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In the face of declining funding for the Tongass National Forest, Petersburg Ranger District managers are looking to the public for help to figure out which type of recreation programs and facilities will stay and which will go. “We’ve come up with a general niche that we think would be suitable for the community, suitable for the district to continue to maintain in the future,” Petersburg District Ranger Jason Anderson said. “But it does leave stuff off the map. There are certain things that aren’t going to get addressed and the idea was...
May 2, 1914 – Administration leaders today laid plans for raising war revenue in case the army has to go into Mexico. The first measure planned would impose a stamp tax on checks and legal documents. Another would tax sweet wine and fortified brandies and probably beer. According to the estimate, this measure would net the treasury about one hundred and sixteen million dollars a year, and if the situation demanded, a tax would be imposed on cigarettes, cigars, and tobacco. May 3, 1974 Celebrating the Pilot's 40th Year– Paul Bowen runs a prestig...
Plans to move the Raven's Roost trailhead to Sandy Beach Park are finally moving forward after more than a decade of bureaucratic haggling between the United States Forest Service and other government agencies. The U.S. Forest service decided the trail needed to be moved because of its proximity to the expanding rock quarry. When blasting occurs at the pit, falling rocks have broken holes in trail planks or punched through nearby muskeg. "In the late 90s we realized we needed to move this thing... Full story
Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht gave the following report during the last borough assembly meeting: Petersburg Police Chief Kelly Swihart testified before Alaska Senate committees last week in reference the municipal remodel and drug trends in Southeast Alaska. The work on the Rasmus Enge Memorial Bridge project has commenced. The bridge has been closed to through traffic during the project and we will try to accommodate bridge residents and businesses as much as possible. The street crew will be sweeping and washing streets from 6:00 a.m. to...
During the Borough Assembly’s March 3 meeting, Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht reported the following: Interest in Losing Big has increased this year and continues to be a great program for our community. Just short of 400 votes were cast through the competition—triple what we typically had last year. The Parks and Recreation Department is beginning plans for the whale observatory. Staff is looking at rock needs, plants and shrubbery clearing over the next year, and is working with Public Works on the project. The Parks and Recreation Dep...
Alice Ann Farra, 83, of Lincoln, Mont. passed away Feb. 9, 2014 at her home in Lincoln. Alice was born Jan. 11, 1931 in Jeffersonville, Ill. to Louise (Brunner) Farra and Forest (Buck) Farra. At age six months her parents returned to Montana. She was raised in Harlowton, baptized and confirmed in Trinity Lutheran Church and graduated from Harlowton High School in 1949. Having an adventurous spirit, she joined the Women's Army Corps. She was stationed in Arizona, Calif. and Japan. After an... Full story
January Petersburg residents contributed a record amount to the Salvation Army Christmas program last year-$15,618.17-more than $9,700 than the year before. Jan. 4, a 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck 58 miles west of Craig and 203 miles south of Juneau prompting a tsunami warning across Southeast. Petersburg Police Chief Jim Agner and Sergeant Heidi Agner announced their intentions to retire. Officer Ben King joined the Petersburg Police Department. The Petersburg Borough Assembly members were... Full story
John Glenn, owner of Stikine River Forest Products, announced Monday evening his plans to build a mill in Petersburg. “I have contacted several property owners and we are in the process of sending offers or accepting offers of sale,” Glenn said during his announcement to the borough assembly on Monday. Glenn said he has located a piece of property near the airport that exists within industrial zoning and has power and water connections. He said the construction of the mill would be done in two phases. Phase one would consist of a full bre... Full story
The announcement at Monday’s borough meeting that construction of a new sawmill could begin as early as this spring, was good news. The employment of 35 to 50 employees will bring new people and new dollars to Petersburg. With the departure of Petersburg’s largest sawmill in 1987, which relocated to Haines, Petersburg lost over a million dollar annual payroll. Salmon and crab harvests were so substantial; the town’s economy barely felt the loss of the timber income. Both Stikine River Forest Products owner John Glenn and Forest Service Range...
Petersburg district school enrollment numbers have decreased by 44 percent since 1997—almost double that of Wrangell and Sitka. It’s a number that Petersburg Superintendent Rob Thomason has been concerned about for some time. “It’s been a concern in the back of my mind ever since I’ve been here,” Thomason said. “The whole staff knows we’re always looking at the idea that this year does not preclude what it will look like next year. We always have to rethink that.” The district has seen about a two percent decrease in student enrollment each y...
The Petersburg borough assembly unanimously voted in Bob Lynn by paper ballot to serve on the assembly seat left vacant by Sue Flint after she stepped down in early November. Lynn served on the committee charged with developing the borough charter the assembly now has the task to implement as it continues with borough formation. Lynn said he was actively against borough formation initially. “But now that it’s done, it’s time to move on and see what we can do to make the charter represent all the people who live in the borough,” Lynn said. Lynn... Full story
November 22, 1913 – What is believed to be a new species of salmon has appeared in the Skeena river this season, says a report; and fishermen are puzzled at the strange fish. It has never been seen before, either in the Skeena or any other British Columbia river. In appearance, the new salmon resembles both the sockeye and the humpback, being described as a cross between the two. Its markings seem to include characteristic spots and colorings of both fish and the dorsal fin, while distinct f...
