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The Petersburg School Board held a work session Tuesday night to discuss potential changes to the district's COVID-19 mitigation protocols before its next regular meeting. While no action was taken at the over two-and-a-half-hour work session, it gave the board members an opportunity to prepare for action at the next board meeting and hear from experts about current guidelines and the state of the pandemic. The work session was originally scheduled for January 4 but was postponed due to flight...
Leaving his warm house and family behind at 2:30 a.m., during winter months in order to plow snow can be downright taxing for Martin Odegaard. The Public Works (PW) foreman lives out on Cabin Creek, and he's no stranger to putting chains on his pickup just to make it to work. Recently, it took him a half hour to complete the three-mile drive, no joke. "I know the road pretty well, know what to look for, and I've always got it figured out how I'm gonna make it in," Odegaard says. "Always made... Full story
Applications are now open for apartments within the Vakker Sted affordable housing complex according to Glenn Gellert of Swell, LLC. The building on Excel Street across from the Petersburg Medical Center is still set to open to residents in March as the project nears completion. It will house 15 apartments, including two one-bedroom units and 13 two-bedroom units, that will be mostly leased to residents making 60% or less of the local median income Though construction is progressing, exterior...
The installation of permanent lights at the ice skate pond will not be completed this winter after early freezing conditions and shipping delays hindered progress on the project according to Parks and Recreation Director Stephanie Payne. The project aimed to make the ice skate pond safer and generate more use by the community during the winter by putting up lights on two poles next to the pond. Payne said that Rock-N-Road Construction donated time to dig a trench and install an underground conduit to run cables between the poles, but after the...
The Petersburg Public Library is hosting its annual winter reading challenge, encouraging people to read and participate in activities around town through the month of January. According to Kari Peterson, the library’s program coordinator, the Build a Better World Challenge will also help support local nonprofits through a drawing for $500 donated by the Friends of the Library. “This year is a little bit different in that the winnings will not be going to an individual, they’ll be going to a local nonprofit of the individual’s choice who win...
6 brought with it a new record snowfall on New Year's Day which has the National Weather Service in Juneau and Petersburg Borough staff worried as rain and warmer temperatures are predicted for this weekend. Saturday saw the most snowfall and highest depth ever recorded in Petersburg on January 1 of any year with 17.5 inches of new snow for a depth of 40 inches according to data collected by the NWS. It was just short of the most snowfall ever recorded on a single day in the month of January...
The emergency ordinance requiring masking inside public indoor spaces ended Monday night after the Petersburg Borough Assembly did not make a motion to extend it during Monday's meeting. It was first passed in a 6-0 vote with Mayor Mark Jensen excused at a special meeting on November 5 near the beginning of Petersburg's highest spike in COVID-19 cases. At the time of the meeting, the Petersburg Medical Center reported 63 active cases and later peaked at 97 active cases-the highest seen by...
Driving all-purpose vehicles on roads in Alaska became legal Saturday after regulation changes signed by Alaska Department of Public Safety Commissioner James E. Cockrell and the Office of Alaska Lieutenant Governor Kevin Meyer last year came into effect. According to a release from the DPS, all-purpose vehicles, not including snowmachines and hovercrafts, can now be driven on roads with speed limits up to and including 45 mph unless a municipality bans their use via by ordinance. Drivers need...
The Petersburg Medical Center reported five active cases of COVID-19 Tuesday evening and is currently at a moderate risk level. The Petersburg School District is currently not reporting any cases of COVID-19 on its dashboard due to the winter break. Alaska Department of Health and Social Services reported 1,597 new cases from January 3-4 in the state, 12 new resident hospitalizations, and no deaths. 60.7% of Alaskans aged five or older are fully vaccinated while only 22.3% have received a...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly passed Resolution #2022-01 during Monday’s meeting which requested a formal discussion with the U.S. Postal Service about providing additional services at Petersburg’s post office. The resolution cited ongoing staffing issues at the post office, irregular hours, and long lines and asked the USPS to explore the possibilities of adding self-help kiosks in the post office and mail collection boxes downtown. The assembly failed to approve a similar resolution tha...
The Petersburg Medical Center Hospital Board heard an update from PMC leadership on how COVID-19 continues to affect hospital operations and PMC's expectation for future outbreaks during its meeting on December 30. Petersburg saw its highest number of active COVID-19 cases since the start of the pandemic in November, peaking with 97. There were also two COVID-19 related medevacs in the past two months according to Infection Prevention and Quality Manager Liz Bacom who said the hospital is much b...
The Petersburg Indian Association held its annual election Monday which saw four incumbents reelected and one former PIA Tribal Council member return according to the unofficial results. Cris Morrison was reelected to a one-year term as council president, winning the race unopposed with 15 votes. Five people ran for the three two-year seats up for election on the PIA Tribal Council. Incumbents Mary Ann Rainey, who has served on the council for over 10 years, and Heather Conn, who has served for three years, received the most votes with 16...
