Sorted by date Results 501 - 525 of 851
The state will receive about $36 million less in federal funding than expected for this year’s Alaska Marine Highway System operating budget, requiring the use of state dollars to cover the gap. No reduction in service is expected because of the budget shuffle, state officials said. But it could mean that legislators next year will need to approve additional state funds to fully make up for the loss of federal aid, exposing the ferries to another vote in the political process. The governor had looked to federal infrastructure money to r...
More than 6,700 passengers a year boarded a state ferry in Wrangell 2010 through 2015, and more than 6,900 a year walked or drove off the ships during that six-year period. In calendar 2021, those numbers were down to 690 passengers boarding a ferry and 771 getting off a ship, a drop of about 90%. Those 2021 passenger counts are up from the pandemic-worst travel year of calendar 2020, when just 264 boarded in Wrangell and 274 arrived, but the decline in ridership has been constant since 2014, according to statistics provided by the Alaska...
Of course the Sentinel wants to tell stories about what’s going on in town, what’s happened, what’s coming up, what government and businesses are doing that interests or may affect people. The staff depends on the community to share information and opinions so that we can tell all those stories. It’s the same when a member of the community dies. And it’s even more important at those times to tell the person’s story so that friends and family, acquaintances and even strangers can read and remember the person’s contributions to the community and...
Alaska voters will go to the polls next Tuesday to mark their ballots in a couple of firsts: The first election under the state’s new ranked-choice voting system, and the election of Alaska’s first new member of the U.S. House in 49 years. The three finalists for Congress selected in the July special primary election are Republicans Nick Begich, a Chugiak businessman, and former Gov. Sarah Palin, and former Bethel state legislator Democrat Mary Peltola. At a recent candidate forum in Juneau, Begich noted that Alaska is the second most fed...
The borough assembly has taken the first step toward seeking voter approval for borrowing up to $15 million to pay for long-needed repairs at the Public Safety Building and school buildings. The assembly last week voted to hold a special meeting Aug. 8 to introduce an ordinance placing the question on the Oct. 4 municipal election ballot. A public hearing on the ordinance would be held Aug. 23. If approved by voters, work could start in 2024, after the bonds are sold, engineering plans put together, the jobs bid out and contractors selected....
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is moving ahead with its review of the borough’s wetlands fill permit application to develop the former Wrangell Institute property for residential lots. The borough hopes to start ground-clearing work next year, Carol Rushmore, the borough’s planning and zoning director, said last week. Permit review work had been on hold while state and federal agencies and the borough coordinated an archaeological records and ground survey of the property that had been used as a Bureau of Indian Affairs Native boarding sch...
The borough will list Wrangell’s former hospital building on a nationwide surplus public property website, hoping for better results than efforts the past two months which resulted in not a single bid. “We’ve got to get rid of this,” Mayor Steve Prysunka said at the July 26 borough assembly meeting. The borough has been paying close to $100,000 a year to keep the building heated and insured, and protected against water damage. The borough ran an online auction in June to sell the property but received no bids. It then offered the buildin...
As American households strain under the weight of high gasoline prices, as cities and school districts look for extra money in their budgets to cover the cost of heating fuel, and as everyone is paying more to get everything delivered by diesel-fueled trucks, the election-year political rhetoric is accelerating to a high-octane level. Big Oil and political opponents are just too tempting of a target to pass up as elected officials and candidates want to direct voter anger toward an easy scapegoat. Republicans loudly blame President Joe Biden...
The borough assembly is considering whether to seek voter approval to sell $10.5 million in bonds for the first phase of rehab work at the rot-damaged 35-year-old Public Safety Building, and $4.5 million in bonds to help pay for roof, siding and boiler work at school buildings that range in age from 35 to 53 years old. Repayment of the bonds would come from municipal revenues, particularly property taxes. The assembly was scheduled to meet in a work session Tuesday evening to discuss the proposal, followed by the regular meeting where members w...
Inflation smacks drivers in the wallet when they fill up the tank, punches shoppers in the stomach when they load up a grocery cart, and brings travelers down to Earth when they want to buy an airline ticket. The public complains loudly about rising prices that escalate without limits. Why then so quiet about unlimited contributions to political campaigns — it’s just as harmful to democracy as inflation. Maybe even more so. Inflation eventually will come down. Campaign donation limits will only come back when the Legislature and governor tak...
After mostly dry weather in June and early July, the more typical rain of late has helped refill the community’s water reservoirs. The lower reservoir was looking pretty low around the Fourth of July and the borough was looking to start siphoning water from the upper reservoir to ensure enough supply to meet community needs, Public Works Director Tom Wetor said last week. “That’s when we got all the rain,” he said, adding that water levels are much improved. “It looks like we’re going to get through this year without any major factors.” Rain is...
The COVID-19 case count in Wrangell dropped last week to less than half the number of the previous week, but the infection numbers for cruise ship travelers to Alaska was double the rate of the previous four weeks. A highly infectious variant of the coronavirus is pushing up case counts in Alaska and nationwide, though illnesses are not as severe and hospitalization rates much lower than in previous waves, state and federal health officials report. The state’s coronavirus data dashboard reported 21 new cases in Wrangell for the seven days e...
Some argue that the federal government paid out far too much money to too many people under the headline of “pandemic relief aid.” The list includes up to $3,200 per person in cash, expanded and extended unemployment and food stamp benefits, child tax credits, mortgage assistance payments, rent relief payments, help with utilities, larger subsidies for health insurance on the Affordable Care Act marketplace, business grants and low-interest loans, federal aid to cities and states with few strings attached. But those programs, which started more...
