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You’ve heard them building nests in the trees, and now you’re invited to come watch at Wrangell’s 18th Annual Stikine River Birding Festival, from April 30 through May 3. Activities for birders and non-birders alike are offered during the yearly celebration, which will include speakers, photo and art competitions, crafts, family activities, hummingbird banding and, of course, bird watching. The Stikine River area sees over 120 species of birds during migratory time periods, and shorebirds stop on the river during the year by the milli...
The future of Silvernail Work Road continues to take shape, with a debated section to be rerouted and downgraded from a right-of-way to an easement. At its regular meeting April 9, Wrangell’s Planning and Zoning Commission agreed to vacate the road where it cuts through the Marine Service Center yard. The section of Silvernail connecting Brueger Street with Front Street was largely conceptual, planned as a bypass for barge traffic making its way to Zimovia Highway. Although the boatyard was built afterward, the road’s right-of-way status was...
At its regular Tuesday-night meeting, Wrangell's City and Borough Assembly passed an amended ordinance proposal, creating a chapter on abuse of the 911 emergency system and amending chapters 10.32 and 10.36 of the Municipal Code regarding the carrying of concealed firearms in town. First reviewing the proposal in January, objections were raised by various Assembly members and residents about some preexisting language in the ordinance, such as where firearms could be fired in relation to the borough limits and near roadways. Subsequent meetings...
Last week's Southeast Alaska Regional Artfest went as prettily as a picture, by all counts. Sixty students and 15 teachers from high schools in Juneau, Klawock, Skagway, Petersburg, Craig, Sitka and Mount Edgecumbe made their way to Wrangell to participate in the four-day event, from April 8 to 11. Fifteen different classes were offered at various locations in town. These were taught by a combination of visiting and local artists, and students were immersed in sometimes brand new mediums of...
Proponents of constructing a new hospital facility in Wrangell hoped to revive conversation about the project with a pair of presentations and a group discussion last week. Alaska Island Community Services (AICS) and Wrangell Medical Center (WMC) hosted Foraker Group founder and president Dennis McMillian at the Nolan Center the afternoon and evening of April 2. Based in Anchorage, Foraker is a nonprofit group specializing in assisting other nonprofits around the state. Wrangell’s two medical providers invited the group to assist with g...
Children take advantage of the beautiful weather at City Park on Easter Sunday, where the Elks held its annual Egg Hunt. The lodge's youth activities director, Carrie Wallace, figured over a thousand plastic eggs were put out around the park. Children were split into four different age groups before starting the hunt, with eggs containing money, candy or slips for prizes donated from local stores. Prizes included Easter baskets from Bob's IGA and City Market, two-dollar bills and movie tickets...
A project to improve storage capacity at Southeast Alaska Power Agency's (SEAPA) Swan Lake hydropower facility continues along with efforts to finance it with up to $11.36 million in bond sales. Over the past month, SEAPA's executive director Trey Acteson and general counsel presented updates on the planned expansion of the facility located northeast of Ketchikan on Revillagigedo Island. Each of SEAPA's three member utilities-Wrangell, Petersburg and Ketchikan- heard presentations on the...
For the first time in more than two months the board of trustees for Wrangell Medical Center found themselves with a quorum March 25, in a meeting postponed from the 18th. The hospital’s financial situation remains delicate as staff recover from a difficult combination of low reserves, high receivables, sluggish Medicaid payments and rising operating costs. In her board report, hospital CEO Marla Sanger reported a $155,000 loss for the month of February, or $141,822 when grants were taken into account. Net charges came to $704,398, short of a...
The high school is getting ready to sponsor a bit of culture, as it comes Wrangell's turn to host this year's Southeast Alaska Regional Artfest next week. Sixty students and 15 teachers from schools around the region will be represented, coming from Klawock, Skagway, Petersburg, Craig, Sitka, Mount Edgecumbe and Juneau. "We're honored to host the continuation of the Southeast Alaska Artfest," said Wrangell High School's art teacher, Anne Luetkemeyer. Fifteen different classes will be offered to...
Wrangell residents are invited to shake off their winter malaise and step down to the annual Health Fair this Saturday from 8 a.m. to noon inside the Nolan Center. The fair will feature booths put up by 45 different agencies, groups and organizations related to health and wellness. Participating groups are many and varied, aimed for all ages. Alaska Island Community Services (AICS) will have its Teddy Bear Clinic for the wee ones, Wrangell Volunteer Fire Department will provide free blood pressure checks for adults, and Hanna’s Place will h...
Even before getting into its own upcoming budget, Wrangell’s Assembly had plenty of numbers to crunch at its regular meeting Tuesday evening, with an hour-long joint session held beforehand with the local school board regarding its upcoming budget and a presentation by Wrangell Medical Center’s executive on the state of the hospital’s finances. (see adjoining stories) Borough Manager Jeff Jabusch reported next year’s budget is coming along on task, with a draft likely to be ready for review by mid-April. “We’ll bring you a balanced budget one w...
Wrangell Medical Center CEO Marla Sanger updated the Wrangell Borough Assembly on the hospital’s financial situation at its Tuesday evening meeting. “We are solvent. We’re just being very cautious,” she said. In December, Sanger and acting CFO Olinda White approached the Assembly to reveal the hospital was experiencing financial difficulties. An annual audit had, among other concerns, reported finding a $3.5 million loss in written-off costs related to the hospital’s previous bid to build a new facility. “I don’t think our financial sit...
