Wrangell Sentinel -

I want to share my thoughts about the development of Wrangell’s waterfront properties. My opinions are based on the unique experience our family has enjoyed from residing in many Southeast communities. Raised and schooled in Ketchikan, serving in...

The borough assembly approved a $880,294 contract with Juneau-based Global Diving and Salvage to install corrosion-inhibiting anodes at Heritage Harbor and in two locations at the Marine Service Center. The project is funded through Port and Harbors...

As the downtown barge ramp nears the end of its useful life, the borough is weighing its options for replacing and possibly relocating this piece of critical infrastructure. Assembly members and borough staff discussed replacing the ramp in its...

Alaska has gotten more money per capita from the federal infrastructure law passed in 2021 than any other state, according to participants at a news conference where the latest injection of funds for the state was announced. Alaska’s member of the... Full story

Employers everywhere are finding it hard to recruit and retain employees. But it sure seems that the state of Alaska, under the disengaged leadership of Gov. Mike Dunleavy, is sinking to new lows of high vacancies. The empty desks and undone work...

Age is a major issue behind the Alaska Marine Highway System’s pending master plan, which will go to state legislators this month. The state ferry Columbia, which turns 50 next year, had been sidelined at the Ketchikan ferry dock for about three...

Aug. 23, 1923 Mrs. Stephen Grant has resumed her duties as community nurse following a vacation which she took for the purpose of entering a summer class in community nursing given in Portland under the auspices of the Red Cross. Mrs. Grant finished...

The Sitka city assembly has given the go-ahead to a plan for building a boat haul-out and shipyard at the Gary Paxton Industrial Park by late 2024. The option calls for a 150-ton boat lift, haul-out piers, washdown pad and an EPA-certified...

Migrating birds have returned to Alaska, and so has the highly pathogenic avian influenza that began to sweep through global bird populations in 2020. That means Alaskans should continue to be vigilant about the strains that have arrived in the state... Full story

After an uptick in thefts at Wrangell harbors in recent years, the borough is moving to install security cameras and improve lighting at all the facilities to help keep users’ property safe. At its June 13 meeting, the borough assembly unanimously...

One of the world’s largest sea stars is on track to receive Endangered Species Act protections. Federal regulators are proposing a threatened listing for the sunflower sea star, a creature that has been killed off in much of its Pacific habitat by... Full story

To optimists, the plants that grow in the sea promise to diversify Alaska’s economy, revitalize small coastal towns struggling with undependable fisheries and help communities adapt to climate change — and even mitigate it by absorbing... Full story

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...

Thanks to its aging infrastructure and pricey upcoming projects, Port and Harbors is the least financially sustainable of all the borough’s enterprise funds. Last Thursday, the Port Commission met with Finance Director Mason Villarma and Susan...

Feb. 1, 1923 When Charles Gearing and party came down the Stikine last week, they reached the government cabin at the head of the trail, tired and worn out from the trip. It was at night and the weather was cold. Upon entering the cabin they found...

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — A nonprofit group that aims to protect endangered species has asked the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to reintroduce sea otters to a stretch of the West Coast from Northern California to Oregon. Threatened southern sea otters...

WASHINGTON — The $1.7 trillion federal spending package includes hundreds of millions of dollars in appropriations for projects specific to Alaska and enacts legislation that will directly affect the state. “There is literally no part of our stat...

Readers can find both an optimistic view and gloomy numbers in the borough’s annual economic conditions report, issued last month. “With some of the lowest electrical rates in Alaska, the highest school district test scores, the potential to...

Soon after Carol Rushmore stepped into her role as economic development director in 1993, Wrangell’s economic landscape changed forever. The sawmill, which had been the borough’s economic mainstay since the mid-1950s, shut down, setting off a...

After a dismal 2020 and cautiously optimistic 2021, the economic outlook in Wrangell is improving, according to survey data collected by the Southeast Conference. Economic director Carol Rushmore presented the data at the chamber of commerce’s...