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An Alaska state ferry hasn’t stopped in Prince Rupert, British Columbia, since fall 2019, but officials “remain hopeful” they can add back the Canadian port to Southeast Alaska runs on May 1. “The Alaska Marine Highway System continues to work closely with both U.S. and Canadian customs regarding a return to service in Prince Rupert,” Sam Dapcevich, state Transportation Department spokesman, said in a Feb. 1 email. The department and ferry system management “have multiple tasks to complete before we will be approved to re-commence service,” t...
It sure seems the Alaska Marine Highway System is feeling a lot more love these days. Could it be a fundamental shift in the governor’s attitude toward the coastal communities that depend on the admittedly heavily state-subsidized ferries (same as Railbelt communities depend on subsidized highways). Or could it be that 2022 is an election year. Those are not questions as much as they are a combined statement of fact. It’s an election year and every vote counts in Alaska, which is notorious for close elections. When campaigning for ree...
The state has contracted with an Anchorage-based search firm to help recruit and fill almost 50 job openings with the Alaska Marine Highway System, ranging from several onshore management positions to onboard crew. Alaska Executive Search was the only bidder for the contract, said Sam Dapcevich, Transportation Department spokesman. The contract is not to exceed $250,000. The state will pay the company an hourly rate for its work on the year-long recruitment and hiring effort — ranging from $65 to $105 an hour, depending on the contractor p...
The Alaska Marine Highway System has activated the dormant state ferry Tazlina for more than 30 sailings from Juneau to northern Southeast communities in February and March, filling in service gaps to Haines, Skagway, Hoonah, Angoon and Gustavus. Given the shortage of regular ferry service across Southeast, there had been strong public pressure on the state to activate the Tazlina, a $60 million ship built in 2019 but largely unused to save money. Bringing the 300-passenger Tazlina into service required putting together a crew for the...
The state energy office is nominating corridors along Alaska’s roadways for electric vehicle charging station funding, including possibly in rural communities, using Federal Highway Administration money. It’s reached out to ask if Wrangell wants to be included in the request. Borough Manager Jeff Good told the assembly at its Jan. 25 meeting that the Alaska Energy Authority already has earmarked the state highway system for the program, and has asked Wrangell if it wants to be included in the funding request. Good on Monday said the energy aut...
Though they say the level of funding for the state ferry system in Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1 is adequate, coastal legislators don’t like that the governor wants to use one-time federal money to pay the bills, eliminating almost 95% of state funding. Their fear is that when the federal dollars from last year’s $1.2 trillion infrastructure spending plan run out, so too will adequate ferry service. “Those federal dollars were meant to augment state money, not replace it,” House Speaker Louise Stutes, o...
The state appears to be in prime position to capture well more than $1 billion in federal funding for its ferries that many Alaskans hope is the catalyst for long-sought change in the Alaska Marine Highway System. The $1 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act signed in November by President Joe Biden establishes new national programs and boosts existing funding to collectively offer nearly $1.6 billion in ferry-specific funding, according to information from Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who was among a bipartisan group of 10 senators wh...
The Alaska Department of Transportation on Jan. 14 announced it had awarded a $15 million contract to Vigor’s Ketchikan shipyard for installation of living quarters aboard the state ferry Hubbard, which will enable the ship to carry a change of crew for longer runs. The 280-foot-long Hubbard and its sister ship Tazlina were built at state specifications at a cost of about $60 million each at the Ketchikan shipyard and launched a few years ago, but have seen limited service due to the ferry system’s tight budget, lack of crew quarters and oth...
The Alaska Department of Transportation is contracting with Allen Marine to run one of its vessels “as needed” between Ketchikan, Wrangell and Petersburg this winter, though no runs are scheduled and any operations likely would depend on whether the state ferry Matanuska finally comes out of winter overhaul as now expected on Jan. 31. Delays caused by extensive repair work to the 58-year-old ferry forced the Alaska Marine Highway System to cancel several sailings between the three communities in December and January. The Matanuska’s first...
With the Matanuska out of service longer than expected for more repair work, and the state uncertain whether it can bring an idled ferry out of a cost-saving lay-up, the Alaska Marine Highway System is seeking bids from private vessel operators to possibly provide additional winter runs to several Southeast communities, including Wrangell. The state issued the hurried bid notice on Dec. 31, with proposals due by 2 p.m. Friday. The state also is advertising for a contractor to help it recruit and hire for the ferry system, which is short on...
The 58-year-old state ferry Matanuska needs additional time in a Ketchikan shipyard for steel decking replacement and other repairs, forcing cancellation of more sailings to Southeast communities and leaving Wrangell without any service between Jan. 11 and Feb. 4. The Alaska Marine Highway System on Dec. 27 announced that the Matanuska’s return to service — previously set for early December, then reset to Jan. 17 — has been delayed for a third time. The latest return date is Jan. 31. The ship has been out of service since early October for a...
The nine-member Alaska Marine Highway Operations Board, a new advisory panel created by the Legislature last year, has moved closer to full membership. State Senate President Peter Micciche last month appointed Paul Johnsen, of Petersburg, and David Arzt, of Homer, to the panel. Johnsen is the only board member so far from southern Southeast Alaska. He began his career in the Coast Guard, later going to work with the Alaska Marine Highway System. He retired from the state ferries in 2007 as a senior port and chief engineer. Arzt is an active...
Gov. Mike Dunleavy last week outlined what he called a responsible budget proposal that doesn’t dip into savings, bolsters law enforcement and calls for direct payments of about $3,700 to residents amid an unsettled dispute with lawmakers over the future of the state’s dividend program. But the budget relies on high oil prices to help pay the bills and is heavily dependent on one-time federal pandemic aid dollars to help cover the cost of public services usually paid out of state funds, such as the Alaska Marine Highway System. The budget pla...
