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Wrangell’s borough assembly on Feb. 24 unanimously approved a three-year lease with JAG Marine Group, giving the company time to decide if it will proceed with development of a shipyard at the 6-Mile Mill property. The shipyard would be the foundational component of a larger redevelopment plan for the former mill property, which also includes a new barge ramp and freight yard and a privately operated small data center. Wrangell Borough Manager Mason Villarma told the assembly that the short-term lease is a strategic necessity to ensure the p...
Boat owners in Wrangell now have some new rules to follow if they plan on keeping inactive vessels tied up in any of the harbors. At the Feb. 10 borough assembly meeting, members unanimously passed a new law designed to crack down on inactive boats taking up moorage space in the harbors. The provisions, which went into effect immediately, come after years of talks between Harbormaster Steve Miller, the port commission and borough leaders. No one from the public offered any comments about the ord...
WRANGELL - The borough has officially partnered with a growing cruise line to bring a new dock to the community. The borough assembly voted unanimously on Jan. 7 to approve a 40-year tidelands lease for American Cruise Lines (ACL), which will build the dock. The decision followed months of negotiations and a public work session. The lease allows the company to build and operate a floating dock on the downtown waterfront. Borough Manager Mason Villarma described the deal as a "custom fit" for...
Wrangell borough assembly took a step toward attracting private investment in building and operating a shipyard at the 6-Mile mill property, which the borough purchased for $2.5 million more than three years ago. During its Dec. 16 meeting, the assembly voted to approve a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Seattle-based JAG Marine Group. The agreement sets the stage for a long-term public-private partnership at the 6-Mile property, which Wrangell officials want to develop as a deepwater port. If JAG, which runs shipyards in Ketchikan and...
The Wrangell port commission has started work on a proposed ordinance intended to solve the problem of inactive vessels taking up moorage space while a growing waitlist strains harbor capacity. Commissioners discussed the idea at their Sept. 4 meeting. Harbormaster Steve Miller said there are about 25 to 30 boats waiting for moorage space, prompting the look at new rules. Inactive vessels taking up space is an ongoing problem, Miller reported to the commission. Harbor staff “have been working diligently to address vessels that have been i...
Wrangell Police Chief Gene Meek has started a public safety campaign to enforce new e-scooter regulations through education and enforcement. The police department posted a safety video Monday, Aug. 11, on YouTube and other social media platforms. The video demonstrates proper scooter operation, hand signals, safety lighting and traffic law compliance. “I think the immediate concern is getting the scooters off of public sidewalks,” Meek said. “With this being an older community, having someo...
WRANGELL - One side pulls while the other side is told to hold tension in the line. Men grunt and struggle as they push against the large pole while men and women pull on the lines, all working together to maintain the balance needed to raise the large Kadashan pole at Totem Park on Saturday. Sandy Churchill believes the scene was the perfect metaphor to encapsulate the gathering of hundreds in Wrangell. "It was about everything being in harmony," she reflected. "If one side was not in harmony...
WRANGELL – For the first time in 38 years, the Wrangell Native community will raise new totem poles in town, with four days of events planned for Thursday through Sunday, July 17-20. Unveiling the five new poles marks a significant revival of a centuries-old Tlingit tradition. The event honors the carvers and apprentices who transformed logs into cultural masterpieces, continuing a legacy nearly lost to time. By the early 1900s, most of the town's 30 to 40 totem poles had decayed or fallen, and...
A bell recovered from a Southeast Alaska shipwreck that claimed 112 lives more than a century ago rang Thursday, May 29, for the first time in 117 years, signaling its future role in a Wrangell maritime tradition. Jeanie Arnold, director of the Nolan Center, struck the bell at the close of a community presentation, marking a significant moment for the artifact. If the bell can be restored in time, it will be used to ring out names at the community's annual blessing of the fleet in 2026. The...
