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On Monday, the borough assembly voted against sending a letter drafted by Mayor Mark Jensen to Viking Cruise Lines stating that Petersburg isn't ready for larger cruise ships to come to town. In the letter, Jensen said the town isn't ready to handle more than 250 tourists from ships in any given day, and he is concerned with an increase in traffic flow during the busy, summer months on Nordic Dr. He also writes that he is worried that larger cruise ships could lead to Petersburg becoming a touri...
The borough assembly wisely voted against sending Mayor Jensen’s letter to Viking Cruise Lines asking them to refrain from bringing their ships here until Petersburg can determine what level of tourism it can handle. The letter suggested that Petersburg can only handle 250 visitors per day. In fact, Petersburg regularly handles much larger numbers throughout the summer in addition to summer cannery workers and visitors arriving on the airlines and ferries. Sales tax revenue from visitors is needed to replenish the borough coffers as more and m...
The Petersburg Swim Club hosted a home meet over the weekend that saw over 80 swimmers from Craig, Wrangell, Ketchikan and Petersburg participate. "Petersburg did really good," said head coach Andy Carlisle. "We had a couple kids that did great." The swim club operates a little differently from the high school swim team. They have more events and have swimmers from all ages, from kindergarteners to high school seniors. There are about 456 kids in this year's swim club. The season follows the sch...
The Petersburg Chamber of Commerce hosted a public meeting on Tuesday to discuss and receive community feedback on the possibility of larger cruise ships coming to Petersburg. In August, Viking Cruises met with representatives from Petersburg while looking for possible new ports in Southeast Alaska for 2020. The ships can hold approximately 900 passengers and 140 crew members. "If you think about this as a win-win situation, some of these ships they provide a visitor base, not only for visitors...
Petersburg High School’s varsity volleyball team competed in its first seeding tournament winning four out of six games October 19-20. On Friday, Petersburg defeated both Skagway and Klawock. The game against Skagway went for three matches with Petersburg winning 25-10, 26-24 and 25-13. “Friday's game against a very good Klawock team pushed us to the limit,” said head coach Jaime Cabral. “We found ourselves up 2 games to 1 and in the 4th set down 24-19. Kaili Simbahon assisted in serving us to win the game 26-24 in an exciting game.” Petersbur...
The borough assembly on Monday voted in favor of removing a discussion item from its agenda, which addressed the possibility of 900-passenger cruise ships stopping in Petersburg in 2020. “I think we just need to delay this,” said assembly member Nancy Strand. “We have a lot of things to discuss and it’s completely unnecessary to discuss it at this time.” Member Kurt Wohlhueter supported the decision stating the topic needs to have a community discussion before anything goes on the record. Mayor Mark Jensen, who requested the item be added to th...
James Christopher Jensen was born in Petersburg, Alaska on March 18, 1954. His parents, Gordon and Helmi Jensen, and his sister Sue welcomed him to his childhood home on Wrangell Avenue, a paradise of kids and dogs and a street where everyone knew what to do with a gaff hook, a krumkaka iron or a basketball. It the 1950s it was the age of radio, the steamship and a community much smaller but as full of life as it is today. Chris grew up on the family seiner, the Symphony, their longliner... Full story
Clarification To the Editor: Thank you to the Petersburg Pilot for the coverage of the 1st annual Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Walk/Run. I would like to clarify that while my granddaughter Amalia was correctly identified as Alaska Native, I am not. I am however a proud member of the Seetka Kwann Dance group, founded in 1990 and led by Jeanette Ness. Many thanks to SEARHC, WAVE, PIA and Petersburg Parks and Rec for coordinating this event and to all who participated. Karin McCullough Senior exemption thorny issue To the Editor: The...
Hagfish is the real name for what is commonly called slime eels and it could become a viable fishery with ready markets standing by. Little is known about hagfish in Alaska, although they are commonly caught elsewhere in the U.S. and abroad. In Oregon, for example, a fleet of 15 to 20 boats catches up to two million pounds each year in customized five gallon buckets or large barrels and pay fishermen up to $1.25 a pound. Now, two Alaska biologists are testing the waters for a fishery with longliner in Southeast who were given a special permit...
May 24, 1918 Mayor Ness received a message from Mayor Matheson of Wrangell, Wednesday evening, stating the council of that city had wired to Food Administrator Gunnison that fishermen were arranging to quit, and recommending the changing of prices for king salmon to 5 cents for white and 9 cents for red, with an additional 1 cent per pound for delivery. The Petersburg council, in a message to Mr. Gunnison, indorsed (sic) the action of the Wrangell body. May 21, 1943 Organization of a local branch of the Coast Guard Auxiliary was completed at a...
