Articles from the November 19, 2015 edition


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  • Public tires of intentional litter across Petersburg

    Kyle Clayton|Nov 19, 2015

    Amidst the more commonplace reports of neighbors playing loud music or callers reporting "suspicious activity" in the Petersburg Pilot's police report, another complaint is making a regular appearance. The complaint, or some variation of it, has appeared in the police report nearly every week for the past several months: "A caller reported religious pamphlets littered along the roadway." The litter or pamphlets, as reported, consist of two tracts, about the size of Monopoly money and around 20... Full story

  • Hammer and Wikan grocery store hoping to expand

    Kyle Clayton|Nov 19, 2015

    Hammer and Wikan is attempting to purchase land from the Petersburg Borough in order to expand the square footage of their grocery store. The expansion process would double the size of the back room of the store, and move the receiving dock from the front parking lot of the store to the rear of the building. “It would make it a lot easier to get around, it would give us more room,” says Larry Martin, CEO of Hammer and Wikan. “We would be able to put a lot of Costco products in there.” Martin says the Hammer and Wikan board of directors began t... Full story

  • Yesterday's News

    Nov 19, 2015

    November 20, 1915 – The building of the board walk along the beach at Scow Bay was completed last Saturday, and Olaf Arness has notified J. C. Hays, of the road commission, that the job is ready for inspection. The walk is 5,820 feet in length. Although the specifications called for but two planks in width for part of the way, Mr. Arness used three planks the entire length of the walk, and also renewed numerous portions of the old single planking. This extra work and material cost him about $50, which he contributed, in addition to taking t...

  • Shoe boxes help underprivileged children celebrate Christmas

    Jess Field|Nov 19, 2015

    The president of the Ministerial Association Bob Carter, is also the pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, and he oversees the Samaritan's Purse local Operation Christmas Child program. The annual program brings local churches and community members together to fill up shoe boxes with meaningful gifts for underprivileged children living in poverty. "It's been picking up every year, and the folks in town are very enthusiastic about these boxes," Carter says. "We have some people that go... Full story

  • To the Editor:

    Nov 19, 2015

    Sealaska has shamed themselves To the Editor: Last week in Petersburg, Alaska's newest environmental group 'The Greater Southeast Alaska Conservation Community,' (gsacc.net) gave a slide show on the latest industrial logging now taking place on state land, Sealaska land and other land grant interests. The slideshow consisted of images from 'Google Earth' satellite overviews of Sealaska lands on the Cleveland Peninsula, and also on P.O.W.'s Election Creek and other examples. Needless to say, the push to privatize land from the Tongass National...

  • The fun continues

    randpa Ron|Nov 19, 2015

    Grandparenthood is just as good the second time around. A bit over five years ago our first grandson, Craig, arrived. Last Friday, as in Friday the 13th, our second grandchild was born. Abby Jo was born to the daughter who had proclaimed that motherhood was not on her agenda. Don't plan on it. Things seldom go as planned, and we're so happy about that. As is customary with Petersburg babies, they're born someplace else. Casey and Beth have spent several weeks in Juneau awaiting the arrival of...

  • Police reports

    Nov 19, 2015

    November 11 A caller brought in a concerned item for disposal. A caller reported a cat being a nuisance to the neighborhood. A caller reported two intoxicated individuals stumbling near traffic. A caller reported their daughter being harassed at school by an adult. November 12 Police issued a citation to Cindi Lagoudakis, 61, for speeding on Mitkof Hwy. November 14 A caller reported suspected drug activity and an unlicensed driver. A caller requested help with getting a cat out of a tree. Police received a report of two people yelling at each o...

  • Courts

    Nov 19, 2015

    November 5 Clifton Gudgel appeared before Superior Court Judge Stephens for an arraignment on a Petition to Revoke Probation. The court set a $2,500 cash performance bond among other conditions of release. Jay Thomassen appeared before Magistrate Judge Burrell on a charge of Assault 4 DV. The court reviewed conditions of release and amended Thomassen’s travel restriction to leave the state. November 9 Randall Wilson appeared before Superior Court Judge Carey for an arraignment on charges of Burglary 1 and two counts of Assault 3. The d...

