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The Assembly unanimously passed, on second reading, an ordinance that would create a special revenue fund to house Transient Room Tax (TRT) revenues. Those funds currently go into the General Fund, and Finance Director Jody Tow said moving them to a special fund will increase transparency during future budget decisions. Passing the ordinance will also result in the dissolution of the TRT committee and grant process they once oversaw. Assembly Member and Chamber of Commerce Director Cindi Lagoudakis said the Chamber board explained, “the T...
Maximilian Worhatch III was born to Mary Josephine Gola and Maximilian Worhatch II on September 2nd, 1933 in Callery, Butler County, Pennsylvania. He was born at the height of the depression in an old farmhouse on the property where his father managed a fireworks company. In 1933 jobs were scarce and living conditions so dire that when the doctor was paid in dollars for his maternity services he broke down and cried, for it had been nearly a year since he had received actual money for his... Full story
The Vikings and Valkyries of Petersburg will soon be wandering the streets again, participating in the Little Norway Festival’s biggest schedule yet. This year’s celebration of Norwegian heritage, Syttende Mai (May 17, the day Norway’s Constitution was signed in 1814), Armed Forces Day, the upcoming fishing season and spring will feature a couple of new events, Little Norway Festival Committee Chair Janet Holten said. The Devil’s Thumb Shooters Petersburg Rod and Gun Club will be holding a raffle to support students headed to the state shoot i... Full story
It’s been a concern since budget talks began: the Alaska Marine Highway System’s summer ferry service will remain as scheduled — with the exception of the MV Taku. That ferry won’t be returning until October as maintenance to other vessels has delayed its annual overhaul, according to Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities. The MV Taku was originally slated to begin sailing again in July. With the Taku out, sailings to and from Prince Rupert, British Columbia, will be cut from four to two trips a week. Those include stops in... Full story
A new special revenue fund, instead of the general fund, will now house Transient Room Tax (TRT) revenue, meaning the TRT committee and grant process they once oversaw will be dissolved. Assembly members unanimously approved the change at Monday’s meeting. The TRT, also known as the bed tax, is collected from the lodging industry and is used to fund visitor-related services in the borough. In the past, the majority of TRT monies have been allocated to the Petersburg Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center, and remaining funds were doled out via... Full story
Mayor Mark Jensen and Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht announced at Monday’s Assembly meeting that Petersburg Public Schools will be granted Secure Rural Schools funding for this academic year and next. The two-year funding extension was included as a provision in the US House’s Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015, which was signed by President Barack Obama late last week. “They put in the bill we will get within 45 days so we will actually get it prior to this year end and that will go into the fund that the Borough has set a...
April 10, 1915 – A total of $2,831,517 has been expended within the past ten years by the Alaska road commissioners in the building and upkeep of roads in the territory. Of this amount, $1,500,000 was appropriated direct from the public treasury by congress, and the balance of $1,331,517 was from the Alaska fund, which is derived from business and trade licenses outside of incorporated towns. April 12, 1940 – At Wednesday's Chamber of Commerce meeting a letter from Forester J. M. Wyckoff, in regard to the construction of a peat plant here, said...
Petersburg shoppers will enjoy two Sales Tax Free Days this year: May 2 and October 3. The Assembly unanimously approved a resolution providing for the two days. Last year’s tax free days resulted in just over $19,000 in uncollected sales tax revenue for the Borough. Assembly member Jeigh Stanton Gregor said the days keep money circulating locally, which he said was a benefit for the community. “I think it makes lot of financial sense because people are spending discretionary money locally, which then gets reinvested in the community, whi...
Long time Petersburg resident John Johnson, 79, passed away in Fulshear, Texas, April 1, 2015. John Webster Johnson was born December 4, 1935 to Joe and Cora Johnson in Petersburg, Alaska. Shortly after his birth, his family moved to Blashke Island just south of Petersburg. In 1938, they moved to West Petersburg where his Dad worked at the Yukon Fur Farm. They remained there until 1941 when the family purchased their own mink farm which they operated until 1954. Catching fish for mink feed and... Full story
Dave Kensinger of Chelan Produce has a 38-year-long business history with the ferry system. “I’ve probably ridden the ferry more than anybody else,” he said. He uses the barge to ship produce (and has for a long while), but utilizes the ferry to travel back and forth between Sitka, where he also sells produce. With a Senate Finance Subcommittee proposing a $12.3 million cut to the ferry system, reducing service to Petersburg and other Southeast communities, Kensinger said he and his wife are looking to fly back and forth to Sitka now, a more ex...
While established Alaska ferries fight for funding, a small startup is about to launch from northern Prince of Wales Island. The North End Ferry Authority based in Coffman Cove has created the Rainforest Islands Ferry, a three stop service that revives a canceled route of the Inter-Island Ferry Authority. Operating four days a week beginning June 14, the Rainforest Islands Ferry will travel from Coffman Cove to Wrangell and Petersburg via the South Mitkof terminal. The ferry authority is overhauling a landing craft, to be named the R...
Chamber MC Donnie Hayes, left, claps as Chamber of Commerce Board of Director Vice President Dave Kensinger, middle, hands Hammer and Wikan True Value Hardware Store Manager Lee Carrao a plaque for receiving business of the year at the chamber's Annual Banquet on Saturday. The store was nominated by local businesses in Petersburg. "I just want to say thank you very much on behalf of Hammer and Wikan, and the employees. It really is our employees that make it happen day in and day out. You know,... Full story
February 6, 1915 – The Glee Club Kierulf is advertised to give a concert in Sons of Norway hall tomorrow afternoon at 4 o' clock. The club should be greeted on this occasion by a good big audience. The Kierulf singers have been frequently called upon and have cheerfully contributed their assistance toward entertaining Petersburg folks – and tomorrow afternoon Petersburg will have opportunity to show their appreciation, and at the same time enjoy a musical treat. The club will have the assistance of the orchestra, and other good musical talent i...
