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A power outage affected downtown Petersburg on Wed., July 10 from around 10:30 a.m. until around noon. The outage was caused by a transformer failing in its vault located in the sidewalk on Excel Street near the Hammer & Wikan Hardware store, Petersburg Utility Director Karl Hagerman told the Pilot. Smoke was observed coming out of the sidewalk vault after the transformer's failure, causing some concern to bystanders. The power went out when the transformer fault tripped the breaker for the...
The Pedal/Paddle battle will be returning for its 10th year in Petersburg, Alaska. After raising $20,400 for education in 2023, the Petersburg Medical Center is aiming higher this time. "Our goal this year is $24,000 because it's 2024, we're shooting big," Community Wellness Manager Julie Walker said. In 2023, PMC gave out four scholarships, three to Petersburg High School graduates and one to a PMC nursing student. However, there's more to these scholarships. "We can offer a lot of money to...
Located midway down the Southeast panhandle is LeConte Glacier. Since the 1980s, Petersburg has sent high school students to LeConte Glacier to measure how it has shifted over time. The late Paul Bowen conducted the first survey in 1983 and it has been a community-driven science study since. On June 14, 2024, a group of 7th-grade students got to go out to LeConte Glacier with Oregon State University scientists. This was somewhat of a rare occurrence as Glaciologist Erin Pettit and Oceanographer...
Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy vetoed the funds state legislators set aside to settle a dispute between Alaska’s education officials and their federal counterparts over whether the state spent pandemic relief equitably. State legislators included $11.89 million in the operating budget for the upcoming fiscal year to allow the state to comply with the federal government’s grant requirements and recover its good standing under federal guidelines. Dunleavy vetoed that money because it is unclear whether or not it will be needed, according to the reason...
Inflation, operating costs and workforce shortages are the most common challenges facing small businesses in Alaska, according to a new survey. The Alaska Small Business Development Center survey tracks small business growth in the state and projects future trends. This is the seventh annual report. Inflation was most frequently cited as the top issue facing Alaska’s small businesses. However, survey respondents identified inflation as an issue for businesses more broadly, rather than an immediate one for their specific business. Only 12% named... Full story
Gov. Mike Dunleavy vetoed $10 million in funding for the state agency charged with marketing Alaska seafood, with the message that he would “re-evaluate future funding needs after development of a marketing plan.” That doesn’t make sense to the state Senate president. “Waiting doesn’t help at all,” said Sen. Gary Stevens, from the commercial fishing hub of Kodiak. “It’s a very shortsighted view of the industry. Now is the time to help it out, not to just delay things,” Stevens said last week. The governor vetoed the funding on June 30 as par... Full story
An emerging seafood company is preparing to purchase its first loads of pink and chum salmon from a handful of seine boats in Metlakatla this summer while also building a high-tech floating freezer barge at a Washington shipyard that the company plans to operate in Southeast Alaska next year. Circle Seafoods, which was founded by Pat Glaab, Charlie Campbell and Eren Shultz, is renting out a portion of the Metlakatla Indian Community’s Annette Island Packing Co. plant this year while starting up a statewide operation that’s geared at buying and...
WRANGELL - Bearfest is returning for its 15th year on July 24 – 28. The annual event is dedicated to bears and the surrounding environment, where attendees can enjoy symposiums, cultural and educational activities, art and photo workshops, fine dining, marathons, a bear safety session and more. In two of the workshops, kids and families are invited to create bear-themed ornaments to decorate the U.S. Capitol Christmas tree and smaller companion trees that will represent Alaska in Washington, D.C., this holiday season. The trees are coming f...
Check out 2022 4th of July Schedule ...............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Several large derelict vessels moored in Petersburg's harbors, have reached a point where they might not survive another winter. Harbormaster Glo Wollen is working with Borough Attorney Sara Heideman to adapt Petersburg's municipal code concerning derelict vessels, before it's too late. Currently, Petersburg's municipal code includes a set of procedures that direct the harbor to impound or auction abandoned or potentially dangerous derelict vessels. The new procedure being developed will...
Petersburg teachers will likely have a contract for the next three years. That's because a deal between the teachers union and the school district met a final requirement on Friday when Gov. Mike Dunleavy signed the state operating budget without vetoing any one-time public education funding. The two groups came to a tentative contract agreement in May that was contingent on Dunleavy approving all $175 million dollars for public education in the state operating budget. That agreement came after...
Alaska’s Supreme Court justices on Friday reversed a Superior Court ruling that struck down key components of the state’s correspondence school program. Nearly 23,000 homeschool students may continue to use their allotments of state education money to pay for private school tuition until the Anchorage Superior Court reconsiders the case. The Supreme Court made its decision a day after oral arguments in an appeal of the ruling in State of Alaska, Department of Education and Early Development v. Alexander, in which plaintiffs argued that it is...
Alaska's freshly signed capital budget includes state funding for a program meant to encourage land development. It's a single line: Statewide Housing Development, $4 million. But according to Republican Senator Bert Stedman of Sitka, that money could help shake loose some land for much-needed housing. He said there's a lot of land around the state, but it's not getting developed. "The economics don't work, due to the cost of the infrastructure, mainly the roads and the utilities," he said. "So...
