Sorted by date Results 26 - 50 of 81
The Petersburg Borough Assembly voted 6-0 to approve three ordinances, which could amend the charter, in their second readings during Monday's meeting. Mayor Mark Jensen was excused. If the three ordinances pass in a third and final reading, they will be included on this year's ballot for voter consideration. Ordinance #2022-08 would allow the extension of utility services to properties outside of Service Area One if requested and paid for by the property owner. It has been referred to as a...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly passed its FY23 budget by a 4-3 margin in its third and final reading on Monday with Assembly Members Dave Kensinger, Jeff Meucci, and Thomas Fine-Walsh voting against. There were no amendments proposed in its last reading but discussion saw similar points of concern raised by opposing assembly members. Fine-Walsh had concerns about how the budget would place “more emphasis on policing than education and housing.” “These are my priorities, these are the priorities of our community as they have been expre...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly voted unanimously to appoint 11 people to the Early Childhood Education Task Force during Monday’s meeting. The task force will be made up of Jessica Doril, Hannah Flor, Denise Gubernick, Katie Holmlund, Sharlay Mamoe, Jeff Meucci, Stephanie Payne, Chelsea Tremblay, Becky Turland, Glo Wollen, and Chad Wright. The assembly also voted unanimously to appoint Tremblay as the chair of the task force. The task force was created following multiple public meetings and work sessions which identified problems with r...
Two Sandy Beach Road properties owned by the Petersburg Borough were sold in a public outcry auction at the start of Monday's assembly meeting. Inside the packed assembly chambers, 700 and 1015 Sandy Beach Road were sold in two separate auctions for a combined $407,500, which was $162,000 more than the combined assessed value of the properties. The auction for the 84,942-square-foot property at 700 Sandy Beach was held first. It had an assessed value of $76,900 and the minimum bid to start the...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly voted unanimously in favor of two ordinances in their first readings during Monday's meeting, with Assembly Member Bob Lynn excused, which would increase the rates residents pay for water and sewage utilities. According to Utility Director Karl Hagerman, the increases included in Ordinance #2022-05 and Ordinance #2022-06 would be the first rate increases since 2018 and are needed to meet increased costs and expenses. Hagerman included a report in the meeting packe...
With the first statewide use of ranked choice voting in Alaska on the horizon, the Petersburg Borough Assembly discussed holding an information session to inform community members on how the new voting system works. The upcoming special election will use ranked choice voting, which was approved by Alaska voters in 2020, to determine who will fill the late Rep. Don Young's seat in the U.S. House of Representatives until the term expires in January 2023. During Monday's assembly meeting, Assembly...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly unanimously passed Ordinance #2022-03 in its third reading on Monday, finalizing increases to harbor fees. Harbormaster Glo Wollen said the change in rates, which is the first increase since 2018, was needed to keep revenue aligned with the harbor's operational costs and account for inflation. The increase drew the support of the Harbor and Ports Advisory Board and passed in the assembly unanimously in its first two readings. Annual moorage fees and transient...
An ordinance which would increase rates at Petersburg's municipal harbors was unanimously approved by the Petersburg Borough Assembly in its second reading during Monday's meeting. Ordinance #2022-03, which also passed unanimously in its first reading, would be the first rate increase since 2018 and would increase harbor moorage fees by around 5% among other changes. The ordinance also has the support of the Harbor and Ports Advisory Board and Harbormaster Glo Wollen who said the increase is...
During the Petersburg Borough Assembly's meeting on Monday, Mayor Mark Jensen reported that he and Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht recently took part in a conversation with two representatives from the U.S. Postal Service about the ongoing problems at the post office. The assembly has previously discussed staffing issues and the resulting long wait times at the post office which culminated in the passage of a resolution requesting a formal discussion with the USPS about solutions and...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly presented a draft agenda of its upcoming American Rescue Plan Act funding work session and discussed the items it included during Tuesday's meeting. The assembly is hosting the work session to give members an opportunity to discuss opportunities to allocate their ARPA funds and determine what local organizations or groups are in need of relief. The borough was awarded with $634,382 in ARPA funds that must be obligated by December 31, 2024 and expended by December...
The Borough Assembly unanimously certified the results of the October 5, 2021 municipal election during a special meeting Friday morning. Borough Clerk Debbie Thompson read 12 additional ballots, which did not affect the results of the election. Incumbent Bob Lynn received the most votes for Borough Assembly with 708, the newly counted ballots added five to his total, and Thomas Fine-Walsh claimed the other three-year term with 592 votes and increased his tally by three since election night....
Petersburg held its 2021 Municipal Election Tuesday and the unofficial results have incumbent Bob Lynn retaining his seat on the Petersburg Borough Assembly and Thomas Fine-Walsh winning his first term on the assembly, succeeding Taylor Norheim after he decided not to run for reelection. Both seats on the Borough Assembly were for three-year terms. Lynn garnered the most most votes out of all assembly candidates with 703 and Fine-Walsh recorded 589. Brandi Thynes received the third most votes wi...
