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The Petersburg Medical Center Hospital Board unanimously approved its FY23 budget during last Thursday's meeting. According to PMC CEO Phil Hofstetter, the hospital faced many challenges and unknowns while crafting its "creative budget" as the healthcare industry comes out of the COVID-19 pandemic. Though the budget's total operating revenue of $23,925,927 is 11.1% up from the FY22 baseline, a value based on the hospital's year-to-date financials through March 31, 2022 plus an average over the...
Towards the end of last month, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) held a community tour aboard the cutter Pike to help introduce the latest vessel that will continue the legacy of service in Southeast. Prior to the event, Commanding Officer Jack Loewenstein and Executive Petty Officer Kevin Chapman made sure to get off the ship and meet some people around town while spreading word about the event. "We did the rounds, we ended up walking over to the police station and meeting Jim there, meeting Glo at...
An investigation by the borough into a complaint filed by Petersburg Police Department Chief Jim Kerr, alleging that he was the subject of harassment from Assembly Members Jeff Meucci and Dave Kensinger, found that no conduct that met any legal definition of harassment had taken place. The investigation also found that Kerr's comments at a Petersburg Borough Assembly meeting on November 17, 2021 were not protected by the First Amendment or the Alaska State Constitution. On Monday, as a response... Full story
A ship named for one of Norway's most famed explorers has been visiting Petersburg for the first time this summer. The MS Roald Amundsen operated by Hurtigruten is the world's first hybrid powered expedition ship and is currently traversing through Alaska, offering passengers a chance to participate in experiments and research among the state's natural environments. Though unable to mark the Amundsen's very first visit to Petersburg in May, representatives from the community including Sally Dwye...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly voted 6-0 to approve three ordinances, which could amend the charter, in their second readings during Monday's meeting. Mayor Mark Jensen was excused. If the three ordinances pass in a third and final reading, they will be included on this year's ballot for voter consideration. Ordinance #2022-08 would allow the extension of utility services to properties outside of Service Area One if requested and paid for by the property owner. It has been referred to as a...
Traveling teams are soon going to receive a new greeting when they enter the Petersburg High School Gym. The Class of 2022 has chosen to make a sign that reads “Welcome to the Longhouse: Home of the Vikings” as its class gift. In a letter to the school board, PHS seniors said the sign would represent Norwegian culture and that funds raised for prom will be repurposed for the project. The sign will hang in the gym above the weight room doors, but it will not formally rename the gym facility and will only be an artistic welcome. Though the des...
Boeing 737-800s are set to begin arriving in Petersburg on Friday on Alaska Airlines Flight 64 according to Chad Dolbeare, Petersburg's new station manager. Dolbeare, who has a degree in aviation administration, became the station manager in March of this year after having worked in the same position for Alaska Airlines in Utqiagvik, Alaska for five years. His job is to provide support to his agents, whether that be by getting supplies, scheduling maintenance, or working with personnel to serve...
A resolution that would temporarily move assembly meetings from Mondays to Thursdays failed after a 1-5 vote during Monday’s Petersburg Borough Assembly meeting. Assembly Member Dave Kensinger voted in support and Mayor Mark Jensen was excused. Resolution #2022-10 would have changed the meeting schedule to the first and third Thursday of each month from July through September. The request was made by Jensen who will be gillnetting from Sunday through Wednesday of each week during the summer, making him unavailable for Monday meetings. Before th...
The deadline to drop off submissions for this year's Pride art show came and went with the beginning of the week and, as of Monday, organizer Annette Bennett was still hoping to get a piece of art done in time. June is Pride month and Bennett helped establish the event in 2019 with the goal of helping increase visibility of the LGBTQ community on Mitkof Island. Bennett feels like COVID disrupting life for many people might have temporarily taken some of the wind out of those sails. But they rece... Full story
Parks and Recreation reopened on Monday following three weeks of cleaning and repairs to the community center. Parks and Recreation Director Stephanie Payne said the annual closure normally lasts two weeks but this year it was closed for three to allow for electrical repairs and the installation of two new boilers. The boilers, which were at the end of their service life and had been affected by a fire in October 2020, were installed earlier than expected which gave them ample time to test the...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly and Petersburg Medical Center Hospital Board met in the assembly chambers Tuesday afternoon for a joint work session to discuss potential sites for a new hospital building. During the meeting, PMC CEO Phil Hofstetter gave an update on the progress made toward planning and construction of a new building and what the project's next steps are. The assembly and hospital board have both previously agreed on the need for a new facility and passed resolutions in the... Full story
The Petersburg Borough will be restarting its process to hire a new Fire/EMS director according to Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht. Two candidates who were up for the position visited Petersburg last week to meet with community members and conduct their final interviews but neither were hired. According to Giesbrecht, Stephen Jellie was offered the position but wanted to stay closer to his family in New York while Rhys Mateo was not ready to move his family to Petersburg. Giesbrecht wrote the borough feels the community needs a director who...
