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The window to file for candidacy in Petersburg's upcoming local election closed Tuesday afternoon. In total, 24 people filed for the various positions. There are 20 open seats among several boards slated for the October 7 ballot, including a mayoral race. That race is contested this year, as are the races for Petersburg Borough Assembly and the Public Safety Advisory Board. Current assembly members Bob Lynn and Scott Newman are both running for mayor. Mayor Mark Jensen is not running for...
Petersburg's school buildings and surrounding area were on lockdown for over an hour Tuesday afternoon, Aug. 26, after police received a report of a person with an AR-15 gun and multiple magazines in a school bathroom. The Petersburg Police Department, Alaska Wildlife Troopers and U.S. Forest Service Law Enforcement responded and secured the area. Officers found no real threat on the premises and determined it was a false report. "I'm sure people were alarmed, but rest assured it's safe and...
A late-night car crash south of Petersburg on Friday, Aug. 22, landed two people in the local hospital with moderate injuries. The crash happened about nine miles from town on Mitkof Highway near what's known as the "S-curve" in the road, just south of Twin Creek. A four-door truck traveling northbound did not clear the curve and went off the roadway, ending up in the forest brush downhill. Emergency dispatch got a text message around 9:30 p.m. that an accident had occurred within a few miles of...
After six years of collecting data using trail cameras, radio collars, and DNA analysis, a deer population research project on Mitkof Island, currently led by Ketchikan-based Alaska Department of Fish and Game Wildlife Biologist Tessa Hasbrouck, is entering its final phase. Historically, deer population monitoring in Southeast Alaska relied on relatively simple methods. Biologists would walk through the woods each spring counting deer pellets, or fly over alpine areas in summer tallying visible...
Alaska Marine Lines will stop carrying electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles aboard its freight barges to Southeast Alaska as of Sept. 1, due to safety concerns. The change doesn’t apply to hybrid vehicles that don’t plug in, according to an Aug. 12 announcement from the barge line. The decision is due to “the increased complexity and fire risk associated with shipping large lithium-ion batteries on vessels at sea.” “While issues with lithium-ion batteries are infrequent, the inability to extinguish or contain this type of fire, especially while...
The U.S. Department of Agriculture, parent agency of the U.S. Forest Service, announced Wednesday that it is moving ahead with plans to rescind a rule that has restricted logging and construction on millions of acres of federal lands in the American West for more than two decades. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said in a written statement that the agency intends to open public comments Friday on its proposal to end the so-called “Roadless Rule,” an act that will affect as much as 45 million acres of federal land as well as mil... Full story
The Petersburg Borough Assembly unanimously approved moving forward with a $700,000 sewer line repair project at the Petersburg Aquatic Center during its Monday meeting. The vote authorizes the borough to seek bids for replacing approximately 150 feet of sewer lines beneath the slab concrete floors of the aquatic center's locker rooms, where drains have become disconnected from the main sewer system. "We have a few lines, especially in the family locker room, that are plugged completely with...
The new Wellness, Education, Research, and Communications (WERC) building opened its doors this month, marking the completion of the first major phase of Petersburg Medical Center's hospital replacement project. And according to PMC CEO Phil Hofstetter, the success of this facility has already changed how he's thinking about the rest of the project. "This is just step one," Hofstetter told the Pilot on a recent tour of the 15,000-square-foot building. He will be the first to say that the slow... Full story
At the Petersburg fire station, Heather Bauscher sat waiting for an ambulance. She had a fake tourniquet on her arm, representing a lost limb. "I've got a small amount of time before I go into shock," she said. "So as soon as we get there, I'll start a timer, and they'll have a little bit of time to figure out what's going on with me." Bauscher was one of about a dozen Petersburg community members acting as victims in a staged mass casualty drill on Aug. 16. The drill, which was organized by Petersburg Emergency Services Director Aaron Hankins... Full story
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
Three candidates are now vying for two Petersburg Borough Assembly seats as the candidate filing deadline approaches, with incumbent Donna Marsh joined by challengers Raliegh Cook and Bob Martin. Assembly member Scott Newman, whose term is up this fall, remains the only candidate for mayor, seeking to replace Mark Jensen, who announced in June he would not seek reelection after 18 years in elected office. Fifteen candidates have submitted paperwork to Borough Clerk Rebecca Regula since the...
