Articles from the September 21, 2022 edition
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 29
Borough works to reduce need for property taxes to repay bonds
Officials believe the borough can cover the entire annual debt payment on $3.5 million in school maintenance bonds by taking advantage of strong sales tax revenues and higher federal aid payments — without turning to property taxes. State lease...
Wrangell to go without ferry service 3 weeks in January
Wrangell will be without ferry service from Jan. 10 to Feb. 3 under the fall/winter schedule released by the Alaska Marine Highway System last week. The rest of the seven months covered by the schedule includes a weekly stop in each direction in...
Retired teacher recalls a royal lunch with Queen Elizabeth II
A nine-course lunch in 1965 left an indelible mark on the memory of a young teacher from Denver. Queen Elizabeth II died on Sept. 8 at the age of 96, but she left an historical legacy that included a...
Court says Metlakatla tribe can fish outside reserve boundaries
A federal appeals court has ruled that Metlakatla tribal members shouldn’t need state permits to fish in waters they’ve traditionally relied on — even outside their reservation’s boundaries. The decision is a major victory in the tribe’s...
The Way We Were
Sept. 21, 1922 The Wrangell Parent-Teacher Association held its first meeting for the school year last Thursday night. There was a good attendance. Several matters pertaining to the welfare of the...
'Strengthen Your Spirit' program combines physical fitness and cultural values
Exuberant shouts resounded in the Evergreen Elementary gym last Thursday night as a group of nine young runners, between the third and fifth grades, bounded into the room for another session of I Toowú Klatseen, a running program for youth that...
Tanner Thomassen bags first moose after trying 15 years
Last Thursday afternoon, Tanner Thomassen, 27, shot Wrangell's first moose of the season on Andrew Island in the Stikine River. The moose is also Thomassen's first - he has been trying to bag one sinc...
Otter attacks Sitka swimmer, biting at his feet
As he neared the end of an ocean swim just south of Sitka earlier this month, Dean Orbison felt a pain in his foot and thought he’d kicked a rock. But when the pain recurred, he stopped to look around and was startled by what he saw. A river otter...
Vote yes on mill property
Wrangell should vote yes on Oct. 4, giving the borough permission to sell or lease the former 6-Mile sawmill property — if a private developer steps forward. This isn’t a final vote on a development plan, and any sale or lease would require...
Good move on ferry pricing
The Sentinel often criticizes state ferry system management for bad decisions. But now it’s time to praise them for a good decision. Dropping the “dynamic pricing” structure for ferry service this fall and winter, October through April, is the...
They love their phones far too much
I promise, this will be the first and only column I write that makes fun of how people behave in Washington, D.C. Well, maybe I’ll write another one someday if I see something that is so silly it’s worth sharing with readers. OK, I guess then...
Vote no on bond issues, use borough staff to start repair work
At the current time, I am opposed to the bond measures and associated tax increase that are on the municipal election ballot. We could and should spend at least a year applying our current workforce to doing maintenance and repair to see what we can...
Democrats ignore reality in their statements
In his letter to the editor of Sept. 14, John Morse alleges former President Donald Trump is a fascist dictator whose attempted “installation” by MAGA culprits fortunately failed Jan. 6, 2021. Morse also thinks MAGA does not make sense because...
Sharing Our Knowledge conference was a success with community help
The members of the Sharing Our Knowledge organizing committee extend our gratitude to all those in Wrangell who helped us in the production of a conference that exceeded our fondest hopes. This was the 11th Sharing Our Knowledge conference since...
Researchers find 11,000-year-old fish weir off Prince of Wales Island
A team of scientists exploring an underwater region of southern Southeast Alaska has discovered what might be the oldest stone fish weir ever found in the world. The existence of the fish trap, which is thought to date to at least 11,100 years ago,...
Typhoon leaves behind extensive flooding in Western Alaska
The remnants of a massive Pacific typhoon that battered a thousand-mile stretch of Western Alaska dissipated Sunday morning, with floodwaters dropping and communities assessing damage from one of the worst storms on record. The storm left a trail of...
Parks and Recreation strengthens weight room options with new equipment
It's taken a few years of requests and planning, but the community center weight room finally has new equipment, freeing up valuable space and increasing safety. Two metal frames allow users to do...
Wrangell boys take second place at Ketchikan cross country meet
The Wrangell High School cross country boys team placed second at the Ketchikan Invitational at Ward Lake last Saturday. Sophomore Daniel Harrison once again led the Wolves, coming in fourth place...
First-place finish and personal bests highlight Ketchikan swim meet
The Wrangell High School swim team competed in two meets at the Ketchikan Invitational competition last weekend, with junior Jack Roberts leading the team with a first-, second- and fifth-place finish. Competing against eight other high schools from...
Alex Angerman to push for day care, community outreach
Alex Angerman, CARES Act coordinator for the Wrangell Cooperative Association, is running for borough assembly to improve community outreach and foster youth engagement in municipal government. "The...
Robbins wants to encourage students and families to stay in Wrangell
Brittani Robbins is running for borough assembly to bolster Wrangell's economic development and stem the out-migration of families and youth from the island. Robbins, 37, is executive director of the...
Powell wants more borough land in private ownership
After seven years on the borough assembly, Bay Co. manager David Powell is running for another three-year term. Powell's desire to get land out of the borough's hands was what first motivated him to...
Senior Center foundation in need of repair
One of the foundational wooden beams under the Senior Center is rotting and will have to be repaired, according to Borough Manager Jeff Good. “There is no immediate threat to life and safety,” Good explained, but he hopes to address the problem...
Lawyer provides direction on estate planning, protecting assets
What to do with someone's property when they die can be a complicated task involving beneficiaries, a ton of paperwork and the court system. But it doesn't necessarily have to be. Liz Smith, a...
Police report
Monday, Sept. 12 Agency assist: Hoonah Police Department. Reckless driving. Agency assist: Petersburg Police Department. Disturbance. Motor vehicle accident. Agency assist: Petersburg Police Department. Traffic stop: Verbal warning for no tail...