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In a May 31 budget work session to consider borough finances for the fiscal year that starts July 1, Finance Director Mason Villarma advised the assembly that the borough is working toward accepting credit card payments for property and sales taxes but will charge a fee to accept the cards. “We are still finalizing our process and we may establish fees at a certain dollar threshold,” Villarma said last Friday. “We will be sure to give folks ample notice,” he added. “This will not apply to utility or moorage credit card payments,” Villarma wr...
All of the nearly 11,000 Alaska households that applied for financial aid under a state-administered, federally funded program — including 40 in Wrangell — will receive some level of assistance toward mortgage payments and utilities bills. The Alaska Housing Finance Corp., which is running the $50 million pandemic-aid program, announced last week it had completed its initial reviews of the applications, determining their income eligibility for assistance, and now will evaluate individual homeowner’s financial needs. Depending on each appli...
About one-third of Alaska’s legislators could be new to their job next year as multiple incumbents have decided to retire or seek higher office. The candidate filing deadline for the Aug. 16 statewide primary election was June 1. In addition to the state Senate president, Soldotna Republican Peter Micciche, and Senate Democratic minority leader Tom Begich, of Anchorage, eight other legislative incumbents have decided it is time to retire or take a break from elected office. In addition to those 10 who decided not to seek reelection, eight m...
Ketchikan saw an upswing in reported COVID-19 cases in May, with 341 infections recorded during the past 30 days as of May 25. In addition, the number of active cases involving the Ketchikan Pioneer Home stood at 21 on May 25. The cases involved 18 residents and three staff members at the facility, according to state Health Department spokesperson Clinton Bennett. The home is at “red-alert” status, indicating that at least one resident has tested positive in a ”neighborhood” or a floor. All of its floors had been affected by COVID, accordi...
An award and scholarship ceremony held May 13 at Wrangell High School lauded the achievement of many students and presented seniors with scholarships to further their educations. Teachers Lisa Brooks, Jack Carney, Winston Davies, Ann Hilburn, Donna Massin and Tasha Morse all presented various students with certificates and plaques to commemorate their accomplishments for the year. Community members presented a bevy of different scholarships to the seniors, such as Virginia Oliver, who presented...
Summer is more than just playing outdoors for children — it can be about reading books and winning prizes, including a pool and pizza party. The Irene Ingle Public Library’s summer reading program is open to children entering kindergarten through the freshman year of high school in the fall. Almost 100 children completed the reading program last year, Margaret Villarma, library director, said last week. Children need to come into the library or call 907-874-3535 to register in advance; the reading program starts June 1 and runs through Jul...
The Salvation Army is working with Wrangell businesses and community donations to provide free weekday lunches for 50 children again this summer. The program starts June 1 and will run through July 29, Lt. Jon Tollerud of The Salvation Army said last week. It’s open to children entering first through fifth grades. “It will be similar to what we did last year,” Tollerud said, with families needing to call to register their kids in advance: 907-874-3753. The program is limited, and he encouraged families to call soon to sign up. Children will...
The 342-foot cruise ship Ocean Victory awaits passengers to return after coming into port at the City Dock last Thursday. It was the first official cruise ship in Wrangell for the tourist season, and the Ocean Victory's first visit to Southeast and first to Wrangell. It entered service just seven months ago. Jackson Carney, 13, uses a lull during state testing at the school -- his grades were high enough to exempt him - the morning of May 12 to sell garnets as the first cruise ship of the year,...
The Wrangell Sentinel received four awards in this year’s Alaska Press Club contest, including third place for best weekly newspaper in the state. The Nome Nugget was judged the best weekly in the state. The awards were announced April 30, based on work in 2021. Sentinel reporter Sarah Aslam won second place among small newspapers in the best short feature story category for her Oct. 21, 2021, reporting, “Tlingit culture, language lives on through heritage learners.” The judges described it as “an important story told with heart and purpose.” S...
The assembly has raised rates for cemetery plots and other fees to help pay for the expansion of Sunset Gardens. The fee for a full-casket cemetery plot went up by $670 to $1,000, effective April 26. Previously, a grave plot cost $330 and plots for children under six years of age were $150. Opening and closing of the plot during the weekdays remains at $900, but a weekend opening/closing now costs $1,500, an increase of $415. Headstone installation costs $200, an $80 increase. The borough plans to start work later this year to add 50...
The borough assembly at its April 26 meeting approved an ordinance to hold boat owners liable for disposing of derelict vessels, after the port commission passed a resolution at its April 7 meeting requesting the change. The change to municipal code says, “the owner shall be liable for the costs of disposing or destroying the vessel.” The intent is to lessen the burden on the borough of paying for derelict and impounded vessels, which drains the Port and Harbors Department coffers when clunkers take on water or sink, leading the department to...
SEARHC plans to offer a paid, six-week, on-the-job training program in Wrangell in June for certified nursing assistants (CNAs). After successful completion of the program, a student is eligible to sit for the state certification exam. As of last Friday, the SouthEast Alaska Regional Health Consortium had openings posted on its website for eight nursing assistant jobs in Wrangell. “CNAs are an important part of our workforce, with 20-plus on staff at any time,” said Carly Allen, hospital administrator. “The course is a hybrid of in-pe...
After a strong return of pink salmon to Southeast last year, state fisheries managers are forecasting a commercial harvest of just over 16 million fish this summer, one-third the level of last year’s catch of 48.5 million pinks. “During recent decades, Alaska-wide pink salmon returns have tended to be larger” during odd-numbered years than even-numbered years, the Department of Fish and Game noted in its annual forecast released April 19. Last summer’s pink harvest was on track with the 10-year average for odd-numbered years (2010-2...