Gov. Bill Walker stopped in Petersburg for a brief visit Friday, making the rounds for meetings and taking some time to participate in its Little Norway festivities. "It's perfect. I can't complain about a day like today," Walker commented, noting the afternoon's cloudless sunshine. He had attended Petersburg's distinctive festival before, but this year's trip was his first since being elected as governor four years ago. "I came down obviously to meet with various folks, but I was also in the...
Freedom is not free To the Editor: Memorial Day is another holiday to have cookouts and play. We may even put out the flag of our country. I do hope we take time to reflect about the sacrifice both men and women have given to the freedom and security of our country. Let us also not forget the sacrifice of family and friends whose loss of loved ones they have had to endure. We have a lot to be thankful for and I hope we do not take what we have for granted. Freedom is not free. Steve Murphy Wrangell, Alaska Successful shrimp dinner To the...
Petersburg's track and field teams each placed second at regionals for their divisions, with most of the team heading next to State this weekend. Competing at Thunder Mountain High School in Juneau, 21 of the team's 28 athletes qualified for the state-level meet in Anchorage, with a number of personal records set across the board. "It went great. We had 23 PRs on the first day, and I didn't even count the ones on the second day," remarked Brad Taylor, the Vikings coach. For the girls, freshman...
Many new events and activities, along with old favorites, will be featured during this year's 60th celebration of Petersburg's Little Norway Festival. At 4 p.m. Thursday at the public library, the Storyteller Pole Unveiling will be celebrated. Master Tlingit carver Tommy Joseph, from Sitka, created the work for the library. The Mitkof Mummer's play "Bigfoot," featuring a cast of zany characters guarantees a laugh a minute. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. at the Wright Auditorium on Thursday, Friday and...
The Petersburg Marine Mammal Center (PMMC) celebrated its 20th anniversary during a special event last Wednesday at the Petersburg Borough Chambers. Board members hosted an open house to share information about PMMC's education, outreach, and marine mammal stranding response programs. New members were recruited, and funds were raised through a silent auction and donations. Formed in 1998, PMMC was initially conceived as a resource for researchers studying the area's abundant marine mammals and...
Peter Christoffer Thynes Jr., 58, died on January 28, 2018 in Petersburg, Alaska. He was born April 15, 1959, the fourth son of Pete and Tora Thynes. Born and raised in Petersburg, he attended school here, except for a couple of years when his parents lived in Port Townsend while building the "Tora". Peter worked in a work study for Alaska Island Air his sophomore year, loading and unloading freight. There, he was able to go on the occasional flight with Lloyd to wash the beaver in Petersburg...
Over a period of 60 years, Petersburg has had four weekly newspapers, one of which operated under two different names. The Petersburg Pilot is the fifth paper and was founded on February 8, 1974. Newspaper history in Petersburg began on January 18, 1913 with the appearance of The Progressive, "published every Saturday" by J.E. Rivard and J. Frederick Johnson. Rivard was editor. The Progressive survived only a year. Johnson's name last appeared on the masthead on March 8, 1913 and the paper's...
Baseball is back, despite a thick layer of ice covering the diamonds in Petersburg. The Viking high school tteam has practiced in the gym for about a month and is scheduled to host Ketchikan in less time. “That’s the toughest part,” Coach Jim Engell said practicing inside. “I hate the fact that it’s out of my control.” This year’s group is young, much like last year’s winless team, and could see leadership from one junior and a few sophomores, Engell said. Some dozen kids are out right now, practicing indoors on pitching, hitting, fieldi...
The outlook for tourism in Petersburg this summer is showing an increase in cruise ship passengers, while the rate of independent travelers is still unclear. Dave Berg, co-founder of Viking Travel Inc., says cruise ships are scheduled to make 133 stops in Petersburg this summer, which is up from 110 last year. "More stops, more passengers," Berg said. That could mean more dollars spent in downtown businesses. "More sales tax," Berg said. "Which basically trickles down to the economy and it's...
The cheer team in Petersburg placed first last weekend at the regional tournament in Ketchikan, securing its fourth straight title and prompting area coaches to say the Vikings should compete against bigger schools. In the Petersburg boys basketball game against Metlakatla last Thursday, two people weren't watching the game. They were judges, tasked with observing the Petersburg cheer team. For about 20 minutes during warmups, through the second quarter and then a two-and-a-half-minute halftime...
Two high school teams from Petersburg competed in Seward last weekend in a state competition focusing on ocean sciences. This year Petersburg has nine students in the National Ocean Science Bowl. They are separated into two teams, with names created based on ocean puns. The freshman Petersburg team was called, simply, “Insert Team Tidal Here,” a boilerplate selection with a twist on the word title. The team included Jaden Perry, Liam Demko, Rose Lane and Taryn Copeland. Demko and Perry were the only members on that team who could attend the com...
