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Retired fifth-grade teacher Dan Sullivan, a longtime Petersburg resident, has launched a campaign for one of Alaska's two U.S. Senate seats. Who is he trying to replace? Dan Sullivan. Dan S. Sullivan(R) has served two consecutive terms in the U.S. Senate and is running for reelection. The fall election is viewed nationally as an important race, as Democrats try to regain control of the Senate. Mary Peltola(D) is competing against Sullivan for the seat, as are 15 other candidates. "We need a...
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The proposed ordinance that would have established the Petersburg Borough's first regulatory framework for wireless communication facilities failed its second reading Monday on a 3-3 tie vote, leaving the borough with no formal controls over cell tower siting just as Tidal Network continues to pursue construction of new towers in the community. Ordinance 2026-12, which had passed its first reading unanimously at the May 18 assembly meeting, would have created new language in the Petersburg...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly voted 4-2 Monday to reject the sale of a small borough-owned parcel near the Haugen Drive fire hall to Tidal Network, the broadband arm of the Central Council of the Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska, in a vote that surprised some members and capped months of contentious negotiations over cell tower expansion in Petersburg. Assembly Members Bob Martin, Rob Schwartz, Jeff Meucci, and Scott Newman voted against the resolution that would have authorized the...
Petersburg's own Tracy Welch was appointed as the second commissioner of the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission (CFEC). Welch was approved by the Alaska State Legislature by unanimous consent on May 14. She was appointed to the position by Governor Mike Dunleavy, taking the second of two seats. After being appointed by the governor, Welch was approved by three confirmation hearings to be officially accepted for the position. Welch grew up in Petersburg and commercially fished for over thirty...
According to Alaska Airlines, their "Customer Service Legend Award" is "for those who always look up, push higher, put others first and have been doing so for more than a decade. They are the models of excellence and ones we can all aspire to be more like." 17 out of around 30,000 employees were chosen this year for the award. Lifelong Petersburg local Darcy Hedlund was one of the 17 granted the award. She was given the award after 39 years of legend-worthy customer service at Petersburg James...
Senator Lisa Murkowski came through Petersburg last week to see the Petersburg Medical Center's (PMC) new Wellness, Education and Resource Center (WERC). Murkowski had helped secure $8 million in federal funding for the project. "It was very successful on Friday," Petersburg Medical Center CEO Phil Hofstetter said about Murkowski's visit. "I think she was very well impressed," Mayor Bob Lynn said. The WERC building opened in August of 2025. It was noted for having the borough's first-ever MRI...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly unanimously adopted the property tax millage rates for fiscal year 2027 at its May 18 regular meeting, slightly raising the rate for Service Area 1 property owners to 10.93 mills and introducing a new area-wide general purposes levy that for the first time charges all borough property owners for services the borough charter has always authorized charging borough-wide, but which Service Area 1 taxpayers have been covering since borough formation. For Service Area 1 residents the new rate of 10.93 mills - an...
The "Kéet Yaakw" – or the killer whale canoe – launched from Petersburg on Sunday morning and reignited a tradition of canoe-based transportation – the first such departure in at least 100 years. Traveling by canoe to Celebration – the biennial gathering of Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian tribes in Juneau – has been a tradition for tribes in the region. This year Petersburg joins the paddling tradition for the first time since Celebration became an event. ShaaL'aanee Brandon Ware is Petersburg...
In last week’s edition of the Pilot, in the story about Desi Burrell being named the Petersburg Community Foundation Volunteer of the Year. The Pilot misspelled the last name of Dorothy Enge, and we apologize for that mistake. In a story about Chris Weiss retiring from our local library, published on April 23, 2026, the Pilot wrote that Library Director Tara Alcock “arrived in Petersburg 23 and a half years ago with no library experience.” It was, in fact, only Petersburg’s library that she did not have experience with, finding herself quickly... Full story
The Petersburg Borough Assembly gave first-reading approval last Monday to an ordinance raising sewer utility rates by 20 percent for fiscal year 2027, the latest step in a multi-year effort to cover the costs of aging infrastructure and heightened state and federal environmental compliance requirements. Ordinance #2026-11, which passed 7-0 and will require two more readings before taking effect, would increase the base residential monthly service charge from $56.79 to $68.15 for a standard mete...
"How many of you have ever played with sounds from outside? Like rocks and sticks, pinecones, shells, water?" asked Alexis C. Lamb, of a circled crowd at Sandy Beach. A percussionist, composer, and educator, Lamb came to Petersburg as part of the Devil's Thumb Chamber Music Festival. Not only did she perform as a percussionist and showcase her work as a composer, but she also wore her educator hat at the festival. The crowd at Sandy beach had gathered to be a part of Lamb's "Forest Orchestra" wo...
“Petersburg is straight-up beautiful,” said State Rep. Rebecca Himschoot, pausing to appreciate the labrador tea and the muskeg wildflowers while walking the Hungry Point trail after a community potluck last Saturday. After the close of the 34th session of the Alaska Legislature, Himschoot visited Petersburg – part of House District 2, which she has represented for the past two terms. On the walk she reflected with the Pilot on the legislative session – it’s highs, lows, and painful vetoes. Three major bills — two vetoed Himschoot identified...