The annual Stikine River Birding Festival has a busy first weekend planned. It starts up Friday with a 1 p.m. virtual storytime at the Irene Ingle Public Library, then continuing the educational fun agenda with a Birding 101 class at 6 p.m. Friday at the Nolan Center, led by Bonnie Demerjian. The library event will present an Earth Day theme, with activity kits available for pickup at the library. The meeting ID for the Zoom event is 935 4298 0052, passcode 8743535. There are three events on Saturday’s calendar. A community cleanup is p...
For the sixth year in a row, federal managers have closed the Stikine River chinook subsistence fishery to help preserve weak runs of the returning salmon. Clint Kolarich, Wrangell District Ranger with the U.S. Forest Service, announced the decision last week, under authority delegated by the Federal Subsistence Board. The closure will run from May 15 through June 20. “The preseason forecast for the Stikine River is 7,400 large chinook salmon (greater than 28 inches in total length), which is below the escapement goal range of 14,000 to 2...
A federally funded mortgage relief program to help homeowners hurt financially by the pandemic drew 10,737 applications in Alaska, with 43 from Wrangell. The state received $50 million in federal funds under a nationwide program to help homeowners who lost their jobs or income due to COVID-19 shutdowns or cutbacks. The Alaska Housing Finance Corp. is administering the statewide program, reviewing the applications to ensure people meet the income loss and other criteria in preparation to start disbursing aid. The 10,737 applications represent...
Former Alaska governor, former vice presidential candidate and former reality TV personality Sarah Palin added her well-publicized name to the list of four dozen candidates seeking to fill Alaska’s only seat in the U.S. House, hoping to take over for Rep. Don Young, who died last month. “Public service is a calling,” Palin said in a statement on social media. Palin, a Republican, quit as governor of Alaska in 2009 after she and presidential running mate Arizona Sen. John McCain lost the 2008 election to Democrat Barack Obama and Joe Biden...
A shortage of pilots amid a labor dispute has forced Alaska Airlines to cancel hundreds of flights since last Friday. Pickets went up Friday at airports in Seattle and elsewhere on the airline’s West Coast route system. Alaska reported it canceled 9% of its service on Friday, about 120 flights, and 7% on Saturday, which affected about 12,000 travelers that day. Flight cancellations were down to 6% on Sunday and about 3% on Monday. “We apologize for the inconvenience and frustration we have caused because so many travel plans have been dis...
Evergreen Elementary students surpassed their fundraising goal to help St. Frances Animal Shelter. Last Friday, fifth grade students presented representatives from the shelter with a check for $1,723, which exceeded their initial goal of $1,000. As part of a leadership program at the school, the students looked for a project that would help the community in some way. When they heard St. Frances has been trying to raise funds to buy or build a new location, they began brainstorming. The kids put fundraising jars around town and held two bake...
The deadline to apply for this year’s Alaska Permanent Fund dividend is Thursday. Applications must be submitted online by 11:59 p.m. Thursday, or mailed and postmarked that day. As of Tuesday afternoon, more than 570,000 Alaskans had applied for the annual payment from earnings of the state’s 45-year-old oil-wealth savings account — which means a lot more applications are expected in the final week. About 670,000 people have submitted applications in recent years, with about 640,000 determined eligible and approved for payment. Last year...
The Wrangell nonprofit BRAVE (Building Respect and Valuing Everyone) will be busy in April, taking part in the statewide effort to promote National Child Abuse Prevention Month. A couple of high school students are recording public service announcements that will be read on KSTK throughout the month, and the community group will provide information packets for families of Evergreen Elementary School students, said Kay Larson, of BRAVE. “Each year, thousands of cases of child abuse and neglect are substantiated in Alaska. Our Alaska c...
Sundae + Mr. Goessl, a husband-and-wife duo from Wisconsin that plays vintage pop, cowboy jazz and Americana will perform in Wrangell next week, sponsored by Bearfest. The concert is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 6, at the Nolan Center. Tickets are $10. The duo “has a style all their own and incorporate humor, vintage style, interesting instrumentation, nostalgia and serious musicianship in their act,” according to write-ups from reviewers and others. “Some label their style as vintage pop and others deem it cowboy jazz.” Their s...
Juneau-based Channel Construction will resume accepting scrap metal at no charge — including vehicles — starting Friday at the former sawmill property at 6.3-Mile Zimovia Highway. The company, which brings its barge to communities throughout Southeast to collect scrap metal for hauling to recyclers out of state, will operate its collection site in Wrangell “for the foreseeable future,” the borough announced last week. The site will be open for people to drop off scrap metal and vehicles drained of oil and gasoline and stripped of their tires f...
The Wrangell Cooperative Association has announced the candidates for its March 8 tribal council election. There are 11 candidates for four seats on the eight-member council: Heidi Armstrong, Lavina Brock, Robyn Byrd, Samuel Campus, Frank Churchill Jr., Caroline Demmert, Timothy Gillen Sr., Olivia Main, Edward Rilatos Jr., Amber Lynn Wade and Asia White are on the ballot, according to a list provided by tribal administrator Esther Reese last Friday. Rilatos, Churchill and Brock currently serve on the council. Voters are instructed to vote for n...
This year’s king salmon catch limits in the Wrangell-Petersburg area are tighter for Alaska residents and nonresidents than the numbers that were in effect at the start of last year’s sportfishing effort. However, they are essentially the same limits as mid-season catch restrictions imposed last June to manage the runs. The sportfishing regulations announced last month close off most of the waters around Wrangell and Petersburg to retention of king salmon starting April 1 and continuing to either June 14 or July 14, depending on the area. It...
