Sorted by date Results 90 - 114 of 1297
The Federal Communications Commission last week approved the transfer of licenses from Wrangell Radio Group to CoastAlaska. A nonprofit radio and television service based in Juneau, CoastAlaska provides administrative and technical support for public broadcast stations in Wrangell, Juneau, Sitka, Petersburg and Ketchikan. Citing financial difficulties, last December Wrangell Radio Group – the entity which manages local radio station KSTK – filed a petition with the FCC to allow a transfer of its...
An incipient Wrangell business has won the 2017 Path to Prosperity business competition, which includes a $25,000 grant award for starting up. Calling her business Mighty Bear Roots, resident Dixie Booker has proposed developing an aeroponic garden to cultivate and sell fresh produce. In this method plants would be grown in specialized tray towers, rooted in a soilless medium and sustained through a blend of mineral nutrients and water, and controlled lighting. Booker said the idea for the business came to her out of a need for fresher...
The Forest Service held a public input session with Wrangell residents last week, as it puts together ideas for a 10- to 15-year project to benefit the Wrangell and Petersburg districts of the Tongass National Forest. The Central Tongass Landscape Level Analysis would plan for a major project on a large scale that would increase the number of activities authorized in a single analysis and decision. It reflects a larger effort nationwide to improve the USFS environmental analysis process, and...
The Wrangell Museum added a new piece to its public gallery, an antique cannon. Not that the piece itself is new, thought to be close to two centuries old. Nor is it newly acquired, donated in 2002 to the museum by nonagenarian Bruce Johnston, a former resident then living in Ketchikan. Handed over before the museum's transition over to the Nolan Center, during the shift the cannon wound up in one of the many scattered caches of items kept around town. By now settled, museum staff have over the...
Wrangell Medical Center Foundation last month issued a letter to supporters informing them it would forgo its annual fundraiser weekend this year. For the past ten years the Brian Gilbert Memorial Golf Tournament and fundraiser dinner is hosted in Wrangell each May in order to raise money for the Foundation. The Foundation is a nonprofit dedicated to support the community’s medical needs. The funds it handles fills a few roles, primarily supporting WMC’s bid for a new facility but also procuring new equipment, funding its cancer-related tra...
With the recent resignation of Clay Hammer from the Southeast Alaska Power Agency (SEAPA) board of directors, the City and Borough of Wrangell is seeking letters of interest to fill the vacancy. SEAPA provides power to the communities of Wrangell, Petersburg and Ketchikan, using electricity generated by hydro projects at Swan and Tyee lakes. A board of five voting members and five alternates is divided between the three by annual allotment, with Ketchikan always maintaining two pairs of seats, and Petersburg and Wrangell maintaining one...
Homecoming weekend went well for the students at Wrangell High School, with girls basketball winning both their games against visiting Petersburg, and the boys getting a split after two hard-fought games. For their last regular season games the Lady Wolves started the weekend with a real nail biter, taking things into overtime. Friday's game started off well enough with the team taking an early lead, which the Lady Vikings shaved down to three points by the half. Petersburg propelled itself ahea...
A trio of Wrangell swimmers went to Juneau last month to participate in the annual Alaska Age Group Championship. Wrangell Swim Club shared lanes with 21 other teams during the mid-February meet, which drew qualifying participants from around the state. Now in the club's second year of competitive participation, coach Jamie Roberts said her swimmers are starting to feel like seasoned athletes. Competitive meets of this size are quite fast-paced, with competitors in one event often taking a flyin...
The Wrangell Borough Assembly and City Hall staff held a roundtable discussion Tuesday evening about reorganizing several departments in light of upcoming retirements and departures. City manager Lisa Von Bargen offered suggestions for shaking up the structures currently giving form to the Nolan Center, Public Works and Wrangell Municipal Light and Power. The ultimate focus would be to improve the maintenance attention given to existing public facilities while keeping within other budgetary and...
The City and Borough of Wrangell has issued a conservation advisory to water utility users, as increased wintertime demand outpaces replenishment of the town’s reservoirs. A water watch was declared last Friday, the first of three stages in the emergency response plan the CBW Assembly had adopted last April. During a critical water shortage in the summer of 2016 the city had lacked a clear strategy for responding to such crises across departments. During a Stage I watch alert such as this, Wrangellites are encouraged to reduce their water u...
With a month left before work is scheduled to resume, discussions continue on the future of a stockpile of contaminated soil excavated from the former Byford junkyard. Heading the cleanup effort that began in 2016, the Department of Environmental Conservation removed over 60 shipping containers of debris and heavily contaminated soils from the yard, which for years had been a privately-run repository for automotive and marine junk. The City of Wrangell had assumed responsibility for the property...
Assembly members commiserated with city and hospital staff on Monday to discuss how to move forward on new organizational arrangement at Wrangell Medical Center. Currently the hospital is a public asset, managed by the City and Borough of Wrangell. For several years it has been contending with inconsistent revenues and cash reserve concerns, and in the event of a default the city would be liable for any outstanding debts. In 2015 the Assembly approved a reserve source of interest-free funds of up to $500,000 for WMC to draw from in case of...
