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The biggest headline in the borough’s draft budget for the fiscal year that starts July 1 is the proposed 24% reduction in the property tax rate, though a substantial drop had been expected. This year’s comprehensive assessment review of every piece of property in Wrangell resulted in a significant boost in taxable value for most homes and businesses. Borough officials had said the intent was fairness — assessing all property by the same standards — not raising revenue. The proposed cut to the tax rate follows through on that pledge. Aside f...
Every homeowner, car and boat owner knows that maintenance is expensive. It’s also necessary. Particularly so in Alaska, where the weather is unkind to most everything except solid rock, and even that can erode away given enough time. Maintenance is a smart investment. It preserves the value of the property, whether stationary or motorized, and keeping up with repairs is the best way to avoid even more expensive rebuilds, restoration and replacement later. It’s especially true for borough property, which is why it’s heartening to see borou...
The Legislature earned a passing grade for approving a substantial increase in state funding for public schools — the first since 2017. Think of it as a small gold star for effort, but they still will need to retake the class next year. Rather than permanently raise the per-student funding formula in state statute, lawmakers voted for a one-time boost in funding for the 2023-2024 school year. Helpful, but it does not solve the perennial problem of inadequate funding for public schools. The 15% increase is good for only one year and does not c...
The Hubbard pulled away from the dock at the Ketchikan Shipyard on May 18, headed for its first passenger sailing — more than four years after it was built at a cost of about $60 million. Carrying a crew of 24 — with newly installed sleeping quarters for crew — the Hubbard headed to Juneau, where it was scheduled to start work Tuesday, running six days a week between the Capital City and the Lynn Canal communities of Haines and Skagway. The Hubbard is not scheduled to visit Wrangell this summer. With the Matanuska out of service for repai...
The honesty of the younger generation reminds us of what is important in life. It should prompt everyone to pay attention to what teenagers say. It will be their community and their world, so their opinions matter. Wrangell High School seniors are certainly not unanimous in their favorite subjects, the value of homework or what they want to do next year. Yet, it’s clear that a lot of them think about the weighty issues facing the nation and the world, judging from their answers to a Sentinel pre-graduation questionnaire. Leroy Wynne wants to s...
Virtually that is, not literally. But maybe someday for real Oleh Shevchenko, the boss of Northern Sky Studio, a software development company based in Kharkiv, Ukraine, and his team recently created a computer-generated Wrangell airport add-on for Microsoft Flight Simulator. The graphics are so good you expect to see someone you know in the terminal and then spot your house from the air as you take off. No one on the development team has ever been to Wrangell, but Shevchenko said he and his co-workers are big fans of Alaska and Hawaii. “I h...
No doubt elected officials want to win their next election. They want to continue working on the issues that matter to them and their constituents, including public services, spending and regulation. They want to keep the job. But, as parents tell Little Leaguers, winning isn’t everything. Values matter. Doing good matters. The ability to listen and learn matters too, particularly for elected officials passing judgment on public policy. They are not expected to know everything about every issue, budget item and law when they come into o...
Residents will have two opportunities in the next couple of weeks to pitch in, bend down, pick up, lift and carry in a collective effort to make the community cleaner and greener for the summer. The annual community events are a source of pride for residents who see these streets and sidewalks every day. They also are a chance to put Wrangell’s best flowers, benches and footpaths forward for visitors. The town could attract an estimated 33,000 tourists this summer — the most since 2005. It’d be smart to showcase a cleaned-up community, sending...
Alaska posted the nation’s highest rate of increase in electronic cigarette use by young adults from 2016 to 2021, according to a report tracking patterns in all 50 states. The rate of e-cigarette use by Alaskans in that age group more than tripled, from 4.8% in 2019 — the lowest rate in the nation at the time — to 15.8% in 2021, according to the report. The sponsor of a bill in the Alaska Legislature to impose a tax on e-cigarettes, vape sticks and other electronic smoking devices has said the tax is intended to deter young people from vapin...
A wise economist made the point last week that while it’s true more people have left Alaska each of the past 10 years than have moved here, the problem isn’t so much the departures as it is the drop in arrivals. Alaska has long had a high turnover rate — not everyone likes the weather, the isolation or the lifestyle. They come, they see, they decide to move on. Which means Alaska needs to draw in a constant flow of new residents so that the keepers outnumber the shakers who get away. It’s that shortage of enough people moving to the 49th st...
The U.S. Forest Service is seeking suggestions for sustainably managing the Tongass National Forest, with a series of public meetings across Southeast Alaska through May 19. The Wrangell public meeting is planned for 5 to 7 p.m. May 5 at the Nolan Center. “Instead of commenting on a plan we present, we’re asking folks to help develop it,” according to a Forest Service announcement of the meetings. That means looking for input from individuals, groups, government agencies and Alaska Native tribes about ideas such as “wood products, clean w...
No question about it, Wrangell loves its Fourth of July celebration. Residents, families and visitors all gather downtown to watch and participate in the games and races, enjoy the food and, hopefully, some summer sunshine, though that is the least predictable of the festivities. Putting on the days of the Fourth is not cheap for the chamber of commerce. The celebration totals somewhere around $115,000 for fireworks, event expenses, insurance, prize money, running the royalty fundraising raffle and everything else that everyone enjoys every...
