Sorted by date Results 1301 - 1325 of 1616
The 33rd Annual Petersburg Chamber of Commerce King Salmon Derby gets underway this Friday at 7 a.m. The derby continues through the Memorial Day Weekend and ends Monday at 5 p.m. Two tagged fish will hopefully be available for anglers this year. Derby Committee member Doug Welde and volunteers were still seeking two Kings to tag at press time Thursday morning. One tagged fish could bring a derby angler a chance at $5,000 from Hammer and Wikan and the other could garner a $10,000 prize sponsored by Alaska Marine Lines and the Petersburg... Full story
Petersburg Mayor Mark Jensen will revisit the offering of a request for proposals (RFP) for a borough comprehensive plan after the assembly voted down such a request at its last meeting. “Due to the great importance of a comprehensive plan to the community and the absence of several people from the May 5 meeting that could have provided more information I believe the topic deserves further discussion and debate,” Jensen said. Jensen and assembly member Kurt Wohlhueter did not attend the May 5 meeting where assembly members John Havrilek and...
This year's Little Norway Festival will commemorate the 200th anniversary of the signing of the Norwegian Constitution on May 17, 1814. Mayfest began in Petersburg more than 50 years ago and Janet Holten, Chair of the Little Norway Festival, said it has grown ever since. "In 1958 when Alma Wallen and Bernadine Trones founded the festival, I don't know if they would have ever dreamed that it is as big as it is now," Holten said. "It was to mark the coming of spring, the sending off of the fleet,... Full story
Shortly after Glo Wollen was named harbormaster, she stood before the city council and advised them that the North Boat Harbor was one storm away from breaking loose and floating into Wrangell Narrows. That body took her seriously. Today, the 56-year old harbor is history. The new harbor features roomier berths, better fire protection, upgraded water and power services and is a facility worthy of Petersburg’s hard-working fleet. With the opening of the brand new North Harbor, we take note that this was one of the smoothest construction p...
Vision for the Petersburg Borough To the Editor: I see a diverse population living in relative harmony, made up of people who respect the opinions and beliefs of others even if they disagree with a viewpoint or don’t share the belief. A community where cooperation and compromise for the common good is the norm. I see a borough that lives in harmony with its environment. One that uses resources in a sustainable way to allow its residents to make a reasonable and fulfilling living. Supporting, but not subsidizing, fishing, timber harvest, r...
May 7 An officer received a complaint concerning an individual blocking a right of way. A caller reported an individual who placed a recycling bag on their property. May 9 A caller reported a woman yelling and screaming, waking people up. A caller reported a black car speeding. An officer responded to a request to check on kids sitting on a railing. A caller reported being threatened. An officer made contact with a group of individuals at Sandy Beach Park past dark. May 10 A caller reported loud music and requested music be turned down and...
The borough will hold a ribbon cutting ceremony next week to commemorate the grand opening of the North Harbor. Harbormaster Glo Wollen said, for her, it’s the culmination of years of hard work. “To some it’s only been a winter project, to others it’s been a large part of our life,” Wollen said. She said staff has had to leap over a number of hurdles to bring the new float facility to fruition—one of which is a new federal mandate that requires all marine electrical service to have ground fault interruption protection (GFI) on individual... Full story
The Petersburg Borough Assembly voted down 2-3 a request for proposals (RFP) that would have allowed consultants to bid on assisting the borough in developing a comprehensive plan. The comprehensive planning process is extensive and covers things such as updating zoning and land use, identifying and selecting state land for economic and community development, evaluating housing availability and affordability, the impact of tourism and other quality of life issues. Developing a harbor master plan will also be included in the comprehensive plan....
Petersburg hosted 117 participants in this year's Southeast Region EMS Symposium. EMS Director Sandy Dixon said this is the first year Petersburg has hosted the symposium and that the community support along with a good weekend of weather ensured a smooth event. "I told everybody I sent Mother Nature a limo," Dixon joked. "The weather helped. It was pretty tremendous." Medical workers from emergency medical technicians to physicians attended the symposium where various classes and lectures were... Full story
April 18, 1914 – According to the report of a committee of English physicians, who have just completed an investigation of the subject, the poor quality of the print used in many of the books and magazines children read is causing serious injury every day to an alarmingly large number of eyes. After making a careful study of the various styles of type and their effect upon the vision, the committee declares that no child should be allowed to make a practice of reading any printed matter unless each letter is clean cut and well defined. Very c...
April 9 The Harbor Master reported gunshots fired in the area of the Middle Harbor. A caller requested an extra patrol in an area. A caller reported an individual refusing to leave their residence. April 10 A caller reported an individual camping illegally in the Ferry Terminal lot. Police received a report of a swerving vehicle not using their blinker. April 11 A caller reported possible domestic violence in progress. Police arrested Randi Jo Haviland, 17, on a charge of Minor in Possession by Consumption. April 12 An officer responded to an...