Wrangell residents will have an opportunity to offer their two cents on the state operating budget currently in development in the Alaska House. The basis for the draft budget was proposed by Gov. Bill Walker last December. Being considered now in the House, bill number 286 will see a number of amendments to it that have been put forward by the chamber’s representatives and various subcommittees. “We’re in the process of finalizing what we’ll be looking at right now,” said Rep. Dan Ortiz (U-District 36), who sits on the House Finance Committee...
Southeast Conference held its annual Mid-Session Summit in Juneau last week, turning the region’s attention to the state of its economy as legislators reach the mid-point of their 2018 regular session. For much of it, the outlook is pretty grim. Indicators since 2014 put the region’s population and jobs on a worrisome decline, along with earned income. “We’re just taking a hit in almost every way you can imagine,” explained Meilani Schijvens, a consultant to SEC and a former executive director. Faced with continued multibill...
City staff from several departments were surprised to learn of one late resident's generosity. At its meeting in early December, the Wrangell Convention and Visitor Bureau discussed news that Marian Glenz had bequeathed a considerable donation to it. Details at the time had yet to be worked out, but at the Borough Assembly's February 6 meeting, City Manager Lisa Von Bargen had confirmed the contribution totaled $50,000. Born in Wisconsin in 1936, Glenz spent her youth in Port Protection, Ketchik...
The Wrangell Wolves chalked up a pair of losses last weekend hosting the Metlakatla Chiefs, though it easily could have been a split between the two teams. Friday's evening game was a blowout for the Chiefs, which controlled the court for much of the game. Though the final score ended up in a 52-42 win for them, Wrangell coach Cody Angerman acknowledged some last-minute catching up had helped close a larger gap between the two teams. By now in the second half of the season, the teams' meeting...
Wrangell's Amateur Athletics Union basketball program will be hosting its 2018 invitational this weekend. A gap bridging program for middle school girls interested in the sport, this is the Wrangell program's fifth year in operation, and the regional tournament will be the fourth it has hosted so far. Students from Petersburg, Sitka and Juneau will be making the trip, with play for seeding starting this evening at 4 p.m. Juneau and Sitka will be fielding three teams each, while Wrangell and...
Ordinarily highlighting new developments in Wrangell’s economy, the Chamber of Commerce’s 28th annual fundraiser dinner was dedicated to something different this year. Decorating the Nolan Center ballroom in black and red last Saturday, the theme for 2018 was “Honoring the Spirit of Service,” dedicated specifically to the men, women and youths who devote so much of their time to Wrangell Volunteer Fire Department. “I can’t think of a better group to honor than those that serve,” said Cyni Cra...
For the second year running, residents will have an opportunity next week to dispose of their antiquated electronics with a collection drive put on by the Tribe. Wrangell Cooperative Association’s Indian Environmental General Assistance Program will be working with residents and businesses both to gather together e-waste, items ranging from fax machines and scanners to tube televisions, charger cords, adapters, cellular phones and computer towers. The drive will accept all video and music players, cameras and other monitors. Basically a...
A state grant to the Wrangell Museum is allowing its staff to take on larger projects as they continue to digitally archive its collection. Museums Alaska awarded $9,212 to Wrangell through its Collections Management Funds, one of three it has to benefit the state's historical and art institutions. Underwritten by Rasmuson Foundation, this particular grant will go toward acquiring equipment and materials necessary for the museum's oversize archives. Museum archivist Greg Acuna explained the...
The Southeast Alaska Power Agency governing board last week approved moving forward with a remote inspection of the tunnels underlying the Tyee Lake hydroelectric plant. In his report to the board on February 8, SEAPA power systems specialist Ed Schofield explained a remotely operated vehicle would be needed to perform an inspection of the facility’s water conveyance structures. Unlike the dam at Swan Lake, Tyee is a natural lake which is tapped for the facility. Water is conducted to the powerhouse through an intake in the lake into a drop sha...
The Wolves won two games over Craig High School during a pair of home games last week. Hosting the Panthers during the middle of the week, on February 7 Wrangell started off with a close first period, Craig trailing their 14 points by two. The home team stepped up its defense in the lead-up to the half, holding Craig to another 12 points as its offense picked up 25. Leading 39-24, Wrangell kept its edge during a closely-scored second half, holding an 18-point lead by the final buzzer for a...
The Borough Assembly revisited its policy on nepotism during Tuesday evening’s regular meeting, at the behest of a resident who had lost his new position because of it. Max Dalton took the lectern to make his case. He had last month begun work as a part-time custodian with the Parks Department. During the hiring process he had been one of several candidates for the post, and after interviews had been selected as the top candidate. Dalton is the son-in-law to Mayor David Jack, he explained, and is related by marriage to another city employee. D...
Late last week the Alaska Department of Fish and Game issued a group announcement regarding expected changes for sport fishermen in Southeast this year. In the Petersburg and Wrangell areas, the marine waters of District 8 are going to be closed to the retention of King Salmon between May 1 and July 15. An exception will be made for the area immediately adjacent to Petersburg’s City Creek, which will be open to King Salmon fishing from June 1 to July 31 to target 300 hatchery salmon expected to return to the area. The closure is being taken t...