Sorted by date Results 101 - 125 of 1088
According to unofficial election results, three incumbents were reelected to the Wrangell Cooperative Association tribal council last week and one new candidate was chosen by voters. Tribal citizens chose four out of five candidates to join the council for two-year terms. Turnout for the March 10 election was 128 voters, the WCA reported, compared to 90 in the last election in November. The winners are Luella Knapp (110 votes), Michelle Jenkins (86 votes), Richard Oliver (85 votes) and Jason...
After several weeks without games due to bad weather or spikes in COVID-19 cases in other towns, the Wrangell High School boys and girls basketball teams are eager for scheduled games against Metlakatla on Friday and Saturday. It has been a truly unique season for the Wrangell Wolves and Lady Wolves. The Wolves began their season at the end of January, with two games against their rivals, the Petersburg Vikings. The Lady Wolves began their season against the Craig Lady Panthers in early...
The City and Borough of Wrangell will apply for $125,000 in COVID-19 grant funding from the state Department of Health and Social Services, after the assembly approved the action at a special meeting March 11. The funding is for "COVID-19 testing and vaccination enhancement," according to the meeting's agenda packet. While the city does not have a specific plan for how to use the funding, it needed to act quickly to get its application in by the March 15 deadline, Borough Manager Lisa Von...
After an extended period of lay leadership, Island of Faith Lutheran Church has welcomed its new pastor, Sue Bahleda. She and her husband, Bill, arrived in Wrangell about a month ago and have settled into their new roles in the community. "This church was looking for a pastor, I was contacted, and we did the search process together," she said. "It's called 'calling.' They called me to this church then." Bahleda comes to Island of Faith with years of experience behind the pulpit and in Southeast...
The Wrangell School Board has unanimously selected Bill Burr as schools superintendent. He will start in July, replacing Debbe Lancaster, who has been in the job since 2018. Lancaster resigned last year, effective in July. Burr is coming to Wrangell from the Delta/Greely School District, where he has worked as assistant superintendent since 2014. He has also served as director of technology and as fill-in principal at the district in Alaska's Interior, according to the Wrangell School District....
Wrangell can anticipate receiving about $500,000 in direct federal aid as part of this month's COVID-19 relief package, according to the city's lobbyist in Washington, D.C., Sebastian O'Kelly. The state will receive a little over $1 billion, he said at a Wrangell Borough Assembly workshop Tuesday evening. The $1.9 trillion aid package has passed the Senate and was scheduled for a House vote on Wednesday, with President Joe Biden expected to quickly sign the measure. "It's probably going to pass...
The Shamrock Shuffle, a St. Patrick's Day tradition in Wrangell, is set for Sunday afternoon at the covered basketball court. This will the eighth-annual fun run, said organizer Lucy Moline-Robinson. Not only will it be a good opportunity to get some exercise, she said, but also to help raise money for the high school shop class. Robinson, with running group Southeast Beasts, said they are anticipating a good turnout for the run. As such, she wanted the public to remember several safety...
Water quality samples taken in front of Wrangell Island last summer passed the test. The samples collected at six sites were tested by state researchers for fecal coliform and other bacteria, ammonia and various metals. All tested within safe water quality standards-but the same cannot be said for all Southeast communities. Two water samples taken near Petersburg, in the Wrangell Narrows, exceeded the standard for fecal coliform. The state Department of Environmental Conservation will return to...
Tax season is not commonly thought of as an enjoyable experience. There is complicated paperwork, the stress of reviewing personal finances, the headache of doing math. Fortunately for Wrangell residents, there are people who not only are willing to help with tax preparation, but also enjoy it. "I like helping people," said Paula Rak. "It's fun for me." Rak, and Nancy McQueen are volunteer tax counselors with the American Association of Retired Persons' tax aide program. McQueen said this is...
In response to new COVID-19 cases in town, and with 85 reported cases in Petersburg in the past two weeks, the Wrangell Borough Assembly adopted three emergency ordinances by wide margins Tuesday night, including reinstating a community mask mandate. The ordinances also require COVID-19 testing for interstate and intrastate travelers to Wrangell. The community had two active cases as of Tuesday, Borough Manager Lisa Von Bargen told the assembly. Petersburg had 65 active cases as of Tuesday eveni...
The school district's draft budget for next year proposes $660,000 in total reductions in teacher payroll, funding for special education instruction, supplies and materials for the classroom, student activities and other categories to bring spending closer to projected revenues. Projected revenues for the 2021-2022 school year are roughly $4.88 million in state, municipal and federal funds, a decrease of about $800,000 from the approved budget for the current school year. The drop in revenue...
The Juneau candidate for the Wrangell schools superintendent job dropped out, leaving a field of three to meet the community in a Zoom event last week. The school board is scheduled to interview the finalists Friday. The three finalists are: Joseph Aldridge, superintendent of the Columbia Union School District, in Central California; Bill Burr, assistant superintendent of the Delta Junction/Greely School District, east of Fairbanks; and Ralph Watkins, superintendent and principal of Hoonah City...
