Sorted by date Results 101 - 125 of 199
The Wrangell Borough Assembly held one of their last budget work sessions last Wednesday evening, June 17, to finalize next year's budget for the city. For FY 2021, Wrangell is looking at revenues of $4.48 million in the general fund, but expenses of $4.78 million. Much of the discussion in this workshop revolved around the general fund, and how to handle its deficit. The workshop lasted for about three and a half hours. In the end, the assembly directed city administration to move forward with...
After last week's announcement of the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in Wrangell, two other cases were confirmed shortly after. Wrangell now has three total cases of the virus. One case has been declared recovered. However, there is some question about the source of the third case. Public Health officials state that Wrangell's third case was a contact with the first case, but the first case said she does not know how that could be. The first case was announced on Sunday evening, June 7. A join...
The Wrangell Borough Assembly hosted a public hearing on next year's budget Tuesday night, June 16. This was an opportunity for members of the public to voice their opinions and concerns regarding FY 2021, and how Wrangell's money is going to be allocated. Thanks in part to the COVID-19 pandemic, like many other communities, Wrangell is facing a lean financial year. There were several people who called in to the meeting, or wrote emails to the city, who wanted to state their support for...
4/1/20 COVID-19 Update Mayor Steve Prysunka and Borough Manager Lisa Von Bargen hosted a brief teleconference, on Wed., April 1, to share pertinent information regarding the COVID-19 pandemic with the public. There are still no confirmed cases of the virus in Wrangell as of this date, Prysunka said. However, this is not cause for relaxation. Von Bargen said she was recently part of a teleconference with other city managers across Alaska, along with representatives from FEMA and the Department...
The Wrangell Cooperative Association held an award ceremony at Wrangell High School Monday evening, Sept. 30. Tribal Administrator Esther Ashton, along with several members of the WCA board, organized the ceremony to officially give several local organizations a check from the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium's "Healthy Is Here" grant. In total, $10,600 was given to 17 organizations. "The reason we're here today is that we received from SEARHC a Healthy Is Here grant," Ashton said....
Radio station KSTK held their second annual "Touch-A-Truck" event at Volunteer Park two weeks ago. Families with little kids could see many different kinds of work vehicles, including fire trucks, police cars, bulldozers, dump trucks, and more. Pictured here is Nolan Johnson (wearing the fireman's helmet) and Tom Kowalske checking out an ambulance....
Golf Roundup Radio Station KSTK sponsored a nine-hole best ball tournament at Muskeg Meadows last Saturday, June 15. There were 18 participants in the tournament. First place went to a team consisting of Spenser Stavee, Ed Rilatos, Ron Soale, and Drew Eyon, with a net score of 20 and team handicap of 17. Second place went to Eric Kading, Tyler Eagle, Toot Harding, and Wayne Harding with a net score of 21 and team handicap of 17. Third place went to Dough Nelson, Jerry Bakeburg, and Frank Roppel...
City Market and Sentry Hardware co-sponsored a gold tournament at Muskeg Meadows last weekend. There were 15 participants on Saturday, May 8. First place went to Jerry Bakeburg, with a score of 29 and handicap of 12. Second place went to Eric Kading with a score of 30 and a handicap of 13. Frank Roppel had the straightest drive of the day at 5 feet, 10 inches. Sunday’s game saw 20 participants. First place went to Keene Kohrt, Faye Kohrt, Wayne Ellis, and Eric Kading with a score of 19 and team handicap of 15. Second place went to a team c...
To the Editor: It was 84 degrees near the Arctic Ocean. Severe weather threatens eighteen states. Antarctic is losing its ice fields and Nome is ice free. Deadly California fires. Ninety-four degrees in Omaha, Nebraska. Earthquakes in Oklahoma, Alaska and Texas due to fracking and our politicians who were put in office by the oil companies deny…deny and tell us that there is no climate change? Really? The sea is rising due to the North and South Poles melting. Just look at the Mendenhall and LeConte Glaciers which are slowly retreating as t...
Radio station KSTK, hosted a chili cookoff last Saturday. The cookoff is an annual fundraiser for the radio station, according to June Leffler. It was hosted in the Wrangell High School Commons this year. Almost a dozen different chilis were entered into the contest, each with a different flavor and level of spiciness. The top three winners were selected, with the first place winner getting their name put on a crockpot trophy. This year's winner was Jeanie Arnold, who also won the cookoff in...
Safety in the Wrangell School District has been a hot topic around town these past few days. On Saturday, March 2, school officials were made aware of a high school student making threatening comments on Snapchat. The student, who is underage and will not be named, sent a photograph to friends saying, “Don’t go to school Monday, guys,” while making a finger gun. School officials were made aware of this photograph, according to an email by Secondary School Principal David Macri, and they contacted the police department. The department then inter...
Last week, Governor Dunleavy unveiled his amended budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2020. As expected, there were substantial cuts to government agencies, all of which will affect Southern Southeast. Some of the cuts that will be most noticeable here in District 36 are the Marine Highway, services to our seniors, education, Fish & Game, public safety, and access to information. Governor Dunleavy proposed 68.3% cut to our ferry system, including an 80% decrease in funding for fuel. The intent of such a steep cut is to eliminate the ferry system...