Educator, psychologist, and international advocate Dr. Paloma Pavel will be hosting her workshop "Resilience for Community Builders" on Tuesday, July 9 at 2PM at the public library, Based on her experience as the coauthor of "Random Kindness and Senseless Acts of Beauty" and editor of "Breakthrough Communities," Pavel invites attendees to learn how communities like Petersburg can build more personal and community resilience. "Part of what we'll be looking at is how [we can] face the challenges...
The Petersburg Hospital Guild is a non-profit organization that was established in 1937. Since the beginning, the Hospital Guild has operated the Charity Box thrift shop – currently located on First Street behind the visitor center and open on Mondays all summer. “We only use it in the summer because it has no heat,” Hospital Guild President Tekla Israelson said. “You couldn’t comfortably work here during the winter.” Every person who works at the thrift store is a volunteer and a member of t...
There are a lot of classic games during Petersburg's 4th of July celebration – log rolling, the money pile, the egg toss. Nathan Lopez runs the main street events on the 3rd, hosted by the Lighthouse Church. He said some events do get changed from year to year. "We had one year where we actually had pies with herring in it," he said. "And then we realized that was a bad decision. I mean, I should have just already recognized that was a bad decision." Side note: the herring was raw. "So it was k...
WRANGELL — Georgia-based real-estate developer Wayne Johnson has rescinded his offer to purchase the former Wrangell Medical Center property and six adjacent lots from the borough. Johnson had negotiated a new purchase agreement covering the parcels, but said he withdrew his proposal due to community concerns over the new deal. He blamed a Sentinel headline for stirring up concerns. Johnson notified borough officials on Friday, June 28, of his decision to walk away from the project. The Sentinel reported on Johnson’s requested changes to the...
WRANGELL — The borough has been awarded a $25 million Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity grant to rebuild most of the downtown harbor floats, install new pilings and improve parking. The federal money, which requires no match from the borough, will fund most of the estimated $28 million project that will include an overhaul of the Inner Harbor, Reliance and Standard Oil floats, new fire suppression systems, pilings and relocated parking. The borough will likely get the remaining $3 million for the project t...
Petersburg utility customers are being asked to check what material the water service lines connecting to their homes or buildings are made of. This is part of a nationwide service line inventory required because of an EPA rules revision earlier this year. A survey was mailed out along with June's utility bills; it provides illustrated instructions on how to inspect your water service line, what to look for, and how to report the results. Taking part in the service line inventory is a...
Coast Guard Sector Southeast received a call Tuesday morning, shortly before 10:00 a.m., that the Petersburg-based seiner the Pamela Rae was taking on water in Anita Bay, located on Etolin Island near Wrangell. The call came from the F/V Confidence, relaying a call from their sister fishing vessel Barbara which was on the scene and providing samaritan support, U.S. Coast Guard spokesperson Lt. Matt Naylor told the Pilot. The Pamela Rae was taking on water fast and was rolling over. They had...
Earlier this month the Alaska Department of Fish and Game notified the public of the verified expansion of invasive European green crab distribution in Alaska waters after finding 11 molted carapaces on the shore of Bostwick Inlet, Gravina Island on June 13. First found in Alaskan waters in July 2022, green crab are considered one of the top 100 worst invasive species globally by the International Union for Conservation and Nature due to their predatory tendencies and their rampant destruction...
The Norwegian Resistance during World War II was a dark time for Norway. From 1940 to 1945, thousands of Norwegians fought in this movement against Nazi Germany. The Norwegians gained independence in 1905, but when Nazi Germany invaded, the Norwegians had to do everything they could to maintain their national identity and solidarity. On Thursday, June 27, at the Petersburg Public Library, there will be an opportunity to learn and discuss the Norwegian Resistance when Don Pugnetti Jr. talks...
A ballot proposition on this October municipal ballot will put the question to Petersburg voters whether to increase the amount of sales tax that can be collected on a single purchase from $72.00 to $300.00. At their regular meeting on June 17 the Petersburg Borough Assembly unanimously passed Ordinance 24-10 in its third and final reading to propose the municipal code amendment for this sales tax exemption change to borough voters. Currently in the borough, sales tax liability for any single...
Petersburg School District is the sole recipient in Alaska of a new grant designed to help schools source more food locally - in this case, through a partnership with Farragut Farm. PSD's food service program offers school breakfast and lunch, a fresh fruits and vegetable snack program in the grade school, an after school at-risk youth program, and also the summer food program; currently, the entire food service program is self-funded, according to PSD Food Service Program Director Carlee...
Compass Cookery launched on May 17, 2024, striving to bring global flavors to Petersburg, Alaska. For Jessica Hawley, owner of Compass Cookery, her new food venture has been a long time coming as Hawley has been wanting to start her own business but found the right opportunity just now. "There's not as much competition so people are excited about new food in town," Hawley said. Compass Cookery brings a unique twist to Petersburg...the twist being that each month has its food theme. "I like varie...
