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All of last weekend, the first of what is intended to be many cultural courses was held at Wrangell Cooperative Association's new carving facility, which was finished last autumn. From Thursday afternoon through Sunday, local Native residents were shown how to craft with sea otter pelts by Jeremiah James, operator of Yakutat Furs since 2010. "This is the ninth class I've done," James explained, and the second he has delivered in Wrangell. It was his first time working in the new facility...
Tribal members of the Wrangell Cooperative Association headed to the polls Saturday afternoon to choose six new members of the WCA Board. The six council seats that were up for election this term were previously held by Lynn Allen, Lovey Brock, Arthur Larson, Brooke Leslie, current board vice-president Ken Lewis Jr. and Tim Gillen. Gillen and Leslie did not seek reelection. Sam Campus, Luella Knapp, Catherine White and Richard Oliver joined Allen, Brock, Larson, and Lewis on this year’s ballot. Between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. at the Stikine N...
A number of concerned residents appeared Tuesday night at the public hearing for an ordinance amending Title 10 of the Municipal Code, specifically dealing with concealed-carry and weapons misconduct in the City and Borough of Wrangell. The Assembly had the proposal before them on its second reading, and during oral presentations at the hearing and later in their regular meeting itself, half a dozen people expressed their dissatisfaction with some provisions of the ordinance. Local resident Charles Hazel felt the rules omitted allowing the...
Tomorrow the local Indian Environmental General Assistance Program (IGAP) office will conclude its elder property cleanup program, which was first started in October. The need had been one of those identified through listening sessions hosted last year by IGAP and the Wrangell Cooperative Association. Operating through an Environmental Protection Agency grant, the program first sought out elderly residents within Wrangell's Native community who needed help collecting and disposing of various...
A group of 11 community members gathered on Jan. 21 to discuss and provide direction for how to use Wrangell Cooperative Association’s new carving facility, which was completed in October. The facility’s completion was the second of three phases for cultural development being undertaken by WCA, beginning with the restoration of the tribal house on Chief Shakes Island in 2013 and to conclude with the future recarving of eight totem poles and the training of master crafters. Among others, the planning group included members of the WCA Board, Tlin...
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...
Kicking things off with a new borough manager in Jeff Jabusch, 2014 for Wrangell was not only a period of changes, but also one of building and continued development. Pavement was poured at the Marine Service Center, a number of roads were resurfaced or due to eventually see improvement, and the city was able to showcase itself to other regional communities by hosting several prolific functions. January Wrangell Cooperative Association collected 210 registrations for Tlingit-Haida members at...
More children than ever before were able to enjoy this year's annual Christmas celebration at the Irene Ingle Public Library. "It's something we've done for years," explained head librarian Kay Jabusch. For 20 years, Wrangell's library has hosted its pajama story time every first week of December, with treats to enjoy and a visit from Santa Claus. Due to rising participation, library staff decided to approach the tradition in a new way this time around. "We broke it up this year," Jabusch said,...
A professionally diverse group of Wrangellers gathered Dec. 3 to help develop a future focus for the local Indian Environmental General Assistance Program (IGAP) office. Working through the Wrangell Cooperative Association, the office's new coordinator Chris Hatton invited representatives of the borough's local government, healthcare, education and industry to come conduct some brainstorming, while also learning about where IGAP is currently at with projects. “I'm stepping in at a challenging t...
It was a festive holiday weekend for Wrangell, but the local Tlingit community had particular reason to celebrate as they dedicated a new canoe Saturday inside the Wrangell Cooperative Association's recently completed carving facility. The 30-foot vessel seats up to nine crew members and is constructed of fiberglass and wood framing with a red cedar inlay. It was constructed over the summer at the old carving shed, near the causeway entrance to Chief Shakes Island. "Shane Gillen is the one who...
After nearly 34 years of service, Irene Ingle Public Library will be getting a new head librarian after Kay Jabusch retires at the end of this year. She began there in June 1980, working closely with Irene Ingle – the previous head librarian for whom the library was renamed – before taking over her position after Ingle's retirement on Jan. 1, 1981. When Jabusch retires from the position on Jan. 1, 2015, assistant librarian Margaret Villarma will likewise assume the post. "I think the tra...
At the public hearing preceding Tuesday’s regular Wrangell Borough Assembly meeting, a few people showed up to listen but only one took to the lectern with her concerns with ordinance number 887, which would amend the municipal code dealing with animal violations and add a new chapter. The proposed ordinance was one of five being considered on their second reading. “The first thing that I have noticed is a series of fines,” Christina Florschutz told the Assembly, looking at the meeting packet. “I’m fine with having fines,” she said, addin...
Representatives of Southeast Alaskan tribal groups will be meeting in Juneau next week to discuss regional concerns at the annual Southeast Environmental Conference in the city’s Vocational Training and Resource Center. Beginning Monday, the five-day event is being hosted by the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska, in partnership with the Chilkat Indian Village, Craig Tribal Association, Douglas Indian Association, Organized Village of Kasaan, Petersburg Indian A...
