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"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...
A Canadian environmental nonprofit group, long critical of the Red Chris Mine in the northern watershed of the Stikine River, has released a new report that cites increasing underground seepage of contaminants from the mine’s tailings pond. The report comes as British Columbia regulators are considering the mine operator’s application to expand ore recovery by changing to underground tunneling instead of open-pit surface mining. The gold and copper mine started operations in 2015 and sits about 50 miles east of the Stikine River community of...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly has once again rejected a proposal to establish a police K9 unit, voting against the request by a 5-1 margin despite grassroots advocacy efforts and significant financial pledges. The proposal, which returned for reconsideration at Monday's assembly meeting after being initially rejected in February, failed to gain approval even with new funding commitments from the Petersburg Indian Association (PIA) and local businesses. Perspectives on the drug dog proposal...
The American Legion provided the first home for the Petersburg Public Library in 1931. Initially, it was a modest shelf of books donated by the community, managed by the American Legion Auxiliary in the Legion's building. This humble beginning eventually grew into the institution we know today. The collection was so small at first that some people even took out membership cards in the names of newborns to borrow more books. As time passed, the Alaska Territorial government and the City of...
Securing our Nation To the Editor: This week, our most senior defense and intelligence professionals discussed details of an imminent military attack on their cell phones over an unclassified, commercial chat app. We only know about this grievous conduct because a journalist was accidentally included in the dialog. What is shocking, and should raise grave concerns for every proud American, is the lack of judgment from people in the highest positions of our government. The fact that these leaders used unprotected cell phones, in locations that...
Essential Air Service To the Editor: On Wednesday, February 19, I asked Senator Lisa Murkowski during a live and recorded town hall meeting if Essential Air Service would be protected from DOGE cuts. She stated she is “very worried about Essential Air Service.” Essential Air Service is a U.S. Department of Transportation program serving 65 rural communities in Alaska along with over 100 communities in the Lower 48, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico. The program was put into place to guarantee that communities that were served by certificated air car...
Forest Service terminations To the Editor: 3,400 U.S. Forest Service employees have lost their jobs across the nation. 10 of those FS employees live in Petersburg. These firings were not based on performance. That is a false agenda this administration is pushing to make you not care and look away. These terminations were inflicted on employees that were still in their probationary period, usually their first year of work. They are predominantly young, motivated people starting out their careers. This will not only leave a gap in the Forest...
WRANGELL — The Wrangell Police Department successfully executed a dual search warrant on Jan. 28 after a month-long investigation into a local drug ring. Cooper Seimears, 39, Jacob Marshall, 29, and McKenna Harding, 29, were charged and arrested following the 8 a.m. search warrant execution. Seimears and Marshall face eight drug-related felony charges and one misdemeanor. Harding faces drug-related charges of one felony and one misdemeanor, though she and Marshall, her fiancée, each face two additional misdemeanors for keeping drugs near th...
Next week the Petersburg Medical Center is launching another round of its Lifestyle Balance Program, a wellness initiative that uses group support and individual coaching to help participants make and maintain healthy lifestyle changes. "The program is designed for people who may be at risk for developing diabetes, which can be based on family history, age, gender, activity levels, or weight," said Julie Walker, PMC's Community Wellness Manager. "We focus on prevention through sustainable...
A variety of market forces combined with fishery collapses occurring in a rapidly changing environment caused Alaska’s seafood industry to lose $1.8 billion from 2022 to 2023, a new federal report said. The array of economic and environmental challenges has devastated one of Alaska’s main industries, said the report, issued by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. And the losses extend beyond economics, casting doubt on prospects for the future, the report said. “For many Alaskans the decline of their seafood industry affec... Full story
Federal managers shut down a major Alaska fishery Wednesday after two Kodiak-based boats targeting whitefish caught some 2,000 king salmon — an unintentional harvest that drew near-instant condemnation from advocates who want better protections for the struggling species. The Kodiak-based trawl fleet has caught just over one-fourth of its seasonal quota of pollock — a whitefish that’s typically processed into items like fish sticks, fish pies and surimi, the paste used to make fake crab. But about 20 boats will now be forced to end their season...
This summer, the Petersburg Landslide Warning Committee established three new weather stations to monitor weather conditions on the hillsides of Mitkof Highway —the area near residences where the potential for landslides is historically most likely. After a presentation by the Sitka Sound Science Center (SSSC) in January, the group formed to develop a community-based landslide warning system inspired by a model used in Sitka. The goal of the project is to have multiple weather stations collectin...
In response to low bike helmet use in the community and close-call accidents involving children, an up-and-coming incentive project is bringing more helmets to the streets of Petersburg. In the works since spring, the Helmets Are Sweet project is a joint effort through Petersburg's SHARE Coalition to encourage the use of helmets by promoting and providing access to high-quality helmets, educating the community on proper wear, and rewarding individuals for wearing appropriate helmets. The goal...