Clarence "Chuck" E. Helland died Dec. 6 at Wrangell Medical Center. He was 82 years old. "Cancer came back and it took over quickly," the family wrote. He was born April 28, 1939, to Joseph and Leah Helland, in Roosevelt, Montana. Chuck Helland lived in Wrangell for 38 years. He worked as a chipper operator at the 6-Mile sawmill, then as a cannery worker and later served as a steward for the Alaska Marine Highway System. He retired from the state ferries, and with Julie Wigg, "the love of his...
Sitka will see minimal state ferry service this winter. Scheduled sailings of the Matanuska have been canceled until late January while the vessel undergoes more steel plate repairs in a Ketchikan shipyard, leaving Sitka cut off from the ferry network for more than a month. As a stopgap measure, the Alaska Marine Highway System ran the Kennicott into Sitka on Dec. 8, but the vessel is not scheduled to return until Jan. 11. The 58-year-old Matanuska is not expected to resume service until the fourth week in January, With the ferry system...
For the second time in the past 30 days, the state has to shift around the two other ferries serving Southeast to cover for the Matanuska, which will stay in the Ketchikan shipyard longer than expected for more steel repairs. The loss of the Matanuska means reduced service to Wrangell for the next six weeks. The Alaska Marine Highway System has added a couple more runs of the Kennicott through Southeast, including two stops in Wrangell in January, to replace the Matanuska’s weekly service, but the schedule will be sparse — just one northbound a...
The aftermath of an unexpectedly strong Nov. 30 weather system affected life in Wrangell, postponing community events and unfurling an outpouring of support amid power outages. Community events including last Friday’s Midnight Madness and downtown Christmas tree lighting were rescheduled to this Saturday, according to the Wrangell Chamber of Commerce. As utility workers were busy restoring power, and food and craft vendors were focused on getting power to their homes, the chamber decided to postpone the Dec. 3 events to this weekend, Executive...
For the sake of this holiday political fable, let’s assume there is a Santa Claus and the all-knowing gift giver tracks your behavior 365 days a year, not just the month or so before Christmas — much like your phone, your web browsing history, Alexa, front-door camera or whatever other electronic tracking device that watches over you. Santa knows who has been naughty or nice long before anyone starts wrapping December presents. And let’s hope that Santa — and coastal Alaska voters — have been making the list and checking it twice for the past...
The Alaska Marine Highway System is looking for private companies to fill service gaps over the winter for small Northern Southeast communities. The LeConte is scheduled to go out of service in early January until the end of February for its annual overhaul and recertification. That would leave several communities without ferry service for two months. Mainline ferries are too large to serve the communities and the state’s smaller ships are unavailable. “The stars are not aligning for us to use one of our own vessels,” said Sam Dapcevich, a spo...
A new state advisory board intended to provide more public input over operations and investment decisions for the Alaska Marine Highway System is starting to gather up its members, with five of the nine positions filled. None of the board members named so far are from southern Southeast Alaska. The Legislature this year approved the new panel’s composition and advisory responsibilities to replace a board structure under an 18-year-old law that had been criticized as ineffective and often ignored by state officials. House Speaker Louise S...
The aftermath of an unexpectedly strong Tuesday weather system affected life in Wrangell, postponing community events and unfurling an outpouring of support amid power outages. Power was restored to about 90 households early Thursday morning, according to Kim Lane, acting borough manager. Power poles at City Park are up and repaired, and power has been restored to the island. Crews worked through the night to restore the power, Lane said in a message. "Having roughly 100 homes without power...
Nov. 17, 1921 According to the Alaska Directory published in the General Federation News, the official organ of the club women of the country, Mrs. I.C. Bjorge, of Wrangell, has been appointed chair of the Alaska Federation. Other chair are: Art and Music, Mrs. Frank LeNoir, Douglas; Civics, Mrs. Russel Herman, Chickaloon; Legislation, Mrs. Vara E. Kaser, Juneau; Library Extension, Mrs. F. Rader, Matanuska; Home Economics, Sanitation and Health, Mrs. G. Borgen, Seward: History (appointment to be made later). Nov. 15, 1946 Stream surveys of...
By Frank Murkowski There has been a concentrated effort the past few years to develop a long-term solution to the many problems of our ferry system. The effort has been led by the Alaska Department of Transportation. The department has hired several consulting firms over the years including the Spaulding Group, McDowell Group, Northern Economics and the governor's "reshaping work group," at a cost to the state of several hundred thousand dollars. These reports have done a good job identifying problems, yet very few of their proposed solutions...
The cost of keeping the idled state ferry Malaspina at the dock in Ketchikan is nearly twice as much as reported to the public and state lawmakers. That's according to internal emails obtained by CoastAlaska under state public records law. The nearly 60-year-old Malaspina, one of the marine highway's original three sister ships, hasn't carried passengers in almost two years. It's costing the state almost $900,000 a year to insure and maintain the unused ship. Gov. Mike Dunleavy's administration...
The borough received five applications for the interim borough manager position: Jeff Good, of Wrangell; Gene Green, of Silverton, Oregon; Mark Lynch, of Stanford, Illinois; Darrell Maple, of Jacksonville, Oregon; and David Palmer, of Anacortes, Washington. Manager Lisa Von Bargen’s last day will be Oct. 29. The interim borough manager will fulfill the duties of manager until a new manager can be hired. The position will be a short-time hire, with an expected commitment of between one to three months, according to the borough's job notice. P...