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Family and friends of John Pickens, as well as members of the United States Forest Service and Student Conservation Association, gathered on Kupreanof Island to honor the late Pickens and the work done to rebuild the Mitchell Creek fish pass on Saturday. The USFS has been planning this event since last year, but only in February did it start to get some traction, said Eric Castro, a biologist with the USFS and one of the main coordinators of the event. Approximately 40 people were provided...
Eighteen of the 20 public seats up for election in borough elections have been filed for candidacy. Petersburg will hold its annual municipal election on Oct. 2 from 8 A.M. through 8 P.M. in the activity room of the community center. Residents will be voting on who will fill the 20 public office seats up for election and one proposition. The first day that residents could apply for candidacy was July 24, and the last day to file was Aug. 2. Candidates have until Friday to withdraw from the...
In response to Ocean Beauty announcing that they’ll be closing their plant in Petersburg, the borough assembly discussed a draft letter in response on Monday. In the draft letter from Vice Mayor Jeigh Stanton-Gregor to Ocean Beauty on behalf of the Petersburg Borough Assembly, Stanton-Gregor expressed appreciation for informing the assembly of its decision, as well as the impact the move will have on the local economy. “While this is most unwelcome news to our community and it will be difficult for us to replace the lost revenue, emp...
WRANGELL - Shoemaker Bay Harbor was built in 1977 with a life expectancy of 25 to 30 years, according to Wrangell Harbor Master Gregg Meissner. Now, at 41-years-old, the harbor is finally getting rebuilt. Meissner said many of the renovations are to ensure the harbor meets the needs of modern boats. The renovated Shoemaker Harbor will be similar to Heritage Harbor, he said, which was built in the early 2000s. "Since 40 years ago boats have gotten wider and deeper, so the configuration will be a...
KETCHIKAN, Alaska (AP) — A Ketchikan shipyard is expecting to lay off 50 to 80 workers between October and the end of the year. Vigor Alaska officials informed workers of the layoffs at a meeting last week, citing a lack of new construction projects, the Ketchikan Daily News reported. Without more work orders coming in, the company will need to lay off ``core workers,'' said Doug Ward, the director of shipyard development. The company that operates the shipyard is a subsidiary of Vigor Industrial, based in Portland, Oregon. ``We wanted to give...
WRANGELL - The wildfire near Telegraph Creek, British Columbia is still burning. According to Amy Riebe with the British Columbia Wildfire Service, firefighters have contained about 11 percent of the blaze, but work is still ongoing. Telegraph Creek is a small community along the Stikine River. In early August, according to Riebe, the fire was started by a lightning strike. "It was first reported on August 1," she said. "There were quite a few fires reported at that time when lightning went...
A fire was reported at about 6 a.m. Tuesday morning on Zarembo Island. The fire, according to a Facebook post by the U.S. Forest Service, is a tenth of an acre in size, and has consumed several structures at the Evergreen Timber logging camp. No injuries have been reported, and logging company employees are fighting the fire. According to Christy Gardner with the Forest Service, the fire was put out by logging company employees, though the Forest Service did come to the site to offer assistance. The fire was contained quickly and did not...
KENAI, Alaska (AP) — An Alaska seafood organization is encouraging industry members to comment on the proposed U.S. tariffs on products imported from China that could negatively affect the state's seafood industry. The Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute is asking members to comment before the September deadline on the proposed increases to tariffs that include seafood products from China, the Peninsula Clarion reported Sunday. About $2.7 billion in U.S. seafood is processed in China and sent back to the U.S. annually with most of that coming f...
The borough assembly, on Monday, failed to approve the funding of assembly member Jeff Meucci’s travel to Southeast Conference to advocate for himself and Petersburg in September. Meucci was chosen by the assembly at the Aug. 6 assembly meeting to be Petersburg’s nomination for a vacant seat on the Southeast Conference board of directors. “He has multiple times been against assembly travel and suggested skyping and different things,” said assembly member Brandi Marohl. “To me, it seems like now there’s a personal interest. His view points on t...
After a dry summer season, Crystal Lake’s water levels are 11 feet below the crest of the dam, according to utility director Karl Hagerman. “We’re having a very, very, very dry summer,” said Hagerman. Since the water level is so low, the hydro dam is unable to produce as much power, said Hagerman. Ordinarily, the borough purchases 75 percent of its electricity from the Southeast Alaska Power Agency. The remaining 25 percent is produced by the hydro dam and diesel generators. The average electricity produced by the borough in the month of July...
On Friday, August 10 two U.S. Senators and two U.S. Coast Guard Admirals visited Petersburg to tour the local ships and to talk about the importance of the U.S. Coast Guard missions in Alaska. Mayor Mark Jensen talked with the delegation that included Senators Inslee (Wyoming) and Murkowski (Alaska), Rear Admiral Bell (17th U.S. Coast Guard District) and U.S. Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Kevin Schultz. The group gathered on the airport tarmac before Jensen accompanied them on a tour of both...