  • School staff and admin wonder what's next with tests

    Kyle Clayton|Nov 19, 2015

    Petersburg School District administrators and teachers are wondering what's next after the state released results from the new Alaska Measures of Progress (AMP) testing assessments. PSD students scored higher than the state average, but scores in every grade were below the median level in mathematics. (Note that median is not a measure of average, but the middle number in any list of numbers and is sometimes more accurate than an average score if data is relatively skewed.) Fifty percent of...

  • School district receives results from a recent student and staff survey

    Jess Field|Nov 19, 2015

    The results of the 2015 School Climate and Connectedness Survey Report are in and have given the Petersburg School District a gauge of how the district is perceived to be operating. It was a survey taken last spring by students and staff. They answered a different set of questions based on multiple categories like peer climate and school safety. Funding for the survey went through the district’s healthy living grant, and was administered by the Alaska Association of School Boards. “The initial reaction is good,” says Principal Rich Dorme...

  • Setting the scene

    Nov 19, 2015

    The Mitkof Mummers have been hard at work all month preparing their fall production, a musical for kids of all ages called The Elves and the Shoemaker. The all-volunteer cast is a mix of experienced performers, including co-directors Mary Ellen Anderson and Irene Littleton, alongside numerous talented newcomers. The troupe will perform three shows this weekend in Wright Auditorium....

  • Petersburg wrestling gains valuable mat action in Craig

    Jess Field|Nov 19, 2015

    Viking wrestlers headed to Craig last weekend for three days of nonstop matches with teams including Craig, Ketchikan, Mt. Edgecumbe and Wrangell. Fourteen wrestlers made the trip and many of them got ten or more matches in a scramble style tournament, according to assistant coach Robert Schwartz. “It’s been kind of a rough season, but it was a good weekend,” he says. “Lots of experience and time on the mat.” Israel Collison won most of his matches with pins, and his technique continues to improve. Collison lost to the number one wrestler in th...

  • Wrangell fisherman found dead; vessel still missing

    Dan Rudy|Nov 19, 2015

    WRANGELL - At 2:18 pm on Wednesday, following a search by the United States Coast Guard and Alaska State Troopers, the body of an adult white male was located floating in Earl West Cove approximately 12 air miles southeast of Wrangell. The body was transported and positively identified as Kenneth Trammel by next of kin in Wrangell. The body will be transported to the State Medical Examiner's Office for autopsy. The vessel has not been located. Relatives of 53-year-old Kenneth Trammel reported...

  • Study raises alarms about Wrangell's power infrastructure

    Dan Rudy|Nov 19, 2015

    WRANGELL —Wrangell’s power infrastructure may be on the blink if left as it is, according to an electric system study presented in June. Conducted by Juneau-area consultancy Electric Power Systems, the study identified a number of infrastructural needs Wrangell will need to focus on over the coming five years. The two largest problems it identified were the state of Wrangell’s utility poles and its backup power generation capabilities. Most of the borough’s utility poles have reached or surpassed their life expectancy. Fifty percent are mor...

  • Alaska politicians eye sacred oil checks amid budget deficit

    Nov 19, 2015

    JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) —Alaska is facing multibillion-dollar deficits amid chronically low oil prices and relying on savings to help balance the budget. That's not sustainable, and is leaving first-term Gov. Bill Walker with some tough choices as he drafts the next budget. One of those decisions could reduce the amount of the yearly check nearly every Alaskan receives just for living in the state. The dividend, long seen as political dynamite to anyone who tries to tinker with it, could be affected as state leaders look for ways to close the g...

  • USFS cabin rates to increase

    Nov 19, 2015

    In a media release last month, the United States Forest Service Alaska Region announced it is proposing a system-wide cabin rental fee adjustments for the Chugach and Tongass national forests. The two forests are managed by 13 ranger districts, which together maintain 184 cabins year-round for public use. For visitors and residents alike, public cabins become the hub for a variety of recreational trips, from nature walks, family gatherings, hunting and sport fishing to subsistence use. Cabins are most regularly booked during the summer and...

  • New director begins work at Clausen Museum

    Kyle Clayton|Nov 19, 2015

    The Clausen Museum Board hired Petersburg local Kathi Riemer as the new Museum Director this month. Riemer, retired administrator from the Juneau School District, said she plans to bring her skills from that position to the museum. "I have a lot of experience with the administrative part and the people," Riemer said. "I'm from here and I know a lot of the history. My kids are fourth generation graduates of Petersburg High School." Riemer spent the past several days moving into her new office,...