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Wrangell will receive additional $1.2 million in federal aid
Adding to the millions of dollars in federal pandemic relief aid already provided to the borough, Wrangell has been notified that $1.23 million more is on its way in a final round of assistance. The community can use the money for pretty much...
Declining revenue leaves chamber of commerce scrambling to raise funds
It’s been seven years since the Wrangell Chamber of Commerce operated in the black. Each year since, it’s run a budget deficit covered by savings. Declining membership renewals and falling revenues from other sources has left the organization str...
Legislators consider multiple PFD proposals amid growing interest to solve the problem
A crowded field of proposals to address the annual debate over the amount of the Permanent Fund dividend became even more so on Friday as the Senate Finance Committee proposed a new formula for setting the payment. In the first 60 days of the 2023... Full story
Assembly considers rate increases across all enterprise funds
To keep pace with inflation and ensure its ability to cover future costs, the borough is considering rate increases across all enterprise funds — electric, water, port and harbors, wastewater and garbage. If the proposals are adopted, rates for...
WCA holds e-waste collection and recycling event
Since the Wrangell Cooperative Association started offering e-waste recycling around 2016, IGAP technician Kim Wickman has been surprised to see growing demand for the service. “We thought we would have less,” she said, after a few major purges c...
Wrangell readers recommend a wide range of favorite books
National Reading Month is in its final week, and some of the community’s literature lovers are sharing their favorite books for anyone who wants to add to their list — this month, or any month. The month was first celebrated in March of 1994 to...
Increase in state funding for schools clears first committee
The Senate Education Committee on March 13 advanced a bill to increase state funding for public schools, clearing the bill’s first legislative hurdle. The bill to increase the base student allocation, the per-student formula used to calculate...
Mini Mart gets new ownership ahead of busy summer season
Alesa McHolland is having a surreal life moment. While waiting to receive freight on March 15, the new co-owner of the former Alpine Mini Mart never quite expected to be where she is. "It's kind of...
Ferry system short more than 100 crew to put Kennicott to work
The Alaska Marine Highway System is short more than 100 new crew to safely and dependably put the Kennicott to sea. Without enough onboard workers, the state ferry system will start the summer schedule in six weeks with its second-largest operable...
State board recommends transgender girls be excluded from girls sports at schools
In an unannounced move, the State Board of Education unanimously passed a resolution March 14 that urges the Alaska Department of Education to limit the participation of transgender girls in girls school sports. The resolution, which is non-binding,...
Subsistence workshop to teach advocacy skills to residents
The federal subsistence management program aims to protect rural Alaskans’ subsistence lifestyle while maintaining healthy fish and wildlife populations on federal lands. However, this multi-agency governmental apparatus can be daunting for rural...
Senior gets dressed up and fired up for graduation project
Vying for state titles in three different sports is behind him, but Ethan Blatchley still has to blaze a trail to finish his senior project before he graduates. And though training and competing in cr...
House committee holds first hearing on governor's parental-rights bill
The first legislative hearing on Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s proposal to restrict discussion of sex and gender in schools included testimony from only two invited public guests, both supportive of the measure. The bill, which Senate leaders say is...
Not all North Slope Natives support $8 billion oil project
ANCHORAGE (AP) — The Biden administration’s approval last week of the biggest oil drilling project in Alaska in decades promises to widen a rift among Alaska Natives, with some saying that oil money can’t counter the damages caused by climate...
Opponents seek court order to halt work on ConocoPhillips Alaska oil project
Conservation groups have asked a federal judge for a preliminary decision to stop construction work this winter at the Willow oil field on Alaska’s North Slope, days after the Biden administration approved the $8 billion project. ConocoPhillips...
CDC study finds Alaska Natives have highest colon cancer rate in the world
Alaska Natives continued to have the world’s highest rates of colorectal cancer as of 2018, and case rates failed to decline significantly for the two decades leading up to that year, according to a newly published study. The study, by experts from... Full story
Summer ferry schedule finally open for bookings
Just eight weeks before the start of the summer timetable on May 1, the Alaska Marine Highway System released its schedule and opened its online reservations system for bookings. The schedule, which was announced March 7, came later than usual this...
State tracks Wrangell class of '05, finds over half live out of state
Zach Taylor of Muddy Water Adventures is a self-described "small-town person." He likes striking up a conversation with his barista and greeting the familiar people he passes on the street. However,...
Governor proposes parental-rights legislation and teacher retention bonuses
While education advocates continue to push for increased state funding to Alaska public schools, Gov. Mike Dunleavy last week opted to introduce proposals that would limit sexual education in schools and impose new requirements on...
PFD hearing brings out widely differing viewpoints
When Jan Kanitz of Juneau and Antonia Lenard of Eagle River testified before a legislative committee last Saturday about personal responsibility and the Permanent Fund dividend, they spoke from completely different perspectives. For Kanitz, it was...
Alaskans continue pressing for U.S. intervention on B.C. mines
After meeting with representatives of the British Columbia mining and environmental ministries in Juneau last week, state legislators, Alaska Native leaders and environmentalists urged the federal government to intervene against the development of...
Alaska Human Rights Commission cuts back its jurisdiction in LGBTQ cases
ANCHORAGE (AP) — Alaska’s human rights commission has reversed an earlier policy and now is only investigating LGBTQ discrimination complaints related to workplace discrimination and not for other categories like housing and financing. The Anchor...
KSTK brings artistic flair to fundraising with auction
One of the challenges of being a nonprofit is continually seeking funds to continue operating, something radio station KSTK is well acquainted with. But instead of just shaking a bucket and hoping...
Hospital implements masking requirement as respiratory illnesses circulate
Due to an increase in respiratory disease rates —including COVID-19 — throughout Southeast and in Wrangell, the Wrangell Medical Center has re-implemented a mandatory masking policy for its visitors, patients and staff. “It was in response to...
Gallery plans move to Nolan Center and call for local artists
From painters to comic illustrators, jewelers to woodcarvers, quilters to printmakers, Wrangell is full of talented artists. However, after a downtown gallery closed earlier this year, there was no centralized venue for artists to display their work...