The U.S. Forest Service is rebuilding the Mitchell Creek Fish Pass on Kupreanof Island, which was originally built in 1992, to ensure that the self-sustaining coho salmon population continues. "This fish pass is the only one of nine on the Petersburg Ranger District to have been built specifically to increase local sport fishing opportunities," said Paul Robbins Jr., public affairs and partnerships officer with the United States Forest Service. Demolition of the previous fish pass began in early...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Alaska authorities say two men skied to a remote bear den on an island, pulled out their weapons and shot a mother bear in front of her two newborns. They say one of the men then turned his weapon and killed “the shrieking newborn bear cubs.” Alaska State Troopers say the men didn’t know it but the bears were part of an observation program. The area outside the den had a motion-activated camera equipped with sound, and the slaughter was caught on camera. Authorities announced Wednesday that Andrew Renner and Owen Re...
WRANGELL - Rick Groshong has been a part of the Wrangell Police Department for 22 years, according to his resume, having joined the force in 1996. As senior patrol officer, Groshong has been responsible for training new officers, responding to calls, collaborating with other law enforcement and government agencies, and finding procedures to deter illegal drug use. His time in Wrangell is coming to an end, however, as he has accepted a new position as the director of public safety and chief of...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — The Alaska Supreme Court has ruled that some sex offenders convicted outside the state are not required to register in Alaska. The court ruled Friday that a strict reading of the 1994 Alaska Sex Offender Registration Act gives the state Department of Public Safety no leeway when deciding if out-of-state sex crimes match offenses under Alaska law, the Juneau Empire reported . The public safety department would determine if the names of registered sex offenders who moved to Alaska would be entered into its sex offender d...
Last weekend was the annual Rally For Cancer Care golf tournament, organized by the Wrangell Medical Center Foundation. The tournament on Saturday was less of a serious competition and more for fun and socializing. Several holes on the 9-hole course had a different, fun challenge to compete in. Hole No. 2, for example, required golfers to play the entire hole with just their driver. Hole No. 5 required players to tee off with their foot in a bucket. Along with these challenges were...
With a total estimated cost of approximately $3.5 million, the Petersburg School Board approved its project priority list for the 2020 through 2025 fiscal years on Tuesday. The Department of Education requires school districts to submit a 6-year capital improvement plan before Sept. 1 of each year for statewide ranking for the distribution of possible funding. For the duration of the six fiscal years, beginning in 2020, the school board has laid out its priority projects with each year taking on a different project. Four projects will focus on...
The Petersburg Marine Mammal Center is hosting a summer science camp this week to expose middle school aged kids to the scientific jobs available in the community. "We're excited," said Sunny Rice, Petersburg Marine Mammal Center board member and marine advisory agent with the College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences/Alaska Sea Grant. "It'll be fun. It's always lots fun. Lots of energy. It's good to expose them to things they might want to do later on in life." Although, the summer camp is...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — The Alaska Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered that portions of an initiative aimed at protecting salmon be stricken as unconstitutional but decided that the rest of the measure can advance to the fall ballot. In a written order, the court said the problematic parts would bar the state Fish and Game commissioner from granting a permit to a project that would cause “substantial damage” or have other impacts even if it is the judgment of the commissioner or Legislature that a project’s public benefit would outweigh its eff...
The Petersburg School Board on Tuesday approved seven changes to its policy and one change to its bylaws, which changes future board meeting times. “If we’re going to have a focus on kids and have kids at our board meetings to do presentations, I know that sometimes our board meetings can get a little late in the evening during the school year,” said school board president Mara Lutomski at a board meeting in June. “I also would prefer to be done a little bit earlier.” Board Bylaw 9320 will now have board meetings beginning at 6 P.M. on the seco...
WRANGELL - The Wrangell Cooperative Association recently received a $50,000 grant from SEARHC. According to WCA Tribal Administrator Esther Ashton, several other communities with First Nations entities also received similar grants. The "Healthy is Here" grant is meant to help promote public health within their community. "The way that it was defined was really left up to the tribal board to determine how they wanted to promote health and culture within our community," Ashton said. "So the board...
Ocean Beauty Seafoods has announced that they'll be closing their facility in Petersburg to focus on their Excursion Inlet facility. "They have been removing equipment out of the building for a few years, the can lines, the ice machine, so it's been coming." said Mayor Mark Jensen at the assembly meeting on Monday. Ocean Beauty Seafoods made the decision to close the facility after reviewing their options, according to their release. Since the facility was primarily a cannery and had limited...
The Stellar Sea Lion population at the WN buoy and the Red Can at Hungry Point has diminished after a pod of approximately 8-10 Orca whales hunted and killed as many as 7-10 sea lions on Friday morning, July 27. Groups of sea lions traditionally sit atop both buoys throughout much of the year and their barks and growls can often be heard along the beach shoreline. Katie Eddy was an eyewitness to the event, which started around 5:30 a.m. According to Eddy, the Orcas swam in circles around the buo...
The ongoing wildfire near Telegraph Creek, a small town on the Stikine River, has not yet been contained. According to Jody Lucius with the British Columbia Wildfire Service, the fire is a very powerful force of nature that will take time to put out. "We're focusing on minimizing further impact," she said. "It's going to take a significant amount of time to put out." The Telegraph Creek Fire is burning in the general direction of another wildfire occurring south of the Stikine River. Lucius...
Since the middle of June, the borough's trash baler has been up and running after weeks of repairs shut it down. The baler first stopped operating after the conveyor broke down in April, said public works director Chris Cotta. After about a week, the baler was operating again, but immediately afterwards the processor unit failed. Another five weeks was needed to address the processing unit, said Cotta. "It has been working fine ever since," said Cotta. The baler consists of several components....
