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No doubt elected officials want to win their next election. They want to continue working on the issues that matter to them and their constituents, including public services, spending and regulation. They want to keep the job. But, as parents tell Little Leaguers, winning isn’t everything. Values matter. Doing good matters. The ability to listen and learn matters too, particularly for elected officials passing judgment on public policy. They are not expected to know everything about every issue, budget item and law when they come into o...
Residents will have two opportunities in the next couple of weeks to pitch in, bend down, pick up, lift and carry in a collective effort to make the community cleaner and greener for the summer. The annual community events are a source of pride for residents who see these streets and sidewalks every day. They also are a chance to put Wrangell’s best flowers, benches and footpaths forward for visitors. The town could attract an estimated 33,000 tourists this summer — the most since 2005. It’d be smart to showcase a cleaned-up community, sending...
A wise economist made the point last week that while it’s true more people have left Alaska each of the past 10 years than have moved here, the problem isn’t so much the departures as it is the drop in arrivals. Alaska has long had a high turnover rate — not everyone likes the weather, the isolation or the lifestyle. They come, they see, they decide to move on. Which means Alaska needs to draw in a constant flow of new residents so that the keepers outnumber the shakers who get away. It’s that shortage of enough people moving to the 49th st...
No question about it, Wrangell loves its Fourth of July celebration. Residents, families and visitors all gather downtown to watch and participate in the games and races, enjoy the food and, hopefully, some summer sunshine, though that is the least predictable of the festivities. Putting on the days of the Fourth is not cheap for the chamber of commerce. The celebration totals somewhere around $115,000 for fireworks, event expenses, insurance, prize money, running the royalty fundraising raffle and everything else that everyone enjoys every...
Borough officials and elected assembly members are right: Wrangell’s municipally owned-and-operated utilities and services need to pay their own way. Not happy news for residents — but it’s honest news. For far too long, Wrangell has been overly dependent on federal and state gifts to pay for needed repairs and rebuilds while looking to avoid rate increases. Those are not answers, they’re examples of hopeful denial, and the borough is making the right moves to change direction. The assembly has approved rate increases effective July 1 for elect...
Some people let their dogs run loose, while others walk their dogs but don’t bother to pick up the piles. Regardless of which one was the culprit, the recent dog poop deposit at the museum totem is a new low for a highly visible problem. The discovery comes as the snow melts and residents discover dog piles anywhere and everywhere. The Muskeg Meadows Golf Course, which is posted but frequently ignored as a dog-free area, recently reminded the community: “Our grounds crew has been picking up buckets and buckets of dog poo as we get ready to ope...
Keeping voter rolls accurate is a good thing. Even more so in recent years as far too many candidates question election results for their own political gains and far too many citizens have climbed on the bandwagon of doubt and suspicion. Why then would the new director of the Alaska Division of Elections hesitate to support a decade-old nationwide cooperative effort among states to keep voter registration lists accurate and up to date? Alaska has been a member of ERIC, which stands for Electronic Registration Information Center, since 2016....
Wrangell’s economy has been in decline since long before the COVID-19 pandemic erupted three years ago. But the economy — meaning jobs, businesses and families — would be a lot worse off if not for federal assistance. Oppose federal spending if you want, but the $30 million or so in pandemic relief aid that the U.S. Treasury poured into Wrangell the past few years for the borough, schools, businesses, individuals and the tribal government made a huge difference in people’s lives. Criticize the IRS and income taxes if it makes you feel better,...
It took a consultant’s report for the collective management of the Alaska Marine Highway System and state Department of Transportation to realize that of 250 job applicants over the past year, just four were hired to work on the ships. At that rate, the ferry system would need close to 10,000 applicants to reach full staffing. The system has been seriously short-staffed for more than two years, losing crew to resignations and retirements faster than it could hire new workers. The crew shortage forced cutbacks in service, keeping ships tied to t...
State officials have known for months that delays in processing applications for food stamp benefits were denying financial assistance to thousands of eligible households — including children — who needed help to afford three meals a day. There were multiple explanations: Longstanding staffing shortages, a cyberattack on the computer system two years ago, more paperwork and income verification requirements after the state ended its pandemic emergency declaration months earlier. But children cannot swallow explanations, especially ones far pas...
Wrangell is fortunate its two state legislators know that a good education pays years more dividends for Alaskans than the short-term gain a larger PFD provides. They are on the long-term, good-thinking side of what is shaping up as a monumental debate this year embroiling lawmakers and the governor: The more the state spends on the Permanent Fund dividend, the less money is left in the treasury to help schools. Rep. Dan Ortiz and Sen. Bert Stedman between them have more than 25 years of legislative service. They have heard all the arguments...
Gov. Mike Dunleavy made a smart decision last week when he issued an administrative order directing state personnel officials to review and change job requirements where appropriate so that applicants could more easily substitute “practical experience” for a college degree. Almost one in six state government jobs were vacant in December, according to the governor’s Office of Management and Budget. The most empty desks were at one of the most important agencies: Almost one in four positions at the Department of Natural Resources were vacan...
Fewer Alaska high school graduates are qualifying for the state’s largest scholarship program; fewer who would qualify are bothering to participate in the program which requires that they attend college in Alaska; and more students who attend college out of state are choosing to set up their life outside Alaska. The numbers are not encouraging, unless you run a college in the Lower 48 that wants to attract more Alaskans. While elected officials debate the amount of the annual Permanent Fund dividend, who is tougher on crime, who is more s...