Borough officials and elected assembly members are right: Wrangell’s municipally owned-and-operated utilities and services need to pay their own way. Not happy news for residents — but it’s honest news. For far too long, Wrangell has been overly dependent on federal and state gifts to pay for needed repairs and rebuilds while looking to avoid rate increases. Those are not answers, they’re examples of hopeful denial, and the borough is making the right moves to change direction. The assembly has approved rate increases effective July 1 for elect...
Some people let their dogs run loose, while others walk their dogs but don’t bother to pick up the piles. Regardless of which one was the culprit, the recent dog poop deposit at the museum totem is a new low for a highly visible problem. The discovery comes as the snow melts and residents discover dog piles anywhere and everywhere. The Muskeg Meadows Golf Course, which is posted but frequently ignored as a dog-free area, recently reminded the community: “Our grounds crew has been picking up buckets and buckets of dog poo as we get ready to ope...
The Wrangell High School cheer squad has finished their season of drills and RAH, RAH, RAH-ing with the conclusion of state competition last week. The squad of Brodie Gardner, Cassady Cowan, Alisha Armstrong, Lily Younce and Nate Rooney placed seventh out of 12 teams in Division II. “Their execution of game-day cheers and their routine was, in my opinion, the best I’ve seen all year,” said coach Stephanie Cartwright. “They had one mess-up in their performance section but recovered wonderfully.” At the regional competition in Juneau from March 8...
Keeping voter rolls accurate is a good thing. Even more so in recent years as far too many candidates question election results for their own political gains and far too many citizens have climbed on the bandwagon of doubt and suspicion. Why then would the new director of the Alaska Division of Elections hesitate to support a decade-old nationwide cooperative effort among states to keep voter registration lists accurate and up to date? Alaska has been a member of ERIC, which stands for Electronic Registration Information Center, since 2016....
Alaska legislators will get a 67% pay raise next January — from $50,000 to $84,000 a year — and the governor and state department heads will receive a 20% boost effective July 1. The wage hikes come after Gov. Mike Dunleavy replaced an independent salary commission that was unable to agree on a pay hike for lawmakers, with the new members convening on short notice to recommend the raises. An entirely new five-member commission met March 15 and added the legislators’ pay increase to an earlier recommendation that the governor, lieutenant governo...
Wrangell’s economy has been in decline since long before the COVID-19 pandemic erupted three years ago. But the economy — meaning jobs, businesses and families — would be a lot worse off if not for federal assistance. Oppose federal spending if you want, but the $30 million or so in pandemic relief aid that the U.S. Treasury poured into Wrangell the past few years for the borough, schools, businesses, individuals and the tribal government made a huge difference in people’s lives. Criticize the IRS and income taxes if it makes you feel better,...
It took a consultant’s report for the collective management of the Alaska Marine Highway System and state Department of Transportation to realize that of 250 job applicants over the past year, just four were hired to work on the ships. At that rate, the ferry system would need close to 10,000 applicants to reach full staffing. The system has been seriously short-staffed for more than two years, losing crew to resignations and retirements faster than it could hire new workers. The crew shortage forced cutbacks in service, keeping ships tied to t...
State officials have known for months that delays in processing applications for food stamp benefits were denying financial assistance to thousands of eligible households — including children — who needed help to afford three meals a day. There were multiple explanations: Longstanding staffing shortages, a cyberattack on the computer system two years ago, more paperwork and income verification requirements after the state ended its pandemic emergency declaration months earlier. But children cannot swallow explanations, especially ones far pas...
Wrangell is fortunate its two state legislators know that a good education pays years more dividends for Alaskans than the short-term gain a larger PFD provides. They are on the long-term, good-thinking side of what is shaping up as a monumental debate this year embroiling lawmakers and the governor: The more the state spends on the Permanent Fund dividend, the less money is left in the treasury to help schools. Rep. Dan Ortiz and Sen. Bert Stedman between them have more than 25 years of legislative service. They have heard all the arguments...
Gov. Mike Dunleavy made a smart decision last week when he issued an administrative order directing state personnel officials to review and change job requirements where appropriate so that applicants could more easily substitute “practical experience” for a college degree. Almost one in six state government jobs were vacant in December, according to the governor’s Office of Management and Budget. The most empty desks were at one of the most important agencies: Almost one in four positions at the Department of Natural Resources were vacan...
Stikine Middle School wrestlers traveled to Juneau last weekend for regionals, winning first- through eighth-place finishes. The girls squad showed up in force, taking first, second and third place in their weight classes. It was the first time a separate tournament was held for the girls division at regionals, said head coach Jack Carney. Overall, the girls had 14 wins and four losses, placing first overall as a team ahead of the Hydaburg Warriors, Mitkof Vikings, Metlakatla Braves and six other schools. The boys placed fifth overall in their...
The IRS announced last Friday that most temporary relief checks issued by states in 2022 are not subject to federal income taxes, including the $662 energy-relief portion of last year’s $3,284 Alaska Permanent Fund dividend. Alaska legislators last year added the energy-relief money to the annual PFD of $2,622 in a move to help residents hit hard by high prices for gasoline, diesel and heating fuel. The IRS decision provides last-minute tax guidance as returns are starting to pour in. The agency said it will not challenge the taxability of paym...
Fewer Alaska high school graduates are qualifying for the state’s largest scholarship program; fewer who would qualify are bothering to participate in the program which requires that they attend college in Alaska; and more students who attend college out of state are choosing to set up their life outside Alaska. The numbers are not encouraging, unless you run a college in the Lower 48 that wants to attract more Alaskans. While elected officials debate the amount of the annual Permanent Fund dividend, who is tougher on crime, who is more s...