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Property tax assessment values similar to last year
After last year’s comprehensive review of every piece of property in Wrangell pushed up the borough’s total taxable assessed valuation by more than 50%, this year’s assessment notices are tame. Property tax assessments were sent out March 20, and i...
Ferry ridership still not back to pre-pandemic numbers
The state ferry system carried 181,000 passengers in 2023, still short of the pre-COVID numbers in 2019 and down substantially from almost 340,000 in 2012 and more than 420,000 in 1992. Overall vehicle traffic also is down, from more than 115,000 in...
Spring thaw uncovers recurring problem of uncollected dog waste
Problems with dog waste in town, in parks and ballfields are ongoing. While there has been some improvement in recent years, people not picking up after their dogs continues to be a recurring issue, especially with the coming of spring. “With e...
Electric school bus for district hits another roadblock
The district’s electric school bus, originally scheduled to arrive in late spring through the federal Clean School Bus program, has been delayed until March 2025 due to a backlog of orders at the bus manufacturer, which could be too late for the term...
Almost half of Wrangell school students counted as Alaska Native
Almost half of the students enrolled at the school district are counted as Alaska Native. Schools Superintendent Bill Burr confirmed that out of a total of 270 students enrolled in the district, 122 are registered as Alaska Native, while 13 are...
Program uses running and exercise to teach children self-respect
Wrangell’s BRAVE has started its running and empowerment program, I Toowú Klatseen (ITK), for kids in third through fifth grades. The program provides free running and exercise activities, lessons in self-respect, community building and healthy de...
Green thumbs can help beautify Wrangell again this year
This is the second year that Wrangell’s Parks and Recreation Department will host an adopt-a-garden volunteer program to help beautify downtown. Though volunteers have maintained the garden beds in years past, last year was the first year that P...
Wrangell teens bowl over the competition at state
Five Wrangell teens know their books, chapters and verses better than any other team in Alaska, and for the second year in a row Wrangell won the state title at The Salvation Army’s Bible Bowl competition. The team was so dominant and won by such a...
House legislation would allow use of more cell photo data in search of lost people
Under legislation passed March 21 by the Alaska House of Representatives, police searching for a lost hiker could obtain cell phone and satellite phone location data without a warrant. The House approved House Bill 316 by a 38-1 margin after moving... Full story
Research says Alaska teacher salaries below Lower 48 average
Teacher salaries in Alaska are not competitive when compared to much of the Lower 48, according to new research from the University of Alaska Anchorage’s Institute of Social and Economic Research. Alaska teachers are paid below the national a...
New federal opinion could put more land under tribal jurisdiction
A new legal opinion by the top attorney at the U.S. Department of the Interior has extended the land jurisdiction of Alaska tribes, upending decades of precedent and offering new opportunities for the state’s 228 federally recognized tribal g... Full story
Research says Alaska teacher salaries below Lower 48 average
Teacher salaries in Alaska are not competitive when compared to much of the Lower 48, according to new research from the University of Alaska Anchorage’s Institute of Social and Economic Research. Alaska teachers are paid below the national a...
Federal grant will pay for longliners association effort to save fuel and money
The Alaska Longline Fisherman’s Association says the $514,000 federal grant it received for a feasibility study could lead to lower costs for the fishing fleet and a path to decarbonization of the industry. “This will inform our efforts to dec...
Governor wants to criminalize unpermitted street protests
Opponents of Gov. Mike Dunleavey’s proposal to criminalize unpermitted street protests and other activities that block passage through public places said it is unconstitutional, too vague and too broad to become law. If Senate Bill 255 or its c... Full story
AP&T selects Ketchikan as corporate headquarters
Alaska Power & Telephone Co. has announced it is designating its offices in Ketchikan as its new corporate headquarters — moving the nameplate from Washington state — the first time it will be headquartered in Alaska. AP&T's current headquarters are...
WCA hires domestic violence prevention specialist
Kevin Gadsey, hired last month by the Wrangell Cooperative Association to work on domestic violence prevention, said the problem is more traumatic in smaller communities like Wrangell, where...
Legislature falls short in override of governor's school funding veto
Alaska lawmakers fell one vote short Monday in an attempt to override the governor’s veto of a comprehensive school funding bill, which included a permanent increase in the state funding formula for K-12 education and which could have provided an add...
Wrangell receives $2.5 million federal grant for water treatment plant
The federal appropriations bill signed into law earlier this month includes a $2.5 million grant for Wrangell's new water treatment plant, which is under construction and scheduled for completion in June 2025. The latest federal grant, added to the...
Wrangell will lose both school principals this year
Ann Hilburn is leaving her job as elementary school principal in Wrangell at the end of the school year when she will move to Tok in Alaska’s Interior to serve as special education director. This was Hilburn’s second year as principal after ser...
Advocates hope seafood consumption survey leads to higher water quality standards
Clean water advocates believe a seafood consumption survey among Wrangell residents might help in their push for higher water quality standards. Together, the Wrangell Cooperative Association and the Southeast Alaska Indigenous Transboundary...
Assembly approves sale of six lots as part of hospital property development
The borough assembly unanimously agreed March 12 to move forward with the sale of six borough-owned lots behind the former hospital property. The six lots will be appraised and sold at market value to Wayne Johnson, a Georgia-based real estate...
Borough assembly narrows down candidates for manager
The borough assembly narrowed down the field of seven applicants for the borough manager job; a special meeting was scheduled for Tuesday, March 19, to interview the three finalists. The finalists include current interim borough manager and finance...
Trident strikes deals to sell Ketchikan and Petersburg plants
Trident Seafoods has announced the sale of its Ketchikan processing facilities to Silver Bay Seafoods, and the sale of its Petersburg operation to E.C. Phillips & Son. Trident has not announced buyers for two other Alaska plants it has put on the...
Parks and Rec converts racquetball court to expand weights/exercise area
The weights and exercise areas at the swimming pool and community recreation facility have expanded, with more equipment stationed in the converted racquetball court. Parks and Recreation Director Luc...
Mike Hoyt new IEA director at school district
In addition to his duties as activities director, Mike Hoyt will now also serve as the new Indian Education Act director for the school district after the resignation of DaNika Smalley on Feb. 29. Schools Superintendent Bill Burr confirmed that Hoyt...