The past year has been a busy one for the community of Wrangell, and also one full of changes. Elections have come and gone, the school district saw a new superintendent and two new principals, a high school swimming and diving team was organized, and a new reporter came to town. A new organization was formed, BRAVE, to help bring people together to enhance life in the community for Wrangell’s younger population. Other organizations like the Senior Center and Nolan Center saw new faces, as well. There were lots of physical changes to W...
Two dogs were found dead near Spur Road on Dec. 11. Wrangell resident Melvin Gadd found the dogs. He was driving down the trail off of the spur road, and stopped to clear some brush away from the road, when he found them. He said that the bodies were fairly decomposed. He guessed that both animals were less than a year old. Gadd notified the police about the dead dogs, and they are investigating the situation. The news of the dead dogs spread through town quickly, by word of mouth and via social media. Rumors spread on Facebook said that the...
Halloween is a time of cheesy horror movies, trick-or-treating, costumes, and Halloween parties. KSTK, Wrangell's local radio station, is gearing up for a party of its own. The radio station is holding its second annual Halloween party on Oct. 20 at the Nolan Center. "It's definitely open of our larger fundraisers for the year," said Keeleigh Solverson with KSTK. "It's an all-adult party, so a bit different than some of the things we usually do. But as our second annual we're trying to...
U.S. Representative Don Young stopped in Wrangell the weekend of June 28 for some meet-and-greets with the locals. Stopping at the Stikine Inn, Young went from table to table to chat with people, answering questions and getting to know the people he represents. These questions ranged from topics like the environment, to derelict boats, to the timber industry. One question came from Joane Sargent, who was concerned about what would happen to many Alaskan’s healthcare, with the ongoing debate in Washington on the topic. Young said that it was an...
Early on Thursday morning, several members of the U.S. Forest Service left Wrangell with some guests for a trip to the Anan Wildlife Observatory. Present on the trip were Michael Saxton and Leslie Skora with the Katmai National Park. They were visiting Anan for an "information swap," they explained. They wanted to learn about some of the best practices in wildlife observation they could take from Anan, and also provide some tips to the Forest Service in the Wrangell district. Acting Deputy...
July 9, 2018 Criminal mischief: Hole in window. Agency assist: Alarm notice: Person testing alarm. Found property: Tote turned into WPD. Subpoena served. Agency assist: Caller reported broken water main. Lost property. Two reports of suspicious circumstance. July 10, 2018 Traffic stop: Verbal warning for backup lights on. Agency assist: Contact Trooper regarding crabbing issues. Citation issued: Christian Larson, 70: Time limit parking. Noise complaint. Traffic stop: Verbal warning for bright bar light. July 11, 2018 Agency assist: TSA....
On Tuesday, new reporter Caleb Vierkant arrived on the afternoon jet from his hometown of Bullard, Texas. Home-schooled until college, he attended Texas A&M in College Station. He earned two bachelor's degrees there, double-majoring in history and journalism with minors in English and military studies. After graduating in May 2017, he went to work for his hometown paper, the Jacksonville Progress. He worked there until July 6, when he accepted a job with the Wrangell Sentinel. Vierkant had...
Turnout was light at a pair of golf tournaments over the Father’s Day weekend, with 11 participants making it to the AP&T and KSTK tournament on Saturday. The best-ball tournament saw a team of Randy Littleton, Lisa and Lucas Messmer take first place, with a net score of 19 from a handicap of 17. Right behind them with a score of 21 were George Woodbury, Ed Rilatos, Ron Soule and Doug Nelson. Lisa Messmer came out with the straightest drive of the day at 15 inches, while Woodbury would come closest to the pin at 11’9”. Another best-ball tourn...
A group of visiting AmeriCorps volunteers have been leaving their mark around Wrangell the past month, with the community being their last stop in a 10-month tour of service. Ten volunteers coming from all corners of the country have already been doing an assortment of projects for the community. They are part of a wider program which operates one of its five campuses out of Sacramento, California. "The program that we are in is the National Civilian Community Corps," explained Kara Riley, the...
An assortment of utility vehicles are encamped at the Evergreen Elementary School parking lot on Saturday for "Touch-a-Truck," an educational outing organized by radio station KSTK. An assortment of emergency services, businesses and municipal departments pooled together for the display, which encouraged young Wrangellites to familiarize themselves with the vehicles that help get things done. Below, Kyler Angerman, Jude Johnson and Hailey Gablehouse were among the kids in attendance, and...
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...
Radio station KSTK is now awaiting decision by the Federal Communications Commission on whether to approve a proposed acquisition by CoastAlaska, a regional service headquartered in Juneau. Applications to transfer the station's four licenses were filed with the FCC in early December, with a public comment period ending last week. If approved, Wrangell Radio Group, whose board administers the local station, would transfer KSTK's physical assets along with its licensed channels to CoastAlaska as...
When ownership of a newspaper or broadcast outlet changes, it’s big news. It’s the lead story of the day. Everyone wants to know who the new owner is, and what changes will be made to the organization. In the case of KSTK, Wrangell’s public radio station, the proposed ownership change was advanced with barely a whisper to the public. With approximately 234 letters mailed to active supporters and bits of information shared with a few others, minimal notification was made of changes that were coming to Wrangell’s station. This newspaper stumble...
