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There has been a huge wave crashing through the school district over the years according to High School principal Rick Dormer and that is the Class of 2018. He went on to say "based on the sheer size of the class and frequency of successful achievements to produce an appropriate wavelength that has resulted in a powerful force in our district without the destructive tendencies of a tsunami." With 45 students receiving their diplomas Tuesday night, it was indeed a wave of blue. Out of the 45, 37...
The Petersburg Borough has released the names and resumes of four finalist candidates seeking the Chief of Police that has been filled for five years by Kelly Swihart. Swihart is leaving to seek a job in the Lower 48 to be closer to family. Steven W. Lewis is currently a Detective Sergeant with the Klamath County Sheriff’s Office in Oregon. He began as a Reserve Deputy with the same department in 1987 moving through the ranks to become a corrections deputy and in 1994 as a patrol deputy. He supervised the K-9 unit, which had three dogs. A...
With the adjournment of the Legislature on May 12, Senator Bert Stedman, R-Sitka, talked to The Pilot during the Little Norway Festival about the session. The legislature realized they have to restructure the Alaska Permanent Fund (APF) and Senate Bill 26 does that. Stedman was one of 13 senators who voted in favor of the legislation. With a $2.5 billion deficit the APF has to be protected. He has favored that idea for a long time because it would limit payouts and gives the public the opportunity to look at its structure. The bill sets a...
PETERSBURG, Alaska (AP) — A Petersburg teenager who intentionally ran down two deer with a pickup has pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts. Alaska State Troopers say the 17-year-old boy on Tuesday pleaded guilty to harassing game and taking game with a motorized vehicle. He was sentenced to 160 hours of community work service, 30 days of suspended jail time, and fined $3,000. He will lose hunting privileges for a year and spend a year on probation. Wildlife troopers investigated after people reported seeing video on a social media site o...
Hospital CEO Liz Woodyard reported to the hospital board at its Thursday evening meeting, that Rodney Anderson is in the process of being hired to provide chiropractic services for the hospital. He hopes to work up to 30 hours per week out of the Joy Janssen Clinic. He will be a part of the hospital staff once he goes through the credentialing process. Woodyard said they would like to have him working by July if all the paperwork can be completed. Anderson operated his own practice until last year when health issues forced him to close his...
During the closing days of the Legislative session, the Medicaid funding for fiscal year 2019 Medicaid supplemental was reduced from $48 million to $28 million. The Department of Health and Social Services will likely run out of money before the end of the fiscal year, requiring that they suspend payments to large health care providers. “The good news,” according to hospital CEO Liz Woodyard, “is the department will continue to make payments to small rural hospitals, like PMC, and should not see any disruption in payment.” Doran Hammett...
WRANGELL - After a series of meetings and public presentations last week, a proposed acquisition of Wrangell Medical Center by a regional health group looks more probable. Southeast Alaska Rural Health Consortium has expressed interest in administering the municipal hospital, which has been in a prolonged state of financial difficulty. At the Wrangell Assembly's most recent meeting last Tuesday, WMC chief executive officer Robert Rang reported having only 13 days' cash on hand with which to...
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced on Friday it would begin to allow subsistence and personal use salmon permit participants to access their permits online. Online availability was established as a result of user feedback, with the intention of streamlining and simplifying the permitting process. A single, regionwide permit has been created that will allow bearers the opportunity to harvest salmon through the waters of Southeast Alaska and Yakutat. Permits are still free, available online at www.adfg.alaska.gov/store/. Permit...
Women, 29 years old and under, with limited or no access to health care can get exams and reproductive health services, as well as STD testing, on a sliding scale at the Petersburg Public Health Center’s Woman’s Health Clinic June 11- June 13. Services will be provided by a nurse practitioner with Public Health Nursing, the Alaska Division of Public Health. Appointments are required and can be made by calling the Petersburg Public Health Center 772-4611....
"Don't touch!" That's a phrase worth remembering from now through early July as newborn moose calves, young bear cubs and other wildlife babies start appearing in Alaska's backyards, urban greenbelts, and along popular trails. Tug - at - your - heartstrings cute, they may appear helpless and abandoned, but a protective mother is likely nearby. According to Fairbanks Area Management Biologist, Tony Hollis, cow moose can be particularly dangerous during calving season . "Give them plenty of...
The Borough Assembly passed the proposed budget in its second reading Monday night after numerous amendments to the spending plan failed. Eric Castro wanted to move half the money collected from a local tax on tobacco to a health related use. The borough hopes to bring in $230,000 from that tax, which currently goes into the General Fund. Finance Director Jody Tow told the assembly that to keep the budget balanced, the $115,000 would have to be made up from higher taxes or through other...
Susan Flint and Chelsea Tremblay appeared before the Petersburg Borough Assembly Monday night seeking a sponsor to sign an ordinance that would remove the Senior Citizen Sales Tax Exemption and replace it with a needs based rebate program. Flint noted that nearly 600 tax-exempt cards are in use and in some cases two generations of a single family hold the cards. The ordinance change would be presented to the voters in the form of a proposition at the next regular election on October 2, 2018. The proposition would repeal the current sales tax ex...
