the next 60 days. A previous emergency ordinance approved by the assembly allowed them to meet a quorum telephonically, but it expired on...
The guideline harvest levels (GHLs) for the second fishing period (July 1–August 30) are 308,000 lb in District 6 and 250,000 lb in District 8, in accordance with the preseason GHL news release. Estimated harvest for the first fishing period (May 1–June 30) in District 6 was 282,000 lb. This harvest was 18,000 lb below the 300,000 lb GHL, thus 18,000 lb will be rolled over in addition to the 290,000 lb GHL announced preseason. Totals for coonstripe shrimp bycatch harvest to date in District 6 are confidential. Estimated harvest for the fir...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — A state court judge Friday denied a Juneau man’s request to block distribution of federal coronavirus relief aid under expanded rules proposed by Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s administration. Superior Court Judge Philip Pallenberg ruled Eric Forrer had not shown a “clear probability of success’’ on the merits in his underlying case. Even if Forrer had, Pallenberg in his order wrote he would not have blocked disbursement of funds amid the virus’ economic fallout. “The current situation is too grave, and the needs of Alaskans too gr...
SEWARD, Alaska (AP) — Center is in jeopardy of closing after concerns surrounding the coronavirus pandemic have drastically reduced visitation rates. A decision will be made on Oct. 1 regarding the future of the aquarium, KTUU-TV reported Monday. As revenue from visits has whittled, the center has seen the costs of caring for its more than 4,000 animals stay stagnant. The CEO of the Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward, Tara Reimer, said over half of the aquarium’s revenue comes from visitors. The SeaLife Center, Seward’s second-largest emplo...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — A Colorado company agreed to a $7 million cleanup plan for Alaska’s only uranium mine, which has left radioactive waste in the Tongass National Forest. Newmont Corporation is expected to fill the former Ross-Adams Mine in the Prince of Wales Island area, CoastAlaska reported Monday. A plan has been in the works for decades to close and clean the open pit mine area on the slopes of Bokan Mountain at the head of Kendrick Bay. The remote area is used by residents for fishing halibut and other activities, said Eric Rhodes of...
KETCHIKAN, Alaska (AP) — An Alaska city council approved a draft ordinance to protect equal rights for residents covering a range of personal, cultural and social circumstances. The first reading of an equal rights ordinance that passed last Thursday would prohibit discrimination based on factors including ethnicity, national origin, religion and marital status, The Ketchikan Daily News reported Tuesday. The ordinance would also protect citizens from discrimination stemming from disability, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, pr...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — The University of Alaska Board of Regents on Tuesday named Pat Pitney interim president, a position she is expected to hold at least a year while a search for a permanent president is underway. Pitney is expected to take over Aug. 1, according to a system release. Michelle Rizk has been acting president. Rizk was named to that position last month, after Jim Johnsen resigned. Pitney is director of the Legislative Finance Division, which provides budget and revenue analyses for the Legislature. She was budget director u...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Alaska is on track to repeat last year’s mark of the nation’s highest rate of tuberculosis infections, health officials said. There have been 38 reported cases of tuberculosis in the state so far this year, The Anchorage Daily News reported. A federal report released in March said Alaska had 58 documented cases of the disease in 2019. COVID-19 has complicated the mission of eradicating tuberculosis in Alaska by reducing the public health resources that can be dedicated to fighting the illness caused by bacteria that...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A neglected site where the Alaska territorial flag was designed, sewn and first flown will be demolished despite last-minute efforts by Alaskans and a preservation group to save it. The Seward City Council voted Monday to raze the Jesse Lee Home, once a Methodist-run facility where orphans and other displaced children from Alaska Native villages were sent, many after the Spanish Flu epidemic of a century ago. The home’s most famous resident was Benny Benson, a 13-...