The Alaska Natives Without Land campaign, working to win congressional approval of a Native corporation for Wrangell, has proposed several parcels near the community for transfer, including 2,146 acres at the Garnet Ledge on the mainland near the Stikine River, 3,168 acres around the Shoemaker Bay overlook and Chichagof Peak south of town, and 3,275 acres along Salamander Creek in the inner portion of Wrangell Island. The potential selections of U.S. Forest Service land also include 1,457 acres...
While shop classes are common in schools across the country, not many offer students a chance to build their own boats. The marine fabrication class at Wrangell High School had decades of history, according to teacher Winston Davies, who said it teaches students important lessons for their lives and careers. "This marine fab program, I think got started back in the '80s with Dave Brown," Davies said. "He was my shop teacher, and it's been going ever since. ... It's kind of a hallmark of the...
The Wrangell School Board has narrowed down the list to four superintendent applicants to succeed Debbie Lancaster, who plans to leave the job June 30. Three of the four candidates work in Alaska, and one is from California. The board met in executive session Saturday to review applications, and announced in a Sunday press release the four finalists who will be interviewed: Joseph Aldridge, of California; Tim Bauer, of Juneau; Bill Burr, of Delta Junction; and Ralph Watkins, of Hoonah. A...
The Borough Assembly will hold in-person meetings in the near future, with limits on people in the room to account for the COVID-19 pandemic. During their meeting Tuesday night, the assembly adopted a resolution repealing and replacing a temporary amendment to municipal code that allows city business to be conducted through virtual meetings. The item was adopted unanimously. Under the new provisions, six members of the public or city staff at a time, in addition to assembly members, will be...
The city has rejected an application to begin the recall process against Mayor Steve Prysunka. Borough Clerk Kim Lane, in a Feb. 17 letter, said the petitioners' list of grievances against the mayor does not rise to the legal threshold required for a recall. Recall organizers have 30 days from the date of the letter to appeal the decision to state Superior Court. The petition, signed by 10 members of the community, alleged that Prysunka broke state and municipal laws several months ago, when an...
Radio station KSTK, instead of its traditional cooking competition, will hold a chili feed at 11 a.m. Saturday at the downtown pavilion. Winners of KSTK's past cook-offs will serve bowls of their winning chili for the fundraising event. The chili cook-off is a longstanding tradition in Wrangell, said Lucy Moline-Robinson, with the radio station. It started back in 2000, she said, when the station invited several residents to prepare a pot of chili and compete to see who could make the best....
Stikine Middle School students explained to a statewide audience how they are using technology to cope with the pandemic-induced changes in their education. Members of the sixth grade class spoke at the Alaska Society of Technology in Education virtual conference Feb. 16, talking about ways technology has helped them learn throughout the year. The organization promotes access to technology information resources for Alaska students. Laura Davies, teacher for the sixth grade class, said she and...
There is a backlog at the driver's license and vehicle registration office in Wrangell, said Police Chief Tom Radke, but they are working their way down the list and hope to have things running smoothly in the near future. The office in the Public Safety Building on Zimovia Highway has been closed or otherwise inaccessible for several months, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and retirement of the only employee. The Division of Motor Vehicles office, a function of the state, is working its way through a backlog of appointments. Radke said there...
Free asymptomatic COVID-19 testing will be available to all community members at Wrangell airport this weekend, starting Friday afternoon. In a Facebook post, the city announced that from 2 to 4:30 p.m. today, and from 10 a.m. to noon this Saturday and Sunday, the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium will offer free COVID-19 asymptomatic tests during Alaska Airlines arrivals and departures. The free testing is open to everybody, according to the city’s post, not just travelers. “People who have mild symptoms or who believe they may hav...
Thanks to the use of federal CARES Act funds to offset wages, and not as bleak a year as had been expected for sales tax revenue, the city general fund is projected to close out Fiscal Year 2021 in the black anywhere from about $100,000 to $800,000. However, the next fiscal year starting July 1 is less certain, according to reports at a borough assembly workshop Feb. 9. "This paints a really great picture for FY21, but I need to caution you for FY22," Borough Manager Lisa Von Bargen said in the...
Wrangell is one of four school districts in the state to remain open all year through the COVID-19 pandemic, according to school officials. On top of providing a quality education, Alaska's more than 50 school districts have been tasked with keeping their students healthy during the pandemic. Wrangell is one of the few to accomplish this without any pandemic-forced closures, said Special Education Teacher and Teacher's Association President Ryan Howe. "Just about all the other schools, they...
Just shy of 20 months after the groundbreaking ceremony, the new $30 million Wrangell Medical Center is fully operational. The final department to relocate from the old quarters - emergency services - moved in last Friday. Long-term care residents moved in Sunday, said Hospital Administrator Leatha Merculieff. Departments began a staggered move from the old hospital, next to Evergreen Elementary School, to the new building on Wood Street in late January. There was a slight delay in moving he...
Wally McDonald, who got off the southbound LeConte on Monday to check on his boat in Wrangell's harbor, said he was just thankful the ferry finally got him to town. It is challenging getting to and from places on the ferry system these days, he said. The LeConte was just the fourth ferry visit to Wrangell in the past four months. And even that was a change in plans. The LeConte was filling in for the Matanuska, which broke down last week. The LeConte returned northbound to Wrangell on Tuesday,...