Wrangell has come up short in good economic news in recent years, what with business closures, the loss of Alaska Crossings a year ago, not-so-great salmon runs and crab harvests, rising consumer prices and worker shortages. So it was especially welcome news when Trident Seafoods announced it will open its Wrangell plant this summer after a three-year shutdown. The company plans to start work at the downtown waterfront plant within the month, getting it ready for the summer season to handle pinks and chums for the fresh-frozen market. The...
It’s ironic that Wrangell’s Fourth of July depends on the money raised by royalty candidates who sell raffle tickets, lunches, baked goods and a lot more so that the community can enjoy fireworks, street games and other events packed into several days of fun. Ironic because the holiday celebrates the Declaration of Independence, when the colonies told England that Americans did not need royalty to throw a tea party. Wrangell, however, needs all the help it can get from the annual royalty fundraising competition, and the royalty candidates nee...
Sen. Lisa Murkowski succeeded in convincing her colleagues that the Alaska Marine Highway System deserves more federal funding. The proof of her success in helping to write last year’s federal spending legislation is the $284 million in grants announced last week for new ferries, repairs to old vessels, dock improvements and better service to small communities. The state will need to put up about $105 million in matching funds for the grants. Some of that already has been appropriated and the rest can come during this year’s legislative ses...
A group of developers has offered the borough $350,000 for the former hospital property, which is $120,000 less than the new asking price and $480,000 less than the old asking price of last year. But what’s really new is that anyone is offering anything for the 1.94-acre property and the more than 30,000-square-foot building, much of which was built 45 years ago. The borough has been looking for buyers for almost a year, and this is the first real offer. The lack of serious interest is an indication that the original price was too high, that a...
A pair of Holland America cruise ships — each with capacity for more than 2,700 passengers and crew — are scheduled to call on Wrangell in 2024. Each will make one visit. Each visit will more than double the community’s population for the day. And each visit will provide the town with a great opportunity to market itself — though also requiring a lot of work to get ready. It’s the first time the major cruise line has included Wrangell in its pre-season advertising. “We decided to add several ports that we have not typically visited to add vari...
There is more to state government in Alaska than just the amount of the annual Permanent Fund dividend. Though voters certainly might think otherwise, judging from the campaigns of many candidates in recent years. But the campaigns are over — at least officially — and it’s time for Alaska’s 60 legislators to start work in Juneau. The session opens Tuesday. No doubt one of the final negotiated compromises before adjournment will be to set the amount of this year’s PFD. It’s become an annual tradition, almost a ritual for lawmakers to politically...
Governments levy taxes to pay for community services, such as schools, police and road repairs. And to help pay the public treasury costs of what can be unhealthy personal choices, such as excessive alcohol consumption and smoking. The state and federal governments pick up a large share of the expense of treating smoking-related illnesses, alcohol abuse and responding to alcohol-related crimes, and targeted taxes can help cover those bills. In addition, research has shown that adding taxes to cigarettes discourages consumption. Cigarette...
Newly reelected Gov. Mike Dunleavy last week unveiled his proposed state spending plan for the next budget year. By far, the largest single expense in the entire state budget is the Permanent Fund dividend. The governor’s budget proposes no increase in state funding for public schools and a reduction in funding for the university system. No significant increases for road repairs, snow removal, mental health services, or more staff to help the backlog of food stamp applications which has created hours-long hold times for callers needing help. L...
No doubt Wrangell businesses do not stock everything on your holiday shopping list, but they probably have something on hand for most everyone on your list. It’s just a matter of being adaptive, like when the barge is late and you have to change the recipe for tonight’s dinner. Or when the plane is canceled due to weather and you have to host your visitors for another day, even though you were really ready to have the home to yourself. Or when you were late to the Girl Scouts cookie sale and your favorites, the Thin Mints, are sold out and you...
The borough has scheduled a public forum for 5:30 p.m. Dec. 14 at the Nolan Center to discuss a $2.5 million question: What would the community like to see done with the 6-Mile sawmill property which the borough purchased this summer? Sell the 39 acres, lease it in whole or in part, put public money into the development or let private dollars carry the cost of whatever may happen at the site are among the options. Tourism, industry, fisheries, storage — maybe some future use no one has ever really considered. Whatever may happen, next w...
Wrangell wants more visitors and the money they bring to town. But to compete against all the other Southeast ports that also want more tourism dollars to flow into their economy, Wrangell needs to provide accommodations and activities to help make visitors’ time in town enjoyable. That includes more public restrooms. Other than the two stalls in the small borough-owned restroom stop behind the Elks Lodge, and the facilities at the Nolan Center, there are no public restrooms in the downtown area. It’s not fair to expect businesses to pro...
The borough assembly said it was willing to discuss the issue when the Petersburg assembly suggested it’s time for the two communities to consider helping pay for restoring the Inter-Island Ferry Authority for runs between the towns. But there is a better option. It’s smaller than the 190-passenger ferries, it’s more affordable, and it’s local. Wrangell charter boat operators who already provide on-call runs to move people and goods between the two neighboring communities have said they could provide the service at a much lower cost than th...