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Though the federal government shutdown jeopardizes the program that subsidizes scheduled air service to more than 170 cities nationwide - including Wrangell and Petersburg - Alaska Airlines has said it will continue uninterrupted service to its contract communities in the state. The U.S. Department of Transportation, which manages the almost 50-year-old Essential Air Service program, had notified participating carriers that funding would run out on Oct. 12. But the department later sent out a...
The federal government shutdown, driven by politics and personalities and posturing, is starting to cause a real mess. Particularly for travelers, where a shortage of air traffic controllers has led to delays and cancellations at several airports around the country. Maybe the bickering blame game will subside long enough this week to restore whatever order is salvageable in Washington, D.C., but it depends on congressional Democrats and Republicans and President Donald Trump putting the public ahead of their own elections grandstanding. Until t...
This Saturday, the Petersburg Public Library is hosting the opening reception for TalisWoman, this year’s iteration of Petersburg’s long-running Women’s Art Show. While the library regularly features art displays and maintains a permanent art collection, hosting a curated exhibition complete with an opening reception is a rare occasion. The last time the library hosted a curated art show was the touring exhibition “Decolonizing Alaska” back in 2018, which spanned the library and the Clausen M...
In the main bay of the former Wikan Enterprises building, Mike Corl fabricates a new fuel tank for a customer's Bayliner. On the other side of the wall, in what will soon be a retail space and front office, 19-month-old Charlotte hums happily on a rug, playing with a plastic T-rex. Her mother Ashley keeps an eye on her from her big desk where she is working on the launch of Corls Customs LLC. This is what family business looks like for the Corls, who purchased the Dock Street property last...
September 24 – Property found on South 2nd Street was turned in to the Petersburg Police Department (PPD). A minor parking accident on North 1st street was reported to the PPD post event. An individual reported property lost on Sing Lee Alley. Brina Compton and Dustin DeLong were arrested on South Nordic Drive for alleged felony theft. September 25 – An individual reported property lost five days prior on Haugen Drive. An individual reported property lost on South Nordic Drive. An individual reported prescription glasses lost on South Nor...
Another field season of whale research has concluded at Five Finger Lighthouse, and Dr. Fred Sharpe will hold an open forum on Thursday at the Petersburg Public Library to discuss their latest efforts. Five Finger Lighthouse provides an extraordinary whale research venue because of its isolated location – miles from the nearest shore in the rich waters of Frederick Sound, buffered from the open ocean by miles of mountainous islands. "We're shielded from the global rise of ship noise in the Pacif...
During midday mass on July 6, 2023, an accidental fire broke out at St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church in Petersburg. All parishioners and church staff safely escaped the fire, which burned for nearly ten hours. The Petersburg Volunteer Fire Department fought the blaze and successfully prevented the tragic fire from spreading to nearby homes and businesses like the neighboring Petersburg Children's Center. The church building was left in ruins, though firefighters were able to recover some...
On the Three Lakes trail system south of Petersburg, hikers can follow miles of mostly boardwalk pathways around lakes and trees that lead deep into the Tongass National Forest on Mitkof Island. Some sections of the trail system got upgraded this summer, with help from seasonal workers contracted by the U.S. Forest Service. Recreation Specialist Tyler Shaw said some of the wooden boards that make up the Three Lakes trail system were installed in the 90s. That style of trail is called...
September 4, 1925 – Probably no better concrete example of the value of the herring industry to Alaska, when handled by Alaskans, could be given than to cite the operations of the Ness Fish Company of Petersburg, which, during its 5-weeks operation here this summer expended some $12,000, practically all of which was spent here. This company put up herring for food which goes to consumers in the middle west. It made another shipment of 200 barrels on the Rogers Thursday, consigned to the Birdseth Fish Company of Fargo, North Dakota. Previous s...
A deteriorating baseball dugout that had been gathering moss and rot at Petersburg's ball field has found new life as a much-needed weather shelter at the Banana Point boat launch. Back in March, Public Works employee Martin Odegaard was dropping his child off at Banana Point to catch the boat to Wrangell for a wrestling trip on a typically miserable late-winter day. "It was pissing rain, as it always is this time of year," Odegaard recalled. "And so all these kids are getting soaking wet. I'm...
Part of a wastewater line in Frederick Sound has broken, and the Petersburg Borough must repair it to comply with an upcoming Environmental Protection Agency permit. The pipe, known as the outfall line, discharges wastewater from Petersburg's treatment plant into Frederick Sound. Wastewater Operations Supervisor Justin Haley said that a part of the pipe called the diffuser has fallen off. The diffuser distributes the wastewater at different places in the water, where ocean currents dilute it further in a "mixing zone." Right now, wastewater is... Full story
After 17 years of shaping Petersburg's infrastructure, this has been the final week on the job for Public Works Director Chris Cotta before relocating to Florida, where he'll serve as Public Works Director in Tarpon Springs, a city on the Gulf Coast around the size of Juneau. As Cotta wraps up his tenure, Aaron Marohl-who has deep roots in the community-steps into the director role, inheriting an experienced crew and a long list of ongoing projects. From Florida to Petersburg and back Before...
