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St. Patty's Day used to be the perfect excuse for Nicole McMurren to get "bombed," almost as if her Irish heritage was a license to tie one on. She'd have a "bump" before the parade, then after it was over, and singing at Longterm Care had concluded, it was time to head for Harbor Bar and into the night's festivities. But this year, McMurren will be celebrating the leprechaun-loving holiday the same as she's done for the last decade-without beer or whisky. "For me, a really good choice was just...
Lori Roberts celebrated her last day of work at OBI Seafoods on December 10 after a 42 year career which saw her work in pretty much every spot in the plant. Roberts began with what was then Petersburg Fisheries in 1974 after being talked into coming up to Petersburg by a few friends. She attended Highline Community College in Washington and worked at the plant during the summers until she eventually decided to stick around. "I was downstairs for 16 years," Roberts said. "I did herring, I did...
Applications are now being accepted for a federally funded financial assistance program for Alaska homeowners. Applications will be accepted through April 4 by the Alaska Housing Finance Corp., which is administering the $50 million program to help homeowners hurt by income loss the past two years due to the pandemic. The aid can go toward eligible homeowners' monthly mortgage payments, and may also be applied to current and past-due property taxes, insurance premiums and utility bills. To...
Assembly Member Bob Lynn and Utility Director Karl Hagerman provided a report on SEAPA activities during the Petersburg Borough Assembly meeting on March 7 including details on the Southeast Alaska Power Agency’s updated website and the likelihood of further rate increases. Lynn reported that SEAPA CEO Trey Acteson told the SEAPA board during its February 28 meeting that a 3/4 of a cent rate increase over time is needed to make up for the costs of the debt service for the submarine cable, the 4R improvement plan, the vegetation management p...
The Petersburg School Board unanimously approved a move to optional masking in all buildings during its board meeting Tuesday night as case counts decrease and vaccinations and tests become more accessible. The new protocols will be implemented when staff and students return from spring break on March 21 and while masking will be optional, all other mitigation strategies including quarantine and testing protocols will remain in place. The Petersburg School District has required universal...
While most high schools may take a field trip to the local museum or zoo, a select group of Petersburg High School students get to go somewhere a little bit cooler-LeConte Glacier. Each year, students set out to survey the glacier and record how it has moved over time. They're taking what they have learned in the classroom and are applying it in the field. The survey began in 1983 with high school teacher Paul Bowen's surveying class as an opportunity for the top students to get real world... Full story
The Petersburg Borough Assembly voted to approve an amended proposal increasing the starting pay of police officers and dispatchers in a 5-2 vote with Mayor Mark Jensen and Assembly Member Thomas Fine-Walsh opposed during Monday's meeting. The proposal passed by the assembly aims to improve both recruitment and retention of employees to combat the police department's continued staffing issues which have led to increased overtime and strain on staff. Changes included in the proposals were drawn...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly voted during Monday's meeting to send two properties owned by the borough along Sandy Beach Road to an outcry auction following a recommendation of sale from the Planning Commission. The two lots, 700 and 1015 Sandy Beach Road, are zoned single-family residential and are neighbored by privately-owned lots with houses. Marc Taylor was listed as the applicant for the 84,942 square foot lot at 700 Sandy Beach Road and Linda Millard and Samuel Bergeron were listed as...
There were multiple accounts with outstanding balances when Sharlay Mamoe took over as director of the Petersburg Children's Center. A board member suggested writing letters to the people. Payments began coming back almost immediately, often with apologies. Those balances attest to the difficulty families face when it comes to paying for childcare. If a couple or a single parent cannot afford the rates at PCC, Mamoe will grab an application for the state-funded Child Care Assistance Program... Full story
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...
Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium leadership will give a presentation at the next Petersburg Medical Center Hospital Board meeting on March 24 according to PMC CEO Phil Hofstetter. The board voted in September to invite SEARHC leadership to speak at a future meeting to give the public an opportunity to hear more information on SEARHC's vision for local health care and discuss Petersburg's need for a new medical facility. Questions from board members and staff at the hospital were...
During the February 21 Petersburg Borough Assembly meeting, Assembly Member Dave Kensinger gave a report on his attendance at the 2022 Southeast Conference Mid-Session Summit which included an update on the U.S. Coast Guard's interest in Petersburg, federal funding in Alaska, and other important matters to the assembly. The future of the Coast Guard's presence in Petersburg has been in question since it was announced that only three of the four coastal buoy tenders, the class of ships that the...
The commercial Pacific halibut fishing period is set to begin on March 6 as determined during the 98th session of the International Pacific Halibut Commission and will last until December 7, 2022. This season, the overall Total Constant Exploitation Yield (TCEY) limit was increased by 5.7% compared to last year, bringing the 2022 limit to 41.22 million pounds. For all areas in the United States, the total 2022 limit of 33.66 million pounds is up 5.2% from 2021. The largest percentage increase...