WRANGELL — The borough hopes to learn this week the exact location and condition of the kinked blockage in the treatment plant outfall pipeline that has forced a temporary solution — discharging the wastewater on the beach near City Park. “It’s essentially been bent in half,” Public Works Director Tom Wetor said of the 12-inch-diameter plastic pipe, which was hooked Aug. 30 by a boat anchor and damaged as the anchor line was being pulled up. Repairs could take a couple of months, he said Sept. 6. It just depends on how much work is needed. T...
Up to $83 million in federal funds have been approved for small business loans to be offered through a consortium of Alaska tribes. Announced last Tuesday, the funds are part of the U.S. Treasury’s broader effort to support tribal economies, with up to $415 million being funneled into developing the economies of 220 tribes, according to a Treasury news release. Of that group, 125 tribes make up the consortium from Alaska. “These funds will serve some of the most rural populations in the United States, creating jobs and expanding capital acc... Full story
The Petersburg Borough will enter into negotiations directly with Island Refrigeration LLC for the sale of borough-owned tidelands, the assembly decided Monday. This property at 107A Dock Street is adjacent to a larger parcel the borough approved to sell to Island Refrigeration in April; it was originally part of the young business' plan for the space, which will serve as their new headquarters, but was left out of the initial application process and applied for separately. Another applicant,...
Considering the shallow, rocky waters in the Blind River Rapids, SSRAA production manager Bill Gass was unsure of how successful the beach seine operation to hand deliver king salmon broodstock to Crystal Lake Hatchery would be. But the team of 20 folks, including local volunteers and staff from the Southern Southeast Regional Aquaculture Association (SSRAA) and Alaska Department of Fish and Game, successfully captured and transported 146 live king salmon during the first two Tuesdays in July,...
Petersburg School District is the sole recipient in Alaska of a new grant designed to help schools source more food locally - in this case, through a partnership with Farragut Farm. PSD's food service program offers school breakfast and lunch, a fresh fruits and vegetable snack program in the grade school, an after school at-risk youth program, and also the summer food program; currently, the entire food service program is self-funded, according to PSD Food Service Program Director Carlee...
The multi-million dollar funding request for the Petersburg hospital replacement project was not included in the most recent state FY2025 capital budget, despite being the Petersburg Borough's top priority capital project and months of advocacy to the legislature. In January, the borough assembly unanimously approved a capital projects list that ranked the Petersburg Medical Center replacement project as the very top priority for funding. In February, individuals from the borough, board and...
On Saturday, the Petersburg Community Foundation (PCF) granted over $26,000 to nine Petersburg nonprofits and awarded Volunteer of the Year to Jim Stolpe. The Petersburg Community Foundation formed in 2008 as a local affiliate of the Alaska Community Foundation (ACF). PCF continues to grow its community grant-making endowment fund, thanks to the support of the Rasmuson Foundation, ACF, and generous local charitable giving. Every year, dividends from its investments are used to provide financial...
"...Don't say the C word..." Cris Morrison remembers telling her husband "...It's a blockage..." It was 2018, and she had been dealing with severe constipation for the second month in a row. "I didn't know that it had to do with cancer. I just became constipated..." Her symptoms escalated to incredible pain, and after an overnight stay at Petersburg Medical Center, Morrison was medivaced to Anchorage for emergency surgery to install a colostomy bag for the bowels to empty into and take a sample...
Let’s keep Petersburg schools - and Alaska - great To the Editor: Through no one’s fault but my own, I got busy with work and forgot to run down and attend the #RedforEd march for education. So I wanted to thank the Pilot and KFSK for covering the event as well as local school board and statewide education issues. Public school is what we make it, and in the near decade I’ve lived here I’ve seen people pour their hearts into making our schools great. I don’t have kids in the district, but as a Borough taxpayer I believe strongly in funding o...
There were more attendees than usual at the Petersburg School District Board meeting last week as over a dozen teachers observed discussion about critical issues surrounding district finances. A few attendees testified before the PSD School Board, expressing shared concerns related to the district's tight budget and ongoing certified teacher negotiations between PSD and the Associated Teachers of Petersburg (ATP) union, which have struggled to reach an agreement on a three-year contract amidst... Full story
Hosted every other year to promote health and wellness in the community, the Petersburg Medical Center Health & Safety Fair takes place this weekend -and this year's theme is "Nurture Your Health With Nature." The main health fair event will take place on Saturday, March 23 at the community center. From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. there will be over 25 fair booths available to visit in the community gym. "We have a lot of local people, as well as some regional folks coming in from out of town that will be...
The second week of blood draw appointments for the upcoming 2024 Community Health and Safety Fair wrapped up today - with a few appointment slots remaining before blood testing draws to a close on March 7. The health fair blood draw tests are discounted tests that PMC offers the community every other year. PMC Community Wellness Manager Julie Walker said health fair blood draws are an opportunity for people to "know your numbers" and discover health risks that may otherwise go unnoticed, and to...
