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WRANGELL — The Forest Service held a public input session with Wrangell residents last week, as it puts together ideas for a 10- to 15-year project to benefit the Wrangell and Petersburg districts of the Tongass National Forest. The Central Tongass Landscape Level Analysis would plan for a major project on a large scale that would increase the number of activities authorized in a single analysis and decision. It reflects a larger effort nationwide to improve the USFS environmental analysis process, and the approach is hoped to allow site-specif...
Elmer C. (Butch) Whitethorn Jr., 75 peacefully passed away on March 7, 2018 in his one and only hometown, Petersburg, Alaska. He was born to Elmer C. Whitethorn and Margaret (Sis) Roundtree in Petersburg on December 26, 1942. He grew up at his parent's house and was part of the original Lumber Street gang. Some days you could see him zipping through town driving a little red car that his Dad built for him out of Crosley automobile parts. Butch graduated from Petersburg High School in 1961. He sp... Full story
Four Petersburg young men were awarded the Eagle Scout honor at a ceremony on Monday, coming after more than a decade of scouting each, about 325 requirements and at least 21 badges. The Eagle Scouts, Van Abbott, Britton Erickson, Charles Christensen and Anders Christensen were honored in front of about 100 people at the House Cross House, a ceremony that included congratulatory remarks from their dads. "It's really amazing that four people would come through the same troop and get their eagles...
WRANGELL — The United States Forest Service is developing a new initiative for the Wrangell and Petersburg districts, encompassing state and private lands in addition to those managed federally. Tongass National Forest supervisor Earl Stewart last month issued a call for participation to the general public, seeking input on the Central Tongass Landscape Level Analysis. The announcement explains the purpose of the CTLLA will be to in a single analysis and decision plan a spatially large project for both districts, at the same time increasing t...
Petersburg’s assembly on Monday voted against issuing a permit to allow a private hauler to pay for a second boat ramp at Scow Bay, saying it would set a precedent open for too much interpretation. John Murgas, owner of Island Ventures LLC, applied for a special use permit to install a second boat ramp at Scow Bay. His proposed ramp would nudge-up against a jetty, which would, he says, create safer launching and hauling of boats. “A single mishap,” Murgas wrote in his permit application, “while loading or launching a vessel due to souther...
Lack of support from KSTK public radio listeners and businesses in Wrangell may bring ownership changes to the station. A public notice published in last week’s Wrangell Sentinel foreshadows the transfer of radio station assets to CoastAlaska in Juneau. CoastAlaska provides administrative support and other services for seven Southeast public radio stations including KSTK. Reductions in grant revenue and local donations, has made the station’s financial situation untenable. We’re not convinced that moving the station’s operations to CoastAl...
Burl Weller, 73, lost his fight with lung cancer on Dec. 7, 2017 in Fairbanks, Alaska. He was born in Sabina, Ohio to Orville and Juniata Weller on Feb. 1, 1944. He had four siblings, Barbra Jenstead, Orville Weller, Beverly Morlend, and Bobby Weller. Airman Weller served in the U.S. Air Force from 1963-1966. He received the Air Force Commendation Medal for working under extremely adverse conditions, sporadic sniper fire by day and hostile attack at night, to provide security for an important... Full story
WRANGELL — The regional forest supervisor with the United States Forest Service issued a final decision on the Wrangell Island timber sale project on Monday. Addressing a number of objections to the project as it was proposed last year, the scope of the sale approved by the Tongass National Forest supervisor’s office in Ketchikan will be but a fraction of what it had been. Among five alternatives presented, it was Alternative 2 which the USFS opted for. Of the plans, it had the greatest amounts of acreage and timber deemed to be sus...
Keith Alexander, 66, died at home in bed on July 26, 2017 in Petersburg, Alaska. He loved cribbage, music, silly jokes, his friends-not necessarily in that order-but above all else, he loved the Lord. He was fearless in sharing his faith and stood up for his beliefs, often at personal cost. He ever wanted to bring all our churches together. Keith was born in Washington, DC on Dec. 3, 1950 to James and Nadine Alexander. He excelled in school and was recognized for academics, sports, and music.... Full story
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Backers of a hydroelectric dam proposed for a lake southeast of Juneau say construction could start as soon as summer 2018 following the U.S. Forest Service’s latest action. The Juneau Empire reports that the Forest Service approved on Friday a special land-use agreement for Juneau Hydropower Inc., which is planning to build a 111-foot-tall (34-meter) concrete dam at the outlet of Lower Sweetheart Lake. The dam would be built above a series of waterfalls that block natural salmon passage into the lake. The project has alr...
WRANGELL — At its regular meeting Tuesday, the Borough Assembly approved moving ahead with seeking a consultant on the hospital’s future, while members also learned city computers had been targeted by a hacking attack. A letter recommending hiring a consultant had been submitted to the city by the Wrangell Medical Center governing board last month. Currently the hospital is a municipal service, but recent cash flow troubles and sizable costs for a replacement facility have had administrators and elected officials alike considering other alter...
WRANGELL — A final decision on the Wrangell Island timber sale is expected out next week, wrapping up years of deliberation and planning. Citing objections to the economics and ecological impacts of its preferred plan, the United States Forest Service has indicated it will be reducing total harvest for the proposed sale on Wrangell Island to around 428 acres, or 5- to 7-million board feet (mmbf) of timber. These would be sold piecemeal over the course of several years. Of five alternatives put forward, Alternative 2 had proposed around 55....