Wrangell Police Chief Gene Meek has started a public safety campaign to enforce new e-scooter regulations through education and enforcement. The police department posted a safety video Monday, Aug. 11, on YouTube and other social media platforms. The video demonstrates proper scooter operation, hand signals, safety lighting and traffic law compliance. “I think the immediate concern is getting the scooters off of public sidewalks,” Meek said. “With this being an older community, having someo...
A group seeking to decriminalize Alaskans’ use of certain medicinal mushrooms and other psychedelics can start collecting signatures to try to put the question before voters. Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom, who oversees the Alaska Division of Elections, said Thursday she has certified a statewide initiative application that proposes legal but regulated use of certain natural medicines for therapeutic and traditional purposes. The sponsors may now start gathering the petition signatures they need to place their initiative on a statewide ballot. The p... Full story
Early Sunday morning, Sasha Calvey awoke to a roar. "I look out of the tent, and then I see a massive wave coming, like, inches away," Calvey said. Calvey was camped with two friends, Billy White and Nick Heilgeist, on Harbor Island, an uninhabited islet in Holkham Bay. It's at the convergence of two of Southeast Alaska's most-visited fjords, Tracy Arm and Endicott Arm. Calvey, White and Heilgeist had spent the past 78 days kayaking the Inside Passage from Washington. The three hoped to spend th... Full story
Hatchery managers had hoped that June's steady rainfall would spare them from having to intervene in this year's king salmon run, allowing fish to reach Crystal Lake Hatchery naturally without the stress of human handling. Those hopes evaporated in late July when a few hot days right at the wrong time caused a significant mortality event for king salmon transiting the shallow waters between Blind River Rapids and Crystal Lake Hatchery. On July 20, after observing a hundred or more king salmon...
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...
Petersburg Borough Assembly Member Scott Newman has filed to run for mayor, making him the first declared candidate to replace Mark Jensen, who announced in June he would not seek reelection after 18 years in elected office. Ten candidates have submitted paperwork so far to Borough Clerk Rebecca Regula since the filing window opened July 29. Candidates have until 4:30 p.m. on Aug. 26 to file for positions on the Oct. 7 ballot. Raliegh Cook has filed to run for borough assembly. Two assembly...
A Juneau jury convicted 21-year-old John Bisset of Petersburg of two counts of sexual assault in the first degree on July 29 at the Dimond Courthouse. The verdict followed a two-week-long trial presided over by Superior Court Judge Amy Mead. Jurors acquitted Bisset of two other counts of sexual assault. The case goes back four years, when Bisset was 18 years old and the victim was 14. The case was investigated by the Petersburg Police Department and prosecuted by the state. The trial was...
When the peak of the annual glacial outburst flood hit early Wednesday morning in Juneau, newly installed flood barriers stacked along the Mendenhall River largely prevented flooding of the nearby residential area. The flooding reached a record-breaking 16.65 feet at 7:15 a.m., but nearby homes, businesses and three schools were mostly spared. On Wednesday afternoon, Juneau officials announced the flood threat was over. Officials reported there were no rescues overnight or emergency evacuations... Full story
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...
The Alaska Legislature, meeting in special session, has overridden Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s veto of more than $50 million in public school funding. The vote was 45-14. At least 45 of 60 legislators are needed to override an Alaska governor’s budget veto. The override eliminates a 5.6% year-over-year cut to public school funding, leaving districts with a small funding increase. Since July 1, the start of the state’s fiscal year, oil prices have significantly exceeded the state’s spring forecast, and if that trend continues, the state would have mo... Full story
The Alaska Legislature overrode Governor Mike Dunleavy’s veto of state education funding at a special session on Saturday. Earlier this year, lawmakers approved a $700 increase in the per-student funding formula known as the base student allocation (BSA). Using his line-item veto power, the governor reduced that increase by $200. The override undoes the governor’s veto. Both of Petersburg’s state lawmakers, Senator Bert Stedman (R-Sitka) and Representative Rebecca Himschoot (I-Sitka) voted in favor of the override. Petersburg Super...
In a new administrative action, Gov. Mike Dunleavy is ordering “efficiency reviews” of state agencies and asking departments to use artificial intelligence software as part of an effort to identify budget cuts. The reviews will take place annually, according to Dunleavy’s new administrative order, published Monday, and would become part of the state’s annual budget process. The reviews will initially focus on “grants to non-State of Alaska entities” and “accounts payable,” according to a copy of the text available online. The reviews are int... Full story