Max Worhatch IV is this year’s Chamber of Commerce Rain Game winner with a guess of 115.75 inches. The total reported precipitation by NOAA for 2014 was 115.87 inches, meaning Petersburg saw higher than average precipitation this year. According to NOAA, annual precipitation for the area is 109.95 inches. Chamber Director Cindi Lagoudakis said the winner came down to the numbers beyond the decimal as 13 contestants guessed the rainfall at 115 inches. A total of 248 entries were received for this year’s contest. The lowest and most opt...
The pyro crew of the Petersburg Volunteer Fire Department (PVFD) will help usher in the new year with a bang as they put on a fireworks display New Years Eve. The show starts at 7 p.m. on Wednesday evening and can be seen from a few prime locations. “We’re going to shoot them from the parking lot by the crane dock in the South Harbor, so the best viewing areas will be from the Middle Harbor parking lot or in the South Harbor itself or the South Harbor parking lot by the boat ramp,” said Dave Berg of the PVFD. The Chamber of Commerce helps...
Residents from the Mountain View Manor and PMC Long Term care served as judges for this year's Chamber of Commerce holiday light contest held Friday. Ross Nannauck and Rudy Nannauck's colorfully lit and musical home won the judges over for first place in the homes category. Ken Yuen took second place for best decorated home. Petersburg Rexall Drug, Inc. took first in the business category for their window display celebrating The Nutcracker, which was performed by the Mitkof Dance Troupe. Robin... Full story
Walter Dawson, 85, died peacefully in Juneau, Alaska on Dec. 11, 2014. He was born in Seattle, Wash. on Jan. 7, 1928 to Cora and Floyd Dawson. Walter was the seventh of fourteen siblings growing up in the family home in Puyallup, Wash. In the middle 1940s Walter followed in his brother's footsteps and joined the U.S. Army. He spent a nine-year career in the Army serving his country in Japan and Korea. After an honorable discharge, he worked at the Boeing plant in Seattle. Walter met Ruth Elaine... Full story
December 19, 1914 – Despite the fatherly interest advanced by the moralists in our behalf to make Alaska dry; might not the people directly interested have something to say in the matter? Who made the prohibition states dry? Was it not the people of those particular states? Then why should an outsider be allowed to rush a resolution through congress to make the country dry before the people; whose interest is involved have a chance to say whether they want it dry or not. Let the intention of those who desire to see Alaska dry be ever so sincere...
Summer 2014 was a busy one for Petersburg, with tourists bringing more charter business to town and spending more on hotels and retail than the previous summer. This summer the Borough collected over $35,000 in sales taxes from charter businesses, almost double what was collected over the same time period in 2013. The Borough also collected about $4,000 more each in bed tax revenue and retail sales tax revenue. Marilyn Meucci of the Visitor Information Center said she thought that a rebounding economy played a large role in the increased...
The ninth annual Devil's Thumb Brewfest and Chili Cookoff was a huge success under different management this year, after the Petersburg Chamber of Commerce passed the mantle for the community event. "They were hoping to be able to find somebody else to take up the torch, and Angela (Christensen) found it in herself to be able to keep it alive," said Eric Castro, who also volunteered to help put on the event. "The community does not want to see this event die." The Petersburg Ski Club also threw...
November 21, 1914 – For the interest of Alaska in general, and the southeastern part in particular, we suggest that every newspaper take up the laboring man’s part in the framing of laws for his protection at the coming session of our legislature. We specifically mention the laboring man because his environments, his conditions, his associations and tendencies do not afford sufficient advantages to compel lasting attention. The only time he is seriously considered is at election time, but this soon fades away and he is left to meditate ove...
November 14, 1914 – The U.S. Transport or cable ship Burnside arrived in port yesterday morning on her way south from a trip to Sitka and elsewhere, where repairs to the cable were thought necessary. Mr. Winter the Chief Officer of repair work when interviewed said that the trip had practically been useless from the fact that in fourteen days only one day had been considered safe to work on the cable. Due to the continuous stormy weather in that part of Alaska Mr. Winter said that further work on the cable for the present had been abandoned. I...
October 31, 1914 – Secretary Lane has finally decided to remove the land office for Alaska from Seattle to Juneau, the removal to take effect the first of January next. Great satisfaction is expressed throughout the country over the removal of this important division of the land office to a point nearer its field of operation, thus facilitating the immense amount of work for the land office in connection with the opening to the coal fields and the construction of the railroad. November 3, 1939 – The Chamber of Commerce met Wednesday night at...
Borough Manager Steve Geisbrecht presented the following report to the assembly at Monday’s regular meeting: Medicaid recertification for the Mountain View Manor is approved. We’re good for two more years. Final touches are being put on the ten recently installed windows at Elderly Housing. Liz Cabrera met with Bob Weinstein from Senator Begich’s office on federal issues of interest and arranged for a tour of the Police Department. There was some progress on the dismantling of the Ellingstad/Triem house at 1011 Wrangell Avenue. The roof and a...
Assembly approves PILT payoff, other business by Erik LeDuc The aftereffects of Petersburg incorporating as a borough continue to shake out, with the neighboring City of Kupreanof catching peripheral issues. “Because of the formation of the Borough of Petersburg, the City of Kupreanof no longer receives (Payment In Lieu of Taxes) funding,” Mayor Mark Jensen said. “The city has asked the borough to distribute the equivalent of what they would have received in PILT funds had the borough not been formed.” While no assembly member contest...