ANCHORAGE (AP) — Two environmental groups say the federal government is taking too long to decide whether a subspecies of gray wolf found in southeast Alaska old-growth forests should be considered for endangered species protection. In a letter Tuesday, the Center for Biological Diversity and Greenpeace urged the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to decide whether additional protections are needed for Alexander Archipelago wolves, which are found on Prince of Wales Island and are genetically distinct from other wolves in the Tongass National F...
KETCHIKAN — The changing face of visitation on the Tongass National Forest, along with the reality of shrinking budgets, has prompted Tongass managers to begin strategically planning for the future of the forest’s 152 recreation cabins. Increasing costs and declining funding resulted in a $600,000 budget shortfall in the forest’s cabin program this year. In the strategic plan, managers aim to identify cabins that are underused, dilapidated, or otherwise unsustainable, and explore how the forest can refocus available funding on those cabins whic...
More than ten business leaders in the Petersburg tourism industry met Monday to discuss how the season fared this year and what could be done better in the future. Although the general consensus was that last summer was a success, there are some kinks to work out. Sally Dwyer, Chamber of Commerce director, said one of the complaints she heard from tourists was the lack of public phones in town. “There are no public phones in town,” Dwyer said. “We were letting them use our cell phones.” Public phones were taken down due to vandalism and lac...
WRANGELL — Local U.S. Forest Service employees express frustration with the ongoing government shutdown this week. The Wrangell Unit of the Tongass National Forest has been closed for 15 days following negotiations between the Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives and the Democrat-controlled U.S. Senate Oct. 1. The office’s 28 employees have been instructed call a 1-800 phone number each day to determine whether the office will be reopened, according to Forest Service Ranger Bob Dalrymple. Dalrymple himself and one other per...
The lights are off and a closed sign is scotch taped to the door of the Federal Building in downtown Petersburg. Jason Anderson, U.S. District Ranger, is the lone occupant. On Tuesday, he looked as if he had come into the office during time off, garbed in hiking pants and a black t-shirt rather than a forest service uniform. But his desk was stacked with piles of papers looking very much as if there is still work to be done. “We were told not to spend a lot of time finalizing other project work... Full story
Thirty-seven moose have been checked in to Alaska Department of Fish and Game this season. Rich Lowell, Area Wildlife Biologist for Alaska Department of Fish and Game, said nineteen moose were checked in during the first week, which is close to average for the last 10 years “Most of the harvest occurs within the first two weeks of the season,” Lowell said. As of yesterday afternoon, 12 moose have been harvested from the Stikine, 12 from Kupreanof and six from Mitkof. Although 12 moose were taken from Kupreanof only six were taken from the Kak...
The Petersburg Borough is seeking legal advice as it considers drafting an ordinance requiring agencies, including the state of Alaska, using broad based spraying methods to deliver herbicides and pesticides to require the approval of the borough assembly. The state adopted regulations this past spring that would allow agencies to apply herbicides and pesticides on state property without obtaining a permit from the Department of Environmental Conservation and without public review. Petersburg, Skagway and Haines have all written letters to the...
Twenty-six moose have been checked in to Alaska Department of Fish and game this season. Rich Lowell, Area Wildlife Biologist for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, said nineteen moose were checked in during the first week, which is close to average for the last 10 years “Most of the harvest occurs within the first two weeks of the season,” Lowell said. As of yesterday afternoon, nine moose have been harvested from the Stikine, seven from Kupreanof and five from Mitkof. Although seven wer... Full story
A crew filmed Axe Men promotional videos at the Tonka Logging site on Kupreanof Island last week. Sean Moody, Assistant Production Supervisor for The Arsenal Film & Creative, said they lucked out during last week despite all the rainy days. “We got really lucky on the first shoot day, the bigger day, when we were out with all the machines. We even got a little bit of sun in the sky.” The film crew used a remote controlled helicopter camera to do some of the shooting. “We kind of shoot thing... Full story
JUNEAU (AP) — The U.S. Forest Service plans to take a portion of the timber payments it has promised or paid out to 22 states, citing federal budget cuts. Collection letters from Forest Service Chief Thomas Tidwell went out to governors around the country Monday, saying money would be taken from funds used for habitat improvement and other national forest-related projects that put people to work under the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act. Oregon stands to lose the most in the move, with nearly $4 million in reductions....
U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski intervened on behalf a Wrangell daycare operator after a US Forest Service officer issued her a citation in July for picnicking with her daycare children at Middle Ridge in the Tongass National Forest. US Forest Service Law enforcement officer Doug Ault fined Marilyn Mork $375 for operating a business on federal land without a permit. Mork said former U.S. Senator Frank Murkowski caught wind of the situation, made a copy of the citation and sent it to his daughter, Senator Murkowski. Murkowski happened to be meeting...
The Banana Point floating dock project has been canceled after conflicting interpretations within the U.S. Forest Service concerning the use of grant funds. The Wrangell, Petersburg and Kake Resource Advisory Committee, or RAC organized the project that was two years in the making. RACs fall under the authority of The Secure Rural Schools Act, which is meant to provide collaboration between local communities and federal land managers to create projects on federal land. Each U.S. Forest Service region in the country has a RAC. The local RAC...