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) —Tourism leaders in Alaska are asking Congress to increase U.S. Forest Service recreation funding. Tourism leaders representing 49 businesses in Southeast Alaska wrote in an open letter last week that the U.S. Forest Service’s budget has shrunk by nearly half in a little more than a decade, hampering growth in southeast Alaska’s visitor industry. The U.S. Forest Service’s funding for recreation on the Tongass and Chugach national forests declined 46 percent from 2004-2014, the businesses said. That’s hurting businesse...
Ronnie Lee Duncan, 61, was born in Stockton, California on November 8, 1956 and grew up in a loving family. After school, he joined the United States Marine Corp. and after completing his time, received an honorable discharge from the service. Ronnie worked in trucking for a while. In the late 80s, he came to Alaska and worked on factory fishing boats. Ronnie moved to Petersburg in the early 90s where he continued working in the fishing industry until getting work with the U.S. Forest Service,...
Name: Richard Burke Age:38 Experience: Civil Engineer. US Navy Submarine Service Vet. 1998-2003. AAS in Civil Engineering Technology, Mount Hood Community College 2005, BS Forest Engineering, Oregon State University 2010. Lived in Petersburg for 7 years. 5 years in Petersburg Volunteer Fire Department. 2 years on Petersburg Borough Planning & Zoning with a very good attendance record. I wrote Proposition 6 on this ballot. Why do you seek public office? I love Petersburg, and I think I can make...
After years of filming, Jeff Mittelstadt was able to offer a private screening to about 140 people in Petersburg, the town which supported the making of his whirlwind documentary, "Staring Down Fate." Mittelstadt had an idea in 2011 to put together a series of short films on the red wolf conflict in North Carolina. He would make an interactive online documentary with graphics to illuminate the science and economics of the red wolf, while telling the stories of people on all sides of the issue....
Forest Service System Road 43501 on the Tonka road system is closed to motor vehicles at milepost 0.513 due to an unsafe bridge. The road will be reopened when the structure is replaced according to a USFS release dated Sept. 6. "Engineers doing routine maintenance checks discovered the log stringers are failing," said Petersburg District Ranger Dave Zimmerman. "The road currently has road closure signage and boulders placed across road." A star on the accompanying map shows the location of the...
WRANGELL - Improvements to the observatory at Anan Creek are complete, improving access and security for one of Wrangell's top visitor attractions. Managed by the Forest Service, Anan Wildlife Observatory is best known for its bear population, one of the few where brown and black bears can be observed feeding together nonconfrontationally. Along with LeConte Glacier and the Stikine River, the sites brought in half of Wrangell's total tourism earnings in 2014, or $2 million, according to a study...
On Aug. 19, Alaska State Troopers on Prince of Wales Island were notified of a motor vehicle collision which occurred in Coffman Cove near Luck Lake. Details revealed that 32 year old Robert Hull of Craig lost control of his vehicle, a 2005 Chevrolet Silverado pickup while traveling south on Forest Service Road 3030. The crash caused significant damage to Hull’s pickup as well as his 2016 Honda ATV which was in the bed of the truck. Investigation into the crash is continuing. On August 16, Prince of Wales based troopers were conducting an i...
Pete Martin Jr., 77 died on August 13, 2017 in Juneau. He was born to Pete Martin Sr. and Celia Martin in Kake, Alaska on August 12, 1940. Pete was the youngest of eight (8) brothers and had four (4) sisters. He had an affinity for hunting, fishing, and processing traditional native foods with his brothers and sisters. He graduated from Petersburg High School and was an avid basketball player and an outstanding member of the boxing team. In the military tradition of his brothers, Pete joined... Full story
WRANGELL, Alaska (AP) – State plans to store contaminated soil near a recreation area in the Alaska Panhandle could be stalled by the U.S. Forest Service. CoastAlaska News reports, state officials seek to move nearly 20,000 cubic yards (15,291 cubic meters) of lead-laced soil in a rock quarry south of Wrangell. Officials say they want the soil moved because it poses a threat to marine environment and have prepared it with phosphate-based product so the lead won't leach into soil or waterways. To move the soil, the state needs a road permit, w...
SITKA, Alaska (AP) – The U.S. Forest Service and an Alaska-based Native corporation announced the transfer of 12 square miles (31 square kilometers) of land from the Alaska Native corporation to the Admiralty Island National Monument. The land is part of the 34 square miles (88 square kilometers) Sitka-based Shee Atika Corp. logged between 1984 and 2002 after the Sitka urban corporation selected it as part of its land entitlement under the Alaska Native Land Claims Settlement Act. Under an agreement between the Forest Service and Shee Atika s...
July 27, 1917 – Forest Service W. G. Wiegle of Ketchikan, was in town accompanied by W. H. Waugh, civil engineer, from Juneau to inspect the right-of-way of the proposed Petersburg-Scow Bay road. The road slated for completion this fall appears to have a hitch in the programme as Mr. Wiegle considers it improbable that the work will be resumed before next spring. He feels assured, however that the project will then be taken up and completed. It is presumed, though not so stated by Mr. Wiegle, that it is now planned for the forestry service t...
Asking for support To the Editor: Recently Mike Schwartz sent a letter regarding the potential loss of our family cabin since 1956 that is up Petersburg Creek. As most of you know my father, Ken Hammer passed away last fall and in addition to the heartache of dealing with his loss, this takes on another level of loss. As Mike stated in his letter, the Forest Service designed a permit plan that only allows one transfer within a family and when that member passes on, the Forest Service reserves the right to destroy the cabin. More precisely, the...