A Petersburg School Board work session set for Tuesday was pushed to January 6 at 6 p.m. because of flight delays and snow conditions according to an announcement from the Petersburg School District. The meeting’s purpose is to hold a discussion on the district’s COVID-19 Mitigation Plan before the board’s next meeting on January 11. Topics of discussion will include masking, the trialing of the test to stay protocol, and potential changes to the plan. Though there will be no public comments, board members can invite people to speak durin...
Orin Pierson, currently general manager of the Petersburg Pilot, will take over as Publisher of the Petersburg Pilot effective January 1, 2022. Pierson is purchasing 100% of the stock in Pilot Publishing, Inc. (the Pilot's parent company) that is held by Ron and Anne Loesch. The business will continue at its current location on Nordic Dr., as well as the printing operations on Harbor Way. The office supply business will also continue under Pierson's ownership and all subscriptions and advertisin...
January The assembly approved of a COVID-19 dashboard which tracked cases in the community. Local businesses received a total of $15.08 million in aid in the first round of COVID-19 aid released through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. PMC vaccinated approximately 350 residents aged 65 or older at a vaccine drive in the community gym. PMC was given permission by the borough to apply for a second PPP loan totaling $1.8 million. PMC applied and received a loan of...
The Petersburg Medical Center reported eight active cases Wednesday evening with a positivity rate of 7.6% in the week preceding the last update. According to PMC's COVID-19 Dashboard, the hospital is currently at a moderate risk level and is showing one healthcare worker infection. PMC is recommending that people planning on gatherings take a COVID-19 test two days before and on the morning of the gathering. The hospital is also encouraging masking, physical distancing, and maximizing fresh...
The US Forest Service announced on December 8 that it has authorized silvicultural treatments on 105,224 acres of land in the Petersburg and Wrangell Ranger Districts to improve the ecosystems of young-growth stands. The goal of the treatments is to improve habitats and timber production in young-growth stands which face issues caused by overstay trees blocking light as forests regenerate after being clear-cut according to Petersburg Ranger District Silviculturist Ben Case. Problems include...
Susan Doherty has been named the new general manager of the Southern Southeast Regional Aquaculture Association (SSRAA) according to a press release. The SSRAA is a non-profit corporation which currently operates seven hatcheries in southern Southeast Alaska, including the Crystal Lake Hatchery which produces 600,000 chinook salmon and 100,000 coho salmon that are released into Blind Slough and 100,000 chinook salmon for City Creek, as well as six remote release sites. Overall, the SSRAA typically produces up to 235 million juvenile salmon for...
The Salvation Army's signature red kettles raised $13,911.30 for its social services budget during the holiday season according to Major Loni Upshaw. Though it was about $6,000 less than last year's total, Upshaw was still surprised with how high the final tally was and said that it was only $90 dollars short of the goal given to the local branch by the Salvation Army's headquarters. The Petersburg Vessel Owners Association, which had volunteers ringing the bells on Christmas Eve, topped the...
Birders canvassed Mitkof Island on December 18 as part of the National Audubon Society's annual Christmas Bird Count as they looked to collect data on local bird populations. It was a smaller group of people than usual according to Brad Hunter, the coordinator of Petersburg's bird count. Of the 23 people who participated, 10 people watched bird feeders while 13 split up to cover the group's regular routes near Hungry Point, Sandy Beach, the Beachcomber Lodge, and Blind River Rapids. "It's a lot...
Petersburg residents took up shovels, flashlights, and rain boots Tuesday in a day that saw freshly fallen snow followed by a power outage and a broken water main flooding the streets of town. 8.5 inches of snow fell Tuesday, setting a new record for most snowfall on December 21 of any year. So far, Petersburg has accumulated a total of 74.3 inches of snow this winter according to the National Weather Service, well above the average for this point in the season of 21.3 inches. While people outsi... Full story
The Borough Assembly passed Ordinance #2021-18 in its third and final reading which will increase electric utility rates to account for an increase in Southeast Alaska Power Agency rates and the cost of debt service for the Blind Slough Hydroelectric Refurbishment and the Scow Bay Standby Diesel Generation projects. The ordinance was proposed following the results of a rate study conducted by D. Hittle & Associated and passed unanimously in its first two readings. Utility Director Karl Hagerman...
The new cabin at the end of the Raven's Roost Trail was opened for reservations on December 16 and has already seen use according to Cabin and Trails Program Manager Paul Olsen with the U.S. Forest Service. Built by Rainforest Contracting, it is larger than the previous cabin and about 1.2 miles closer to the trailhead which was also reconstructed to make it more accessible to hikers. The new cabin is more family-oriented than the previous one, which was showing signs of decay. It also features...
During Monday's assembly meeting the Petersburg Borough Assembly voted against Resolution #2021-17 which would have requested the option of home mail delivery by the United States Postal Service. The resolution was presented as a possible solution to ongoing issues at the short-staffed post office which has seen long wait times for package pickup and decreased window hours. Assembly Member Dave Kensinger said he brought forward the resolution because of the time people and businesses are having...
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