Canadian men Neil Warrington, Liam Gilchrist, and Ryan Van Horne left Petersburg on Friday, May 22 for an expedition with the goal of summiting Devil's Thumb. The plan is to ski up the Baird Glacier, then, if conditions allow, climb Devil's Thumb. Their bags were packed with three-weeks' worth of supplies. With the notorious weather of the area, the climbers approach the expedition with an open mind. "The objective is to go climb Devil's Thumb, but really we're just going for a walk in the wilde...
After more than a year of mounting community pressure over the locations of wireless broadband towers in Petersburg, the Borough Assembly voted unanimously Monday to advance a comprehensive wireless communications zoning ordinance on its first reading, encouraging the public to submit written comments during the two weeks before a scheduled public hearing June 1. The ordinance - 17 pages of amended municipal code accompanied by a seven-page explanatory memo from Community Development Director...
Two years after Petersburg voters rejected a sales tax cap increase by an incredibly narrow margin, the Borough Assembly voted 6-1 Monday to send the question back to the ballot this October. The ordinance, approved on its first reading, would ask borough voters at the October 6 municipal election whether to raise the maximum taxable amount on a single purchase from $1,200 to $5,000. If approved, the maximum sales tax collectible on any single transaction would rise from $72 to $300. The borough’s sales tax rate would remain at 6 percent. T...
A high-stakes quid pro quo deal fell apart in the Alaska Capitol on Monday as legislators failed to approve a tax break for the proposed trans-Alaska natural gas pipeline and Gov. Mike Dunleavy vetoed a bill that would have restored public pensions in the state. The failure leaves public employees with a 401(k)-like retirement system and legislators likely to head into a special session for further work on a gas pipeline bill. Rep. Chuck Kopp, R-Anchorage and the Legislature’s lead negotiator on the planned deal, said on Monday night that ... Full story
Viking and Valkyrie couple Don and Julie Spigelmyre have announced that, after 26 years, they are retiring from their iconic roles. For decades, the Spigelmyres have been a large part of the Little Norway Festival tradition of fur clad, armor-wearing, weapon-wielding vikings and valkyries rampaging through Petersburg. The couple decided that this year's "Little Norway" festival would be their last as Vikings and Valkyries. The town's notorious party group is known for having fun and giving back...
In last week’s story about the Mitkof Mummers play, a quote was misattributed to LeeAnna Lucas. It was in fact Tatum Hagerman who said, laughing and in character as the villain of the play, “I just do it because I love the attention and applause....
At the Petersburg Community Foundation annual award reception Saturday, Desi Burrell was named 2026 Volunteer of the Year. Representing PCF, Glorianne Wollen, said the board's decision was unanimous and easy, citing Burrell's lifetime of community service. "She sees things that need doing, then she does them," Wollen said. Wollen described how the previous Saturday, Burrell was spotted at Sandy Beach with a shovel and a five-gallon bucket, cleaning up after other people's dogs to prepare the...
The Petersburg Community Foundation distributed grants totaling nearly $50,000 to nine local organizations at its annual award reception Saturday, highlighting during the event that the local foundation's invested endowment has officially crossed $1 million for the first time. Board chair Glorianne Wollen opened the ceremony by tracing the milestone back to the foundation's founding in 2008 as an affiliate of the Alaska Community Foundation, when its initial fundraising goal was $50,000. "It is...
The camera watches an old man in wet raingear staring at dark clouds and gray sky from his fishing boat in the waters of Southeast Alaska - behind the camera is Ketchikan-filmmaker Emilio Miguel Torres who has toured his film, "The Ladder," to film festivals across North America. This Saturday, May 23, it will be showing at the Northern Nights theater. The sci-fi story set in Ketchikan, will be screened twice - at 4 p.m. and at 7 p.m. The independent film has yet to be released to stream. Instea...
Inside a small booth with a large glass window, Petersburg Medical Center Radiology Manager Sonja Paul was running Petersburg’s new MRI machine through a quality control test. “These machines can get pretty loud,” she explained, turning up the volume on a nearby speaker. “It sounds like a lot of knocking, hammers, ticks, things like that.” An MRI is a medical device that takes images of soft tissues in your body – like your tendons or your brain – using powerful magnetic fields. Those images can help diagnose joint and back injuries, tum... Full story
The first reading of an ordinance that would raise Petersburg electric utility rates by 4% starting on July, 1, 2026 came before the Petersburg Borough Assembly at last week’s meeting. The Petersburg Borough Assembly voted 7–0 to advance Ordinance 2026-08, which updates electric utility rates and charges for fiscal year 2027. The increase was identified through the borough’s Waterworth financial forecasting software, which Utility Director Karl Hagerman implemented last year in place of the previous rate study process. For a typical residential...
The 68th year of Little Norway Festival opens Thursday, May 14, for four days of parades, smørbrød, live music, competitive herring-tossing and all manner of communal revelry that could only happen in this town. The celebration runs through Sunday, May 17. "I love that everybody comes to town," said Kelli Slaven, who coordinates the festival schedule for the Petersburg Chamber of Commerce. "I love seeing all the people downtown - the kids running, familiar faces and new ones. It just kind of mak...
