Sorted by date Results 479 - 503 of 1089
Challenging the U.S. Census undercount for Wrangell would not change the numbers, but presenting the case to the state could be a profitable use of borough time. While the census count showed Wrangell dropped from 2,369 residents in 2010 to 2,127 in 2020, the Alaska Department of Labor’s Research and Analysis Division arrived at an even steeper loss of population — from 2,412 in July 2011 to 2,096 in its July 2021 estimate. Considering the lack of empty homes or apartments in town, it’s hard to see where the community lost more than 200 residen...
It's been too long, more than a decade, since a state Office of Children's Services caseworker has been assigned to Wrangell. Welcome back, we missed you. The borough and school district have been trying for years to get state officials to put back money in the budget for a caseworker in town. The position is so important to help children struggling with the emotional challenges of life that the borough offered two years ago to share the cost of the position with the state. News of the offer was well publicized in town, winning strong support...
I was pleased to learn that the Legislature finally has a bill, Senate Bill 170, to transfer the Alaska Marine Highway System from the Department of Transportation to a separate state-owned corporation similar to the structure of the Alaska Railroad. This would provide something that the ferry system has lacked since its inception: accountability. The state-owned corporation would have its own budget and be managed by its own board of directors. The fact that the ferry system has been part of the Department of Transportation, which also...
There really isn’t a strong reason for the state to keep the proposals confidential until it closes a deal to sell — or give away — the state ferry Malaspina. The Department of Transportation promised exactly that when it advertised for offers on the ship, promising in writing that any responses would be held confidential until the state seals the sale. Talk about running open government aground. The department, in its letter soliciting interest in the unused, elderly 450-passenger vessel, asked a lot of potential new owners. The state said...
Many Alaskans will be hurting under $5-a-gallon gasoline, and rural residents who pay even higher prices will hurt even more. The state treasury, meanwhile, is flush with higher oil production tax and royalty checks, depositing tens of millions of dollars more each month than expected at the start of the year. Oil at $100-plus a barrel is guilty on both counts — making people poorer and making the Alaska checkbook richer. To use one to help the other, many Alaska lawmakers seem to be nervously coalescing around the idea of using much of the a...
The House Finance Committee has released its proposed state budget, which includes funds for an energy relief check for every eligible Alaskan. The proposal comes from high and continuously rising energy costs, a concern that I have heard from you. Alaskans are paying significantly more at the gas pump and for home utility costs. The state has been in a dire fiscal situation for multiple years, and our restrictive budget has reflected this. However, with the sudden increase in the price of oil, there is a bump to state revenue. The Legislature...
Spring is in the air. The last little mounds of snow are melting. Packets of seeds are on my shopping list. Small birds have begun to appear at my feeder. We are breaking out of our cocoons. For Baha’is worldwide, March 21 coincides with the vernal equinox of the Northern Hemisphere and is celebrated as our New Year. An event planned in Wrangell for March 2020 was abruptly cancelled due to the outbreak of COVID. In-person events were respectfully put on hold due to many unknowns. This year’s celebration, open to all, will be held from 6 to 8 p...
The face mask debate is over for now — hopefully for good, if the community can stay healthy — and annual budget deliberations are starting over how much the borough will contribute to education and how the school district will spend its local, state and federal money. Which means it’s a good week to learn what students and staff are doing at Wrangell’s schools. There are a couple of examples this week that students are learning what’s important in life and how to manage and succeed after graduation. At Evergreen Elementary School, fifth gra...
The state of Alaska, Congress and the president, individual companies and people do not all have the same capabilities and authority to show their disgust and dismay at Russia’s unprovoked, murderous attack on Ukraine, a sovereign nation at war with no one until Russian President Vladimir Putin decided he had to prove that he is the toughest, meanest kid on the planet. But everyone needs to do something. The world has suffered far too many deaths, ruined countries, poverty and famine due to wars over the centuries to sit by and watch more of t...
My hometown in Poland, Chelm, is 20 miles away from the border with Ukraine. My mother called me Feb. 26 and told me refugees are coming to my hometown, mostly women with kids. It looks like most of them are just passing by to get far away from the war, but some are deciding to stay and wait for friends or family that are still held up in the Ukrainian traffic. So far, since the invasion began, Poland has taken in over 500,000 refugees from Ukraine. My hometown’s population is around 65,000, and we are not a tourist city. We don’t have a lot...
It is anguishing to reflect on the current news coverage of the Russian assault on Ukraine. Most Americans feel a sense of guilt because of the humanitarian Injustice being done, and we want to provide some meaningful and timely assistance. The contrast between the Russian leader Vladimir Putin and Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky is a stark and living reminder of the chasms between totalitarianism and democracy. Putin is a rabid dictator; Zelensky is a freely elected leader who is rallying his country to arms. I believe it is time that...
As COVID-19 numbers come back down and mitigation plans are slowly being lifted, I want to say thank you to all of those who helped get us this far. Thank you to everyone who wore their mask, got vaccinated and canceled social plans all on your own to protect those around you. In spite of foggy glasses and sore arms, you pressed on. Thank you to everyone who put forth the selfless effort to protect our community. You helped to save lives and kept loved ones in this world. Delton Claggett...