The borough is applying for a $1.166 million state grant to go toward replacing the harbor float at Meyers Chuck. The 400-foot-long float is 57 years old, supported by steel pilings almost 40 years old, according to information presented at the July 11 borough assembly meeting. Assembly members approved the application for state funding. The float “has been in a poor and deteriorated condition for many years and needs to be replaced,” said a report to the assembly prepared by Amber Al-Haddad, Wrangell’s public facilities director. Total cost...
Looking to ensure that all property is taxed fairly and equitably, the borough is considering a reassessment of all residential and commercial properties for next year’s tax bills. The goal is for assessments to be consistent and “fair and equitable for everyone,” Borough Manager Jeff Good said last week. It’s not about raising taxes, it’s to ensure that similar properties are assessed accordingly, he said. Generally, the borough’s property assessor — a contractor from out of town — reviews the value assigned to about a third of the property...
Nearly two-thirds of the 440 Southeast Alaska business leaders who responded to a spring survey said the region’s overall business climate is good, the highest positive rating since 2017. It’s a strong turnaround from last year’s survey when 80% called the business climate “poor” or “very poor,” amid the second year of pandemic limitations on travel. Businesses in Wrangell were not as optimistic as other Southeast communities. Whereas the Southeast average was 62% who rated the economy as good or very good, Wrangell came in at 48% good and...
As Wrangell’s population continues to age, an increasing number of homes in town qualify for the state-mandated exemption from property taxes. About 25% of the assessed value of residential property in Wrangell is senior-owned and exempt from taxes, according to borough data. The tax-exempt status will cost the borough $427,000 in lost revenue this year. The borough expects to collect almost $1.8 million in property taxes this year on taxable residential and commercial property. The total assessed value of all privately owned residential proper...
“Bouncy” sounds less dramatic than “volatile,” and certainly less depressing than “money-losing.” And it’s not nearly as scary as “billion-dollar bust.” But bouncy is an appropriate word for forecasting state earnings this year. It’s not unexpected, as pretty much all of Alaska’s money is based on oil prices and investment returns, and both are about as stable these days as a small boat on rough seas, with an underpowered outboard. And though Alaska needs leaders who know what to do to safely ride it out, it’s an election year and Alask...
The 1,918-passenger Holland America Noordam has added Wrangell to its end-of-season itinerary, with a stop scheduled for Sept. 21. The 935-foot-long ship will be on its final Alaska summer-season voyage, a 14-day trip from Vancouver, British Columbia, with visits to Ketchikan, Juneau, Icy Strait Point (Hoonah), Skagway, Sitka and Wrangell, with cruises into Glacier Bay, Endicott/Tracy Arm, Hubbard Glacier and Misty Fjords. A stop also is planned for Prince Rupert, British Columbia. The company plans to work with Wrangell tour operators to offer...
Riverboats have operated on the Stikine since the gold rush days of the 1860s and 1870s. The commerce was a big part of Wrangell’s economy in those days, with a long history of family-owned businesses moving people and freight up and down the river to and from Canada for 100 years. And long before that, the river, which provided a natural passageway through the Coast Mountains, was used as a trade route by Indigenous peoples. The Tlingit and Tahltan knew the value of the river. Wrangell was a hub, with the Stikine serving as the equivalent o...
The borough last week closed on its $2.5 million purchase of the former sawmill property at 6 Mile Zimovia Highway and separately signed an agreement with the state that would hold Wrangell harmless if any past contamination is discovered at the site. In exchange for the hold-harmless agreement, the borough will need to assess the current situation at the property and monitor the site, such as if any soil contamination is found during excavation or construction on the property, Borough Manager Jeff Good said last week. The agreement with the...
The million-dollar project to extend the Mount Dewey trail, add a parking lot off Bennett Street for the new portion of the trail and connect the Volunteer Park Trail to Ishiyama Drive has been pushed back to next year. In addition to resolving a federally required payment to a mitigation bank as compensation for filling in a small amount of wetlands in the work area, borough officials need to wait for further analysis of a slope on Mount Dewey above Third Street that shows signs of soil movement. A geologist was in town in May for another...
Beer and wine have been available at the bars on board the state ferries Matanuska and Kennicott since late May after the amenities were closed seven years ago, reportedly to save money. The ferry system “has collected feedback on the bar reopening through customer surveys answered by Kennicott and Matanuska passengers — all positive comments,” Sam Dapcevich, Department of Transportation spokesman, said last week. “I’ve also heard from a few Southeast Alaska residents who are happy to see the bars reopened.” There is no additional staff expense...
Two key economic indicators are falling in Wrangell—the unemployment rate, and the number of people in the labor force. Combined, the two datapoints help explain the ongoing worker shortage in the community, stressing out business owners who have to manage as best as they can with too few employees. The unemployment rate for May was 5.1%, down from 5.5% in April, down from 7.2% a year ago, and the lowest in at least the past 12 years, according to state Labor Department statistics. It’s probably the lowest rate going back 20 years or so, but...
Election-year politics have a way of bringing bad ideas to the top — when they belong at the bottom of the settling pond. Yes, fuel prices are high, painfully so in many communities and particularly so for people and businesses that have no choice but to fill up the tank and drive to work or deliver for a living. But suspending the federal tax on gasoline and diesel would not accomplish much good. Same for getting rid of the state tax. The Alaska Legislature this past session, with the support of Gov. Mike Dunleavy, considered suspending the s...