School may have just begun for Wrangell students, but they can’t rightly start without notebooks, pencils and other supplies. For those still needing materials, the Wrangell Cooperative Association will be holding its annual backpack giveaway on Wednesday. Last year 85 new backpacks were distributed to area students, each laden with brand new school materials. But due to cutbacks, this year’s program was only going to be able to acquire around 20. Knowing some donors, the program’s organizer, Carol Snoddy, decided to see if she could acqui...
The final touches on the Weber Street project concluded this week. For the Wrangell Cooperative Association (WCA), the repaving and sidewalk work on the formerly two-way street in the middle of a residential neighborhood is simply one more project completed. The project was three years in the making. Bidding for construction was estimated at about $490,000, though final figures for the construction aren't yet available, officials said, and they are waiting for the project to be completed before...
An informal survey of Wrangellites conducted by the Indian Environmental General Assistance Program (IGAP) concluded illegal dumping and recycling were the top environmental issues locally. The survey’s 158 respondents were asked to rank, on a one-to-five scale, 16 environmental issues, ranging from safe drinking water to mining issues on the Stikine River. The survey also included a place for respondents’ own suggestions. The scores for each issue were then combined and ranked according to how high they had scored. Under this rubric, dum...
Summer road projects will result in two Wrangell streets being paved for the first time. Work is currently underway to pave Weber Street, starting at its intersection with Church Street and stretching up into the small subdivision above Reid Street, with completion expected by the end of this week. City officials expect to pave and rework culverts on Cassiar Street from Mission Street to the street's end starting June 15, according to Public Works Director Carl Johnson. A firm completion date hasn't yet been set, though officials expect the...
A ceremony set for May 12 will draw guest speakers from federal and state veterans’ agencies to the Wrangell High School gymnasium. Monday’s planned ceremony will honor veterans of all stripes, according to Rhonda Christian who organized the ceremony with assistance from the Alaska Department of Military & Veterans Affairs, the American Legion, the local Boy Scouts and other community groups. The presentation will start at 6 p.m. with an introduction by Forrest E. Powell III of Alaska Veterans Affairs, followed by a welcome by Mayor David Jac...
$4.6 million is definitely better than zero. The state’s proposed capital budget would set aside more than $1.6 million for Wrangell-based projects, up from nothing in Gov. Sean Parnell’s proposed capital budget announced Dec. 12. An additional almost $3 million in proposed infrastructure “reallocations” will also be headed to Wrangell, with some slight modifications to allow the use of the funds to be more flexible. The capital funds include: $615,000 for a Wrangell connection to the upper reservoir, which will allow the Department of Public...
A local carving facility and cultural center is a big step closer to completion. The MJ Murdoch Charitable Trust awarded a $250,000 grant to the Wrangell Cooperative Association this week. That leaves about$100,000, or 35 percent of total cost of the building, remaining before the shed's cost is totally funded, said Tis Peterman, a grant writer and administrator with the WCA. "We're really excited about it," she said. The carving facility - known informally around town as the "carving shed," a...
Local healthcare consumers face an imminent deadline. After twice extending the deadline to sign up for a healthcare plan under the Patient Affordable Care Act – known colloquially as Obamacare – the date finally stuck at March 31, with little indication that officials will change it, according to various national news outlets. Uninsured patients will thus face a penalty on their next tax return. Consumers who fail to enroll will face a penalty of $95 or one percent of their income, whichever is greater. Families must pay $47.50 per uni...
The Chamber of Commerce honored Lucy Robinson with the Citizen of the Year award at Saturday's annual dinner. The event also honored new chamber members, the Business of the Year, retiring school system personnel, and distributed the Chamber Membership Appreciation Award. It drew more than 200 members and guests to the Nolan Center for dinner, drinks, dessert auctions, and games. The dinner is the sole event dedicated exclusively to Chamber fundraising, Director Cyni Waddington told the crowd....
Authorities charged Lavina “Lovey” Brock, 68, of Wrangell with four counts of promoting illegal gambling. A criminal complaint filed Feb. 5 in district court alleges that Brock held Texas Hold ‘em games for cash at American Legion Post #6, and promoted the games around town using flyers. The prosecuting agency is the Office of Special Prosecutions and Appeals. The complaint lists offense dates as Feb. 19, 2009, June 29, 2009, Dec. 20, 2010, and Feb. 10, 2010. Brock is a prominent community member, and sits on the governing body of the Wrang...
Native Alaskans will elect four of seven candidates to the Wrangell Cooperative Association’s leadership council today. The WCA is an umbrella organization for the local Alaskan Native community and maintains, among other things, the Chief Shakes House and the carving shed cultural center. The group has played an increasingly important role in civic affairs, primarily as a go-to organization to obtain funding for infrastructure projects when state or federal authorities are sometimes unwilling to foot the bill. The association appears in discus...
A Wrangell Public Schools budget presented at the Jan. 20 school board meeting and distributed to the borough assembly shows a $219,461 shortfall. Business manager Pam Roope characterized the drafts as very preliminary, and meetings to refine the numbers are ongoing. The figures have been presented before the school board, but only as a discussion item, and not an action item requiring a vote. Since the budgeting process is only now just beginning for the 2015 fiscal year, potential cuts to programs or other things would likely take place in...