Sometimes, governments just have to take a chance. They need to ensure the pieces are in place for economic development of their community, even if that means spending money on the potential — not a guarantee — of building jobs in the future. In Wrangell’s case, the almost 40-acre waterfront industrial property at the former 6-Mile sawmill site is one of those pieces. The borough assembly decision to buy the property is smart, long-term thinking. It’s about preserving the site intact for possible future use, rather than see it subdivi...
Parents, community leaders, borough and tribal officials are talking about what can be done to help solve Wrangell’s lack of child care options. Valerie Massie, of the Wrangell Cooperative Association, said she and others at a recent meeting all see the lack of child care and housing as the biggest hurdles to economic and community development in town. Lack of child care keeps people out of the workforce, and it seems there isn’t an employer in town without job openings. Part of the problem in establishing and running a child care center is...
It’s not often you hear political debates that invoke religion and booze but have nothing to do with temperance, the social ills of alcohol or strict adherence to church teachings. In Alaska, those points are being offered in the context of the state budget and oil prices — both of which are similar to alcohol and religion in the 49th state. They can be intoxicating, debatable and divisive. High oil prices of recent months — and even higher in recent days after Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine — have made Alaska rich again, for now....
Many will disagree, but in my opinion the vote is the key to American democracy. If after the votes have been counted, recounted, audited and litigated and someone other than the person with the most votes takes or remains in office, then American democracy is dead. On the other hand, one thing most will agree with is that Yukon TV is the opposite of the advertised upgrade. -- John Morse...
The Legislature’s main duty every year is passage of the state budget. Last week, the House made considerable progress by finishing up budget subcommittee work. Budget subcommittees meet frequently with each department to navigate potential budget changes and create a plan for the upcoming budget. I am chair for three budget subcommittees: The departments of Education, Environmental Conservation and Transportation. So far, our department budgets do not look much different than last year’s budgets. For the Department of Education, we added add...
The U.S. Forest Service wants to clean up and resurface the parking area at Roosevelt Harbor. Not because the abandoned vehicles are unsightly, though many are getting wrapped around the axle with plant life. It’s because the oil, gasoline and fluids that leak from the cars, trucks or ATVs can seep into and through the soil and into the waters at Zarembo Island. The first task is to identify all the owners so that the agency can hire a contractor to move the 70 or so vehicles off the lot, clean it up, regrade it, restore and improve drainage a...
Look at the post office package shelves, the boxes left at people’s doors and the empties stuffed into the trash and it’s clear that Wrangell — just like the rest of the country — is primed to shop from Amazon. Free shipping is the biggest incentive to sign up for Amazon Prime. That, and the website sells everything anyone could ever want or need, plus millions of items we never knew we wanted or needed. And maybe don’t need, but free shipping is such an enticement. No minimum purchase, no hassles, just click and wait for delivery. Let Amazo...
Referring to Larry Persily’s opinion piece, “It’s time more Republicans stood up to Trump” (Feb. 9 Sentinel), I am shocked how a Democrat can sound so undemocratic, intolerant, self-righteous and self-contradictory. While you stress that you do not want to take away Trump’s phone, internet access or deny him his First Amendment rights, you urge Republicans to muzzle him, to “check him into a room at a budget hotel that only has basic cable” as you put it. In other words, you are asking Republicans to do the highly undemocratic deeds for you...
In October 2021, Wrangell Mayor Steve Prysunka spoke about the abandoned Johnny Mountain Mine before the Wrangell borough assembly to highlight irresponsible mining practices in British Columbia. As the new owner of Iskut property which includes the abandoned mine, through this letter we would like to share with the residents of Wrangell the multiyear and multimillion-dollar voluntary reclamation activities Seabridge Gold is undertaking to reclaim the Johnny Mountain Mine site back to its original pre-mine condition. When Seabridge Gold acquire...
Grant writing skills can be almost as useful to learn in school these days as reading and writing, and certainly are invaluable for the arithmetic of classroom and community programs. Funding is available from multiple foundations, government agencies and private businesses for those who can write an effective grant application. They need to tell their story, tell how the grant will make life better in their community, and tell it with conviction. The competition for grants can be intense, which is why it’s impressive to see Wrangell high schoo...
The fire department and SEARHC are helping residents to stay healthy — or at least know when they are not healthy and should stay home for the protection of others in the community. Both are handing out free at-home COVID-19 test kits, as long as supplies last. Not only are the tests free, but they are easy to use and can do a lot to keep the Omicron variant of the coronavirus where it should be: Behind us, not looming large ahead of us. After Wrangell — along with the rest of the state and the country — took ill in record numbers in Janua...
If at first you don’t succeed, it’s not always better that you try, try again. But try, try again is what we do well in Alaska. Well, not so successfully, but we are consistent in trying the patience of common sense and fiscal restraint. For Alaskans, that could apply to the long-proposed, longingly dreamy North Slope natural gas pipeline project — a $39 billion quest in search of customers, partners, investors and lenders. Other than that, it has all the free political support it needs. The state has poured about $1.5 billion into vario...
The Feb. 9 edition of the Ketchikan Daily News contains a Wrangell Sentinel story about the potential return of Alaska state ferries to Prince Rupert, British Columbia — as soon as May 1. The story details the issues that officials on both sides of the border are working on to bring back ferry service between Prince Rupert and Ketchikan. We wish them great success. The 90-mile, six-hour ferry connection is Ketchikan’s true gateway to the North America road system. It’s much more affordable than ferry service to Bellingham, Washington, or barge...