The Petersburg Police Department filed additional charges against Terry Slafter, 56, who fired multiple rounds off his boat the Lady Lou in the Middle Harbor last week. Two counts of Misconduct Involving Weapons in the 4th degree have been filed against Slafter in addition to the one count of Reckless Endangerment already filed against him. Slafter was apprehended last Wednesday morning after police responded to numerous reports of gunshots in the middle harbor. Officers cordoned off the area and found Slafter in his boat. No shots were...
Eight Petersburg Police officers and a State Trooper responded to several reports of a man firing rounds in the Middle Harbor around 6:20 a.m. Wednesday morning. Petersburg Police Chief Kelly Swihart said the department received several calls identifying the shooter as Terry Slafter, 56, who lives on his boat the Lady Lou. Two officers positioned themselves on the Ocean Beauty Dock-one was armed with a scoped rifle-as a number of other officers approached the Lady Lou. Swihart said they secured... Full story
A stray iceberg damaged several vessels in the South Harbor early Tuesday morning. Assistant Harbor Master Ed Tagaban received the call around 1:30 a.m. Tagaban estimated the iceberg’s surface to be around 40 to 50 feet in diameter and said, when he arrived, it had damaged the swim step on F/V Copasetic and was underneath two other vessels. The iceberg also punctured a hole through the stern of a vessel called the Sea Pride. “It rolled under the boats and lifted them up a little bit on the sterns,” Tagaban said. “The tide was running really...
Nine names are vying for three seats on the state Board of Fisheries, including six newcomers. That gives Governor Parnell the unique opportunity to replace a majority of the seven-member Fish Board, should he choose to do so, and should the Alaska legislature go along with it - an unlikely scenario. It took filing a Freedom of Information request and a 10 day wait to get the names of the Fish Board hopefuls, said veteran legislative watch dog Bob Tkacz in his weekly Laws for the Sea. They include the three incumbents - John Jensen of...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly couldn't come to a consensus last Tuesday for next year's budget spending after it was tasked with providing direction to borough staff to make any changes the assembly would like to see. The assembly met with department heads last week and went over budget line items department wide. During Tuesday's budget hearing, members of Petersburg's community service organizations-organizations the borough funds annually-lobbied for their respective funding needs....
The Petersburg Borough Assembly voted unanimously to increase electric rates by 4 percent over a two-year period. The rate increase comes after Petersburg Municipal Power and Light (PMPL) Superintendent Joe Nelson asked for guidance from the assembly as he moves forward in creating next year’s budget. Nelson told the assembly one of two things needed to be decided, one of which was the rate increase. “The other one would be to purposely approve a deficit budget which draws our reserves down and basically kicks the can down the road for a few... Full story
March 20 A caller reported a possibly intoxicated driver on Sing Lee Alley A caller reported a very young child walking alone on Haugen Drive. An officer responded to a report of a vehicle blocking a drive. A caller reported a vehicle that had been left in gear and was rolling. March 21 A caller reported a reckless driver. Officers responded to a report of a domestic civil matter. A passerby reported screaming and yelling from an area. Officers located juveniles who were reported to be climbing a fence attempting to get on a roof and ran when p...
Fifty years ago today, March 27, 1964 the largest U.S. earthquake ever recorded rocked southern Alaska. Petersburg resident and Harbor Way Parts Owner Phil Meeks was seven years old at the time. He was building a snow fort in his Anchorage front yard just before the 9.2 magnitude earthquake struck. "I remember feeling frustrated that my fort wouldn't stand up," Meeks said. "It kept caving in." Meeks said when the Great Alaskan Earthquake began he noticed the sound more than motion. "It went from...
Scow Bay Turnaround limit rumor To the Editor: Over the last couple of weeks, the Petersburg Borough Assembly has received letters from out of town boat owner expressing concern that the borough is planning to place a load limit on the Scow Bay Turnaround ramp and they would no longer be allowed to have their vessel hauled out at the turnaround. We are writing in hopes of putting an end to this rumor by stating as clearly and unequivocally as possible: No one is proposing a load limit on the ramp at the Scow Bay Turnaround. A load limit is not...
March 13 An officer responded to a report of suspicious activity at a business. A caller reported losing a firearm. A caller reported damage to a door knob appearing to look like attempted break-in near South 3rd Street. A caller reported having to make an evasive maneuver to avoid their windshield being struck by a head sized boulder after it fell out of a dump truck. A caller reported a vehicle parked over time. An officer responded to a report of a possible intoxicated driver. March 14 Officers responded to a report of four individuals...
During Petersburg’s latest Borough Assembly meeting, Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht reported the following: Gary Peters from ProCom Alaska was here the first week of March to evaluate existing radio equipment and coverage deficiencies for police, fire and EMS. Several deficiencies were noted and strategies for corrections are being developed. PFI has a large transformer not working properly. A replacement has been ordered. We’re assisting them with installing a spare unit to get through herring season and until the new unit is delivered. Powe...