As Wrangell looks to future growth, the owners of its largest hotel are likewise looking to expand. Southeast Properties owner Bill Goodale and Stikine Inn manager Jake Harris have made preliminary appearances at recent assembly, port, and planning and zoning meetings to pitch their idea. They would like to purchase 27.45 square feet of tidelands adjacent to the hotel property. Once acquired, the inn's owners could then begin expanding the building, adding rooms and ground-level retail space. Go...
Nearly 100 residents headed to the Nolan Center the evening of March 11 to preview a short film produced about themselves. Entitled “Water is Life,” the ten-minute video follows the Stikine River from its headwaters to its terminus and highlights its importance to nearby communities. Shooting was conducted last fall by a film crew working for Inside Passage Waterkeeper, which visited Wrangell, Petersburg and Telegraph, British Columbia. In addition to gathering footage of the river and its wildlife, interviews were conducted with a variety of...
Members of Wrangell's City and Borough Assembly narrowly took their first step toward restricting the consumption of marijuana on public or private property, electing in a 3-2 split to approve an ordinance on first reading at their Tuesday evening meeting. Alaska Statute 17.38 took effect on Feb. 24, expanding significantly the circumstances in which a person can legally possess, transport and use the drug, following approval of a ballot measure during last November's elections. More than 57 percent of Wrangell voters approved the measure,...
Wrangell may get to experience a bit of old-time entertainment this June, when the New Old Time Chautauqua plans to stop through on its summer tour of Southeast Alaska. But what is a Chautauqua, you might ask? “It's a movement to do community building through education and entertainment,” explained Paul Magid, who paid a visit to Wrangell on behalf of the Chautauqua group last week. The New Old Time Chautauqua was founded in 1981 by a group of performers, health care practitioners and educators as a vehicle for reviving the spirit of the old...
The next phase of Wrangell's waterfront master plan came together at a pair of meetings Feb. 23 and 25. Three conceptual plans were presented to residents by the design team, based on feedback it received on eight proposals presented in January. Working with City and Borough officials, the team was comprised of Chris Mertl with Corvus Design, James Bibb of North Wind Architects, Dick Somerville of PND Engineers and Meilani Schijvens of Rain Coast Data. "We're mostly the team that was involved...
Wrangell residents are invited to preview a short film and presentation on the Stikine River at the Nolan Center, at 6 p.m. March 11. The film had been put together last autumn by a film crew with Inside Passage Waterkeeper, a Juneau affiliate of the International Water Keeper Alliance launched by Southeast Alaska Conservation Council. Their ten-minute film is entitled “Water is Life: The Stikine River,” with the tagline “Our Water Knows No Boundaries.” “We plan on showing it next week,” said Daven Hafey, the short film’s director and...
Wrangell residents review three design concepts for a future waterfront, presented Monday evening at the Nolan Center. Building from ideas stemming from a pair of public meetings held last month, the Borough's design team integrated elements people favored from an original eight concepts. Price projections were daunting, however – the long-term costs ranged from $14.7 million to $35 million, depending on the options taken. A revised plan was presented at a follow-up meeting W...
The Nolan Center was all decked out with hearts and other Valentine's Day decoratives Saturday night, as 160 people came together for Wrangell's Chamber of Commerce Annual Fundraising Dinner. The Chamber premiered its new video promoting the annual Fourth of July celebration. Chamber director Cyni Waddington also announced the theme for this year's Independence Day festivities: "Hometown Heroes," recognizing the contributions of military personnel. "We always try to make it something that...
Residents wishing to have one or more of the five screenings offered as part of April’s Health Fair will be able to have their blood drawn at the Wrangell Medical Center lab early, starting on Feb. 23 and continuing through March 25. The targeted screenings being offered include tests for one’s health profile, prostate specific antigen, thyroid stimulating hormone, HA1C, and Vitamin D. Would-be subjects can visit during regular business hours Monday through Friday, though the lab will also open at 7 am on Tuesday and Thursday during these weeks...
Despite the unseasonably agreeable weather this winter, Wrangellites can still shake off some of the mid-season lassitude at the town's annual Tent City Days celebration. The festival harkens back to frontier days of the 19th century, when Wrangell played an active role in both the Southeast Alaska and the Klondike gold rushes. The celebration kicks off tonight with a first-time chowder cook off, held at the Elks Lodge at 6:30 p.m. Contestants are asked to bring pots of their finest by 5 p.m....
A bit short-handed at its regular Tuesday-night meeting, Wrangell City and Borough Assembly nonetheless reviewed the first readings of several ordinance revisions. Members Becky Rooney, David Mitchell, Daniel Blake and Mayor David Jack discussed a proposed ordinance No. 893, relating to weapons and discharge of firearms within the Borough limits as well as adding a section regarding abuse of the 911 emergency system. The proposal would strike much of the rules previously on the books relating to concealed weapons and carrying loaded firearms,...
A team of architects and civic planners appeared before Wrangell officials and residents last week to start drafting a master plan for the city's future waterfront development. The eventual goal is to develop the fill area along Campbell Drive into a mixed-use property for businesses, locals and visitors to enjoy. Chris Mertl of Corvus Design, James Bibb of North Wind Architects, Dick Somerville of PND Engineers and Meilani Scheijvens of Rain Coast Data make up the team assembled to develop the...