John Bisset, 18, was arrested on multiple charges of alleged sexual assault on February 19 according to the Petersburg Police Department. The charges include four counts of first degree sexual assault and one count of second degree sexual assault which all allegedly occurred on December 4, 2021. According to a press release from the Alaska Wildlife Troopers, the AWT Patrol Vessel Compliance conducted a commercial fishing boarding on February 19 near Hobart Bay when law enforcement discovered that Bisset, who was aboard, had an active felony...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly voted 6-1 against Ordinance #2022-02, which would have required sitting assembly members to resign in order to run for mayor, with only Mayor Mark Jensen in support. The ordinance, which failed in its first reading, would have amended the municipal code to require sitting assembly members to tender a letter of resignation prior to filing a declaration of candidacy for mayor unless their term expired in the same election year as the mayoral election. Currently, if...
Laboratory Manager Violet Shimek announced during last week's Petersburg Medical Center Hospital Board meeting that the hospital will be bringing back its Community Health and Safety Fair this spring. The fair, which is usually held every two years, was canceled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so the theme of this year's event is "Getting Back on Track." The fair's in-person event is scheduled for June and an exact date will be released by the hospital soon. Leading up to the in-person...
An annual 200-acre treatment limit on the U.S. Forest Service's invasive plant management program in the 3.7-million-acre Wrangell-Petersburg district has the agency revamping and possibly expanding its efforts to eradicate foreign weeds that could damage the ecosystem and economy. Since 2015, the Forest Service has been pulling, digging and spot-spraying plants like knotweed and canarygrass that are not naturally occurring in Southeast. But project managers say it's not enough and they need to...
During Tuesday's meeting, the Petersburg Borough Assembly voted unanimously, 7-0, in support of Ordinance #2022-03 in its first reading which would increase harbor moorage fees by approximately 5%. The proposed fee increase was first presented to the Harbor and Ports Advisory Board during a meeting on February 1 where Harbormaster Glo Wollen said the increase was necessary to keep up with inflation and that fees have not increased since 2018. During that meeting, the harbor board approved a...
The Estate of Molly Parks v. Petersburg Borough, et al. went before the Alaska Supreme Court for oral arguments earlier this month in an effort to overturn the Superior Court's decision to dismiss the case and reopen the lawsuit against the borough and Allen. The wrongful death claim stems from a van crash in 2016 which killed Molly Parks and argued that the borough should be held civilly liable for her death while the borough argued that workers compensation is the sole source remedy since the...
The state of child care availability in Petersburg remains a central concern for the community. During Tuesday's regular borough assembly meeting Assembly member Jeff Meucci remarked that "child care in Petersburg is the cornerstone to economic development in town. Without dependable child care in Petersburg, we can't get back to normal." But he added that understanding the fluid state of child care is challenging. As the conversation continues locally about how to meaningfully support this...
The Mountain View Manor Assisted Living Facility is reporting one active case of COVID-19 as of Wednesday according to Mountain View Manor administrator Shelyn Bell. Since February 10, 14 cases have been identified at the manor, two of which were in the past week, and there has been one fatality where COVID-19 may have been a contributing factor. Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht briefed the Petersburg Borough Assembly on the state of the outbreak during Tuesday night’s assembly meeting According to Giesbrecht, all staff are wearing full PPE i...
An award-winning film chronicling the Metlakatla boys basketball team's run to the 2018 state championship will make its Petersburg big screen debut next week. "Alaskan Nets" plays at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, March 3, at Wright Auditorium. Tickets are $20. Californian Jeff Harasimowicz, director and producer of the documentary film, said he got the idea in 2017 when he was scrolling sports stories, which he loves, on ESPN.com and came across a 2016 photo story by photojournalist Samuel Wilson about...
A COVID-19 outbreak at the Mountain View Manor Assisted Living Facility has resulted in at least 12 positive cases as of Wednesday afternoon according to Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht. Of the 12 cases, four are unvaccinated and eight are vaccinated according to Mountain View Manor administrator Shelyn Bell. There has also been one fatality where COVID-19 may have been a contributing factor. The large outbreak, which has affected both residents and staff, has prompted testing and other...
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced the start of the 2022 Southeast Alaska commercial Tanner crab fishery which opened on February 11 at noon after registration for the season closed. According to the announcement, core areas will be open until February 18 at noon for a total of seven fishing days, non-core areas will be open until February 23 at noon for a total of 12 fishing days, and exploratory area will be open until March 9 at noon for a total of 26 fishing days. All three are...
A local doctor initially spoke to Paul Bowen about a new program aimed at allowing older community members to maintain their independence and continue living at home. Bowen was hesitant at first, but once the topic came to the attention of his daughters, who were already aware of CAPABLE, they immediately began encouraging their father to give it a try. He did and now he has no plans of leaving his home. "I'm glad I had a chance to do it and I'm glad I stayed with it," Bowen says. "It's been a... Full story