Governor Dunleavy’s controversial selections to the state Board of Fisheries (BOF) will get a legislative hearing in early fall and the call is out for public comments. The board oversees management of the state’s subsistence, commercial, sport and personal use fisheries. Appointments were made on April 1 and would normally go through a vigorous vetting process by the Alaska legislature with public input. But COVID-19 sent lawmakers home early from the last session, leaving the confirmation process in limbo. Now, Representative Louise Stutes (R...
King Salmon New regional king salmon regulations were issued on July 10th, increasing king salmon bag, possession, and annual limits. From now through August 15th the following regional king salmon regulations are in effect: Alaska resident: • Daily bag and possession limit of 4 king salmon, 28 inches or greater in length. Nonresident: • Daily bag and possession limit of 2 king salmon, 28 inches or greater in length. • Annual limit of 6 king salmon. Anglers are reminded that, when harvesting any species which has an annual limit they must...
Winston, a rescue dog from Texas, spending time onboard the F/V Deam Maid. He came to Alaska after his owner's college campus in Idaho closed down due to COVID-19....
July 16, 1920 The health board was instructed to pick out a site and prepare plans for a pest house and present data at the next meeting. It was represented that smallpox has been raging in Wrangell for the past six months and that at any time it is liable to be brought to Petersburg. Health officer Carothers offered to vaccinate all who desired free of charge if the city will pay for the vaccine. The council voted to supply the vaccine for all free vaccinations as a precautionary measure and passed a resolution urging everyone to be...
It's simple math To the Editor: Here is some simple math for the local folks who don't want to wear masks because of their constitutional "rights" and because a 1% COVID-19 mortality rate is no big deal. How can a disease with 1% mortality shut down the United States? There are two problems with this question: It neglects the law of large numbers; and it assumes that one of two things happen; you die or you're 100% fine. The US has a population of 328,200,000. If one percent of the population di...
We love public comments. So do public officials, in both elected and administrative positions. It's a part of the public process and the resulting discussions are critical to maintaining the democratic process that holds communities together. At Wednesday's assembly meeting, some were critical of a proposed ordinance that amended the provisions of the Borough Code on civil emergencies. Some comments were civil in their presentation but one writer felt the need to threaten elected officials with...
The following editorial was posted to the newspaper website on Monday, July 13. My goodness. Doesn't anyone pay attention to the details? Short-term mandates proposed by the Petersburg Emergency Operations Center are necessary to prevent the spread of the Corona virus and resulting Covid-19 infections. Some mandates are voluntary. Some are short-term. Some are longer term. The borough assembly establishes termination dates for all legislation they enact. The EOC is granted its authority by the...
July 8 — Extra patrols were requested on Mitkof Highway, Gjoa St. and Skylark Way. A theft was reported at a location on Mitkof Highway. Thomas Olsen was charged with failure to transfer/register vehicle title. July 9 — Suspicious activity was observed at a location on Haugen Dr. Authorities responded to an intoxicated individual at South Boat Harbor. July 10 — Harassment was reported at a location on Fram St. Authorities responded to a report of trespassing at a location on 2nd St. Disturbances were reported at locations on Mitkof Highw...
Orion Fenner, 38, of Petersburg was issued two misdemeanor summons for commercial gillnetting closed waters on July 9. Fenner is the owner and permit holder aboard the F/V Commando. Arraignment is scheduled for Aug. 12 in the Petersburg District Court. The Alaska Wildlife Troopers issued a citation to Matt Nilsen, 56, of Petersburg for undersize escapement rings on commercial crab gear on June 23. Arraignment is set in Hoonah District Court on 7/16/2020....
Over the course of a week in early June, Teresa Stolpe did some landscaping work in front of the Petersburg Fire Department. She laid down wood chips on top of landscaping fabric to prevent the weeds from growing back and she also placed rocks around the border. As a decoration, she connected a fire hose to an old fire hydrant from Wrangell Ave. and laid it across the ground. Fire and EMS Director Sandy Dixson said the department doesn't have a landscaper, so either she or one of the volunteers...