Mayor Mark Jensen proclaimed October 2021 as Domestic Violence Awareness Month during Monday's meeting. He also declared October 21, 2021 as Wear Purple Thursday and encouraged members of the community to participate in activities organized by Working Against Violence for Everyone (WAVE) and other national organizations. According to the declaration, one in four women and one in seven men will experience domestic violence in their lifetimes and anyone can become a victim of domestic violence. Do...
October 5, 2021 Total ballots cast - 1212 Borough Assembly Two 3-year terms Paul A. Anderson - 144 Lars Christensen - 79 Thomas Fine-Walsh - 589 Bob Lynn - 703 Marc Martinsen - 95 Brandi Thynes - 377 Dana Thynes - 327 Jim Vick - 29 School Board Two 3-year terms Jeff Hupp - 394 Jay Lister - 772 Bill Schroepfer Jr. - 282 Write-in: Carey Case - 593 Write-in - 17 Hospital Board Two 3-year terms Heather Conn - 553 Al Gross - 382 Donna Marsh - 418 Kathi Riemer - 553 James Roberts - 275 Write-in - 4 Planning Commission Two 3-year terms Sally Dwyer -...
The candidate filings for the 2021 Municipal Election to be held on October 5 have been released. Two three-year seats on the Borough Assembly will be on the ballot. There are eight candidates running including incumbent Bob Lynn, Paul Anderson, Lars Christensen, Thomas Fine-Walsh, Marc Martinsen, Brandi Thynes, Dana Thynes, and Jim Vick. Assembly Member Taylor Norheim has previously stated that he will not seek reelection. The School Board has two available seats, each for a three-year term....
The window to file for candidacy opened Tuesday in preparation for the fall 2021 borough election. The election, which will be held on October 5, will see seats on the Borough Assembly among many other boards listed on the ballot. In addition to the seats that are held by elected officials, there are many seats that are currently vacant or are held by an appointed board member that will be voted on. Two seats on the Borough Assembly with three-year terms will be voted on which are those...
The Borough Assembly approved an ordinance in its third reading on Monday that reinstates user fees at the Parks and Recreation Center and makes changes to the fee structure. Ordinance #2021-03 reestablishes user fees at the Parks and Recreation Center. The facility had been waiving user fees since the facility reopened in August after it closed its doors at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The ordinance also groups all users into two categories and establishes three types of fees. Those...
To help the Parks and Recreation Department set priorities for the upcoming year, the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board voted in support of sending out a public interest survey at their meeting on Feb. 25. The advisory board was in agreement with their support of the survey and directed Parks and Recreation administrative assistant Theresa Craig to distribute the survey online. The survey is available on the Parks and Recreation Center's Facebook page and will be available to the public until...
In her first Parks and Recreation Advisory Board meeting since becoming the new Parks and Recreation director, Stephanie Payne laid out the goals she'd like to accomplish in the coming weeks and months. Probably her highest priority is reassessing user contracts and memorandums of understanding. In addition to the typical patron who may visit the community gym to work out, play basketball or swim, there are organizations that have agreements with Parks and Recreation to use the facility. Some of...
January 7, 1921 Starting the 15th of January, and continuing for an indefinite period, the Petersburg Weekly Report will cost four dollars per year, instead of the three dollars formerly charged. At the same time advertising rates will be advanced. This step is made necessary by the rapid increase in the cost of all materials which are used in making the paper, from string and coal, to type, ink, paper, gasoline and electricity. January 4, 1946 The application of Petersburg and the Territory of Alaska to build a seaplane port in Wrangell...
January The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration proposed establishing critical habitat areas for humpback whales in three distinct population segments located off Mexico, Central American and the Western Pacific. The Petersburg Borough sent a letter of disapproval to the National Marine Fisheries Service regarding the proposed critical habitat for humpback whales after residents spoke out against the proposal. The Petersburg Borough authorized the hire of Josh Rathmann to fill the...
Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht will be narrowing down the list of finalists for the Parks and Recreation Department director position from five candidates to two or three candidates this week, with help from borough staff and members from the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board. Twelve candidates applied for the director's position, which was left vacant when the previous Parks and Rec. director, Chandra Thornburg, resigned in January. Since then, Giesbrecht has been the acting director. The...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly approved the Petersburg Rotary Club's request to begin construction on their Sandy Beach playground project at their meeting on Monday. As part of the project, trees will be removed and trimmed to make room for the new playground equipment. Contractors had begun cutting down trees several weeks ago in preparation for the construction, but the tree cutting came to a halt when Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht became aware of some concerns from the community. In an...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly voted against terminating the borough's declaration of disaster emergency, which was enacted in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, at their meeting on Tuesday. Assembly Member Taylor Norheim requested the action item be on the meeting's agenda to address the borough's declaration of disaster emergency and determine if the new assembly agreed with the declaration. Assembly Member Dave Kensinger was voted on to the assembly after the municipal election earlier this...
Parks and Recreation Advisory Board Members discussed the challenges faced by staff at their second board meeting held on Oct. 1 as visitors to the aquatic center have reached record numbers in the weeks following its reopening. The board discussed several issues, including upcoming Halloween plans and facility upgrades, but a bulk of their discussion focused on the aquatic center. Board Members Brian Richards, Stephanie Hayes and Malena Marvin were in attendance. According to Borough Manager...