The Petersburg School Board adopted its FY23 School Operating Budget at the final meeting of the school year Tuesday evening in a 4-0 vote with Member Meg Litster excused. Finance Director Karen Morrison gave an overview of the budget which at this point still has “a lot of unknowns.” The budget has a revenue of $7,962,605 and is based on 413 enrolled students which is below the funding formula enrollment threshold of 425 students. Being below that threshold drops the district down from three school funding to two school funding. As of Jun...
Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht and the boroughs attorney are set to begin discussions with the Petersburg Medical Center on the possibility of transferring management of the Mountain View Manor Assisted Living Facility to the PMC following unanimous approval from the Petersburg Borough Assembly. The borough has struggled to hire staff including resident assistants and registered nurses at the manor and sees the transfer of management as one solution to relieve staffing challenges. The manor...
The Petersburg Medical Center is one step closer to "shovel ready status" following unanimous approval from the Petersburg Borough Assembly to begin surveying and evaluating potential sites for a future hospital. The approved process, which will be paid for by PMC through received funding, will help the hospital learn more about the borough-owned properties and see if there is anything at the proposed sites that would prevent building. Petersburg Medical Center CEO Phil Hofstetter said during... Full story
School got out last week, but Bridget Wittstock still had one week to go until she ended her final year with the Petersburg School District. She is set to retire after 29 years of service and there will no doubt be a void left that will be difficult to fill. The district recently held a surprise party to recognize Wittstock and, of course, the eventwas catered by Wittstock's mother Julie Dahl and included a song written and preformed by the Luncheonettes. "I cried, it was very touching,"...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly passed its FY23 budget by a 4-3 margin in its third and final reading on Monday with Assembly Members Dave Kensinger, Jeff Meucci, and Thomas Fine-Walsh voting against. There were no amendments proposed in its last reading but discussion saw similar points of concern raised by opposing assembly members. Fine-Walsh had concerns about how the budget would place “more emphasis on policing than education and housing.” “These are my priorities, these are the priorities of our community as they have been expre...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly unanimously approved two items which will begin the lengthy process of acquiring the state-owned uplands and tidelands surrounding the Papkes Landing Marine Facility during Mondays meeting. Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht put forward the two separate items requesting ownership of the uplands and tidelands respectively as the borough looks to eventually make improvements to the facility. Giesbrecht has held talks with representatives from the Alaska Department of...
Two candidates who are up for the Fire/EMS director position visited Petersburg this week. Stephen Jellie and Rhys Mateo were in town to meet with community members and conduct their final interviews in front of a panel and with Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht. One of the two could be replacing Sandy Dixon who is retiring at the end of June. Jellie has been involved in fire emergency services since he began volunteering when he was 18. He worked in emergency services in the federal government...
The Petersburg Medical Center Hospital Board voted to support a pilot program which could see the hospital offer after-school child care programming as soon as fall 2022 through its Community Wellness department. Julie Walker and Becky Turland, who was recently appointed to the Early Childhood Education Task Force, spoke to the board during last Thursday's meeting about their idea for the program which grew from the results of the child care needs assessment completed by the SHARE Coalition...
The Petersburg Medical Center Health Fair is returning for the first time in four years this Saturday in the community gym. The in-person fair, organized by the Community Wellness team, will feature speakers, booths, prizes, and more. After its cancelation in 2020 because of the pandemic, this year's theme is "getting back on track" with the hope of returning focus to preventative care such as annual health checks, something that many set aside while spending the last two years mitigating... Full story
Heidi Drygas, the former commissioner of the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, visited Petersburg as part of her campaign for lieutenant governor during the Little Norway Festival in late May. Drygas is running with independent Bill Walker who served as Alaska's governor from 2014 to 2018 against incumbent Gov. Mike Dunleavy in this year's election. The trip marked her first visit to Petersburg and during her time in town she set up a booth to talk to members of the community...
The Alaska State Legislature approved its budget at the end of the legislative session last week which includes $20 million toward the construction of a new Petersburg Medical Center facility. The hospital board has been vocal of the need for a new medical facility and is taking a phased approach through development as funding becomes available. $8 million in funding was also approved earlier this year as part of Sen. Lisa Murkowski's congressionally directed spending requests. Though the $20...
The Petersburg Community Foundation, an affiliate of the Alaska Community Foundation, announced on Saturday the 10 organizations receiving grants this year. The event, hosted by Glo Wollen, saw volunteers, politicians, business owners, and other prominent community members gather to support local programs. Before the grant awards, the foundation announced a new annual award-Petersburg Community Volunteer of the Year. Dave Berg was chosen as the award's first recipient which also comes with...
After a meeting last Tuesday, National Geographic-Lindblad Expeditions is allowing passengers and crew from their ships to go ashore and inside business in Petersburg according to Dave Berg, president of Viking Travel and a ships agent for Cruise Line Agencies of Alaska. Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht, PMC CEO Phil Hofstetter, Dr. Mark Tuccillo, who serves as the borough’s public health officer, and Berg met with representatives from Lindblad to discuss the company’s policy COVID-19 policies and work toward allowing people to visit town. Acc...