Sgt. James Kerr is among the three finalists seeking the position of Chief of Police in Petersburg. Steve Giesbrecht told The Pilot five finalists were interviewed on Wednesday and the list was pared down to three people who will be invited to town for a meet and greet in June. Members of the Public Safety Advisory Board, the borough clerk and manager conducted the interviews via Skype. Kerr was interviewed in person. Kerr joined the department in June 2013 after serving nine years in Kingman, Arizona. Information on the two out-of-town...
WRANGELL — The Wrangell Ranger District is hosting a public meeting at the James & Elsie Nolan Center in Wrangell on May 31 from 7-8 pm in order to include community input into the development of a Long-Term, Sustainable Cabin Management Strategy in order to be responsive to developing trends and challenges, while ensuring the Forest continues to provide for a high-quality cabin experience through an array of opportunities. This effort was inspired by increasing maintenance costs, decreasing budgets and significant changes in usage trends. Pub...
The Borough Assembly approved rate increases for harbor users on Monday night in its first reading. Moorage rates will rise approximately 9% while other user fees will go up 12% according to a proposed ordinance enacting the increase. According to the Harbor Department’s explanation, staff determined that a number of the moorage and user fees require an increase of 12% or more. To accomplish the across-the-board increase goal, a 10% prepayment provision was eliminated in 2017, allowing for less of a moorage rate increase. Annual stall rates w...
Gov. Bill Walker stopped in Petersburg for a brief visit Friday, making the rounds for meetings and taking some time to participate in its Little Norway festivities. "It's perfect. I can't complain about a day like today," Walker commented, noting the afternoon's cloudless sunshine. He had attended Petersburg's distinctive festival before, but this year's trip was his first since being elected as governor four years ago. "I came down obviously to meet with various folks, but I was also in the...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) —Alaska’s funding for Medicaid is set to run out before the end of June, causing several hospitals and health care providers to go unpaid until July. The state Department of Health and Social Services will begin delaying some payments this week to large providers that don’t solely rely on Medicaid funding to stay in operation, KTOO Public Media in Juneau reported Wednesday. The department has typically paid Medicaid bills within a week. “We’re trying to do the least amount of harm possible to the smaller providers who are r...
WRANGELL - A group of Tlingit residents had a unique opportunity for an historical site visit with state archaeologists last week at Anan Creek, revisiting a traditional fishing ground. Now known best for its bear observatory, what draws those bears is the creek's yearly run of salmon. This salmon run at Anan has long been a source of food for the nearby population as well, as attested to by the remnants of a tidal fish trap still near the creek on Sealaska Corporation lands. The United States...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Northern sea otters, once hunted to the brink of extinction along Alaska’s Panhandle, have made a spectacular comeback by gobbling some of the state’s finest seafood — and fishermen are not happy about the competition. Sea otters dive for red sea urchins, geoduck clams, sea cucumbers — delicacies in Asia markets — plus prized Dungeness crab. They then carry their meals to the surface and float on their backs as they eat, sometimes using rocks to crack open clams and crab. The furry marine mammals, which grow as lar...
Employees of the Petersburg Municipal Employee’s Association complained of “bullying,” and a, “big lack of professionalism,” taking place at the negotiating table, according to comments made at Monday’s special assembly meeting on Monday. Joe Bertagnoli, who has led the PMEA negotiations in the past said, “It’s not pretty.” It’s like when we negotiated with former city manager Scott Hahn. When items are placed on the table, negotiator John Hoag says, “Hell no.” “We’re not asking for the moon,” Bertagnoli added. Blake Buotte continued by say...
An April tentative agreement for a three year contract between the Borough and the IBEW was rejected following a vote of the 10 employees, according to manager Steve Giesbrecht. IBEW represents the employees of Petersburg Municipal Power and Light Department. Both sides thought they had a deal, according to Giesbrecht, “but it didn’t happen that way.” “We’re going back to the table with them,” the manager explained. There is one issue with one employee. The framework of the contract was solid, said Giesbrecht. He did not know the break-out o...
The Petersburg Marine Mammal Center (PMMC) celebrated its 20th anniversary during a special event last Wednesday at the Petersburg Borough Chambers. Board members hosted an open house to share information about PMMC's education, outreach, and marine mammal stranding response programs. New members were recruited, and funds were raised through a silent auction and donations. Formed in 1998, PMMC was initially conceived as a resource for researchers studying the area's abundant marine mammals and...
The tax assessment certification story in last week’s paper indicated the mill rate as if it had been approved by the assembly. The mill rate is based on the budgeted property tax levy in the Proposed FY2019 Budget. The Assembly hasn’t approved the budget and should changes happen during the course of the three readings, the property tax levy could also change. This would then change the mill rate. The mill rate will be approved by resolution after the Borough budget has been approved....
The borough assembly discussed how and when they would refine and implement public comments about how the Borough could reduce expenses and increase revenues to address budget issues facing the community. The discussions took place at a special meeting on Mon., May 14. Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht prepared a 16-page summary of the ideas and comments for review by the Assembly. Three public meetings were held in January to gather comments. Emails were also accepted. Despite Assembly member Meucci’s suggestion that the body deal with the t...
Charter boat captains and local agency personnel met Thursday with David Levin, a National Weather Service forecaster from the Juneau office, to share information about which NWS products they use and how they use them. Participants provided suggestions for new tools or how the existing ones can be improved. The graphical forecasts are a popular source for marine weather, although users identified challenges finding them on the existing webpage. Station observations are also highly used. While some agency personnel have strict go/no-go limits...