WRANGELL - A petroglyph rock was found split in half last month, apparently damaged by someone attempting to remove the ancient carving, according to borough and U.S. Forest Service officials. "Petroglyph Beach is more than a scenic destination. It is a sacred site and irreplaceable cultural resource," the borough said in its report to the public on July 28. "The carvings found here are among the most significant archaeological artifacts in Alaska, reflecting the lifeways and histories of the Tl...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly narrowly rejected a resolution Monday that would have authorized police to dispatch approximately four black bears that Petersburg Police Chief James Kerr says his officers have identified through repeated unsuccessful attempts at non-lethal deterrence. The resolution failed by a single vote after Kerr presented evidence of what he described as "learned behavior" by specific bears. "We've tried paintballs, pepper balls," Kerr told the Pilot. "Pepper balls is like...
In recent weeks, users of the popular Hungry Point Trail system have noticed with some alarm trees coming down, a road being built, and the closure of the trail's Sandy Beach Road trailhead – all necessary for the wastewater utility's Pump Station 4 replacement project. "Folks need to be aware that [the trailhead] is going to be probably closed more than it's going to be open for the next few months," Public Works Director Chris Cotta told the Pilot. "We won't be opening things back up permanent...
On July 1, Alaska’s new sick-leave and minimum wage increase law took effect. Approved by voters in November, it states that someone working at a business with 15 or more employees will earn one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked, up to a maximum of 56 per year, unless the employer voluntarily increases that limit. Someone working at a business with fewer than 15 employees earns sick leave at the same rate, but the maximum per year is 40 hours. The law also raised the state’s minimum wage to $13 per hour. The minimum wage ris... Full story
John Frederick Nelson passed away on June 7th at the age of 58. He had been struggling after treatment to heart and lungs. He died peacefully in an Anchorage hospital. John was born September 12th, 1966 to Betty and Don Nelson in Petersburg, joining an older sister Carol Ann. His paternal grandparents were Norwegian immigrants, Fred and Edna Miller Nelson. He attended school in Petersburg and graduated with the class of 1984. John then briefly attended junior colleges in Port Angeles and Yakima... Full story
Petersburg's Devil's Thumb Shooters wrapped up their season this past weekend at the AK YESS State Tournament to huge results. For the first time, DTS won the High Over All Grand Champion Team. For long-tenured seniors such as Cayden Turland, who has been in this program since the spring of third grade and Trent Kittams, who has been with the team since fall of fourth grade, this accomplishment ended their careers with a bang. However, despite the accomplishment, it wasn't all smooth sailing...
At the Petersburg Borough Assembly meeting on May 5, the results of recently completed five-year utility rate study were presented, and borough residents can expect utility rate increases in the coming fiscal year as officials adjust for rising operating expenses and debt service for capital projects across water, wastewater, and electric departments. The suggestions based on the rate study include: Water: 3% annual increases from FY2026 through FY2030 Wastewater: 25% increase for FY2026, then...
May 8, 1925 – Ohmer plans to invade Lynn Canal and there is great rejoicing at Haines, the little village nestling in Mission Cove, and happiest of the whole crowd is Dr. L. Pryer, the druggist and president of the chamber of commerce. For three years, Dr. Pryer has been preaching shrimp, shrimp and nothing but shrimp, in Lynn Canal. So loud and persistent was he in his talk, that it was heard way down at Petersburg, 200 miles distant, by Mr. Earl N. Ohmer, president of Alaskan Glacier Seafood Company. He immediately and forthwith sent two f...
April 30 - An officer responded to a car hitting a stop sign on Skylark Way. Public Works was contacted. Extra patrols were conducted. An officer responded to a disturbance on S 2nd Street. An officer conducted a welfare check. An officer responded to a disturbance on S 3rd Street. An officer assisted EMS. May 1 - A distracted driver was reported on Haugen Drive, but couldn’t be located. A deer versus vehicle accident was reported. The deer was salvaged and given to charity. Extra patrols were conducted on Sing Lee Alley. Intoxicated i...
Three sets of stairs have provided access from North Nordic Drive down to the beach near Hungry Point. A few years ago, the wooden stairs closest to town were replaced with new treated lumber. The middle set of stairs was blocked off to discourage use. And the third set of stairs, closest to Hungry Point, was determined to be hazardous and in need of removal or replacement. "We decided to do both!" Aaron Marohl, Petersburg's Assistant Public Works Director told the Pilot. The existing concrete s...
"The Senate's new education bill is a joke!" declared Governor Mike Dunleavy in a social media post last week. "It does absolutely nothing to improve educational achievement... Welcome to Alaska: 51st in the nation in educational outcomes. In what world does one write a blank check with no expectations?" The governor's comments came as the Alaska Legislature passed House Bill 69 on Friday, April 11, which would increase the Base Student Allocation (BSA) by $1,000 per student. Dunleavy...
March 27, 1925 – Representative John E. Rankin in a speech before Congress [titled] “Alaska, as I Saw It,” said among other things: “I believe that we should give those people as much authority as possible over the territory and that we should protect them in the enjoyment of life and the pursuits of happiness to the same extent that we do our people here in the states – that the wealth up there may not be used to fill the coffers of a few trusts and combinations, but that the resources of the great territory, with its wonderful scenery,...
