Juneau

Juneau Assembly votes 6-3 to sell old City Hall to Sealaska Heritage Institute for $1.5 million

Juneau voted to sell its old City Hall to Sealaska Heritage for $1.5 million — for a planned $40 million Northwest Coast art-glass building downtown.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read

Juneau denies Chilkat Vistas hillside plat after approval falls a vote short

Juneau's planning commission denied a hillside subdivision over landslide risk, two years after the Assembly struck landslide rules from the land use code.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read

A weak sockeye return has managers ready to open a Juneau-area fishery on six hours' notice

A weak Speel Lake sockeye return near Juneau has managers ready to open a terminal fishery on six hours' notice. Escapement is below its goal range.

by Bill AlaskaNewsadded 2mo ago1 min read

Follows: A Petersburg-area drift gillnet fishery opens for about 40 hours

Gas tax package still off the Senate floor as the special session nears its limit

Alaska Senate held a technical session Monday with no business and will not meet again until 2 p.m. Friday.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read

Goldbelt subsidiary takes $821,000 in State Department work with no stated purpose

A Goldbelt subsidiary in Juneau picked up $821,000 in State Department staffing work in three weeks. Neither posting says what the work is for.

by Melinda Communities.News2mo ago1 min read

Skagway ferry port closed indefinitely; state gives no repair timeline

Skagway's ferry dock is broken and the port is closed indefinitely. The state's entire public explanation fits in one undated website alert.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read

Juneau lifts its Suicide Basin flood evacuation

Juneau's Suicide Basin flood threat is over — the command reopened evacuated areas after the Mendenhall River crested at 14.7 feet, below the forecast.

by Melinda Communities.News2mo ago1 min read

Judicial council urges no vote on two Kenai judges in November

Alaska Judicial Council recommends voters reject two Kenai judges on November ballot. • Judge Kelly Lawson failed temperament and integrity standards; lacked patience with court staff. • Judge Martin Fallon failed integrity and diligence standards; signed false affidavits about late decisions.

by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 2mo ago2 min read

Dunleavy declares state disaster after Juneau's fourth straight glacial flood

Governor Dunleavy declared a state disaster for Juneau. This unlocks state funds for flood repairs and speeds up emergency permits.

by Melinda Communities.News3mo ago1 min read

Feds move to fast-track a Juneau flood-control fix by cutting permitting and paperwork

Days after another Juneau outburst flood forced evacuations, federal agencies are fast-tracking a flood-control fix for the valley by cutting the red tape.

by Melinda Communities.News3mo ago2 min read

Juneau's task force weighs crowding fixes amid a bigger question on how much tourism is enough

Juneau's tourism task force votes Thursday on downtown crowd fixes — a roundabout, crossing guards, Seawalk changes — the visible edge of its bigger question: how much cruise tourism is enough.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min readFrom Jul 30

Federal regulators weigh a noise permit for a Douglas Island cruise terminal, with sea otters in the balance

Federal regulators are weighing a noise permit for a Douglas Island cruise terminal that could affect sea otters, with public comment open through Sept. 11.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read

Juneau's wastewater plant has been out of compliance for three years, and ratepayers foot the bill

Juneau's main wastewater plant has been out of federal compliance for three years, its permit expired — and sewer customers will pay the $20 million fix.

by Lucas Brown3mo ago2 min read

Juneau gathers its senior-housing help into one guide

Juneau is pulling its senior-housing help — ADU grants, renovation grants, contractors — into one guide to help older residents stay in their homes.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read

A heat advisory covers much of Southeast Alaska through Friday evening

A heat advisory covers much of Southeast Alaska through Friday evening, with temperatures in the lower 80s — a real risk in a region where most homes have no air conditioning.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read

A Juneau evacuation route is restricted as the valley floods

A Juneau road is restricted to local traffic as the Mendenhall Valley floods from the Suicide Basin outburst, with about 5,000 people told to evacuate.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read

Sealaska Heritage honors four Southeast educators at Juneau conference

Sealaska Heritage Institute awarded four Southeast Alaska educators for weaving Indigenous knowledge into classrooms at its annual conference in Juneau.

by Melinda Communities.Newsadded 3mo ago1 min read

Ben Le, missing since a hike at Port Armstrong on Aug. 10, was found dead at the bottom of a cliff

A hiker missing near Port Armstrong since Monday is being searched by crews that added a thermal drone team Wednesday morning after ground and aerial searches found no sign of him.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read

Juneau asks Mendenhall Lake evacuation zone residents to leave by 3 p.m.

Juneau ordered 5,000 residents in the Mendenhall Valley evacuation zone to leave by 3 p.m. Wednesday as a glacial outburst flood crests early Thursday.

by Melinda Communities.News3mo ago3 min read

A Tsimshian carver, accused of inventing clan stories, is affirmed by another clan

Accused by some in his own community of inventing Tsimshian migration stories, carver David Boxley was publicly affirmed by a Wrangell clan that shares them.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read

Juneau's glacial outburst flood crested Thursday at 14.7 feet, above major flood stage

Juneau is responding to glacial outburst flooding, nearly 1,900 homes in its advisory area, after the Mendenhall crested above major flood stage Thursday.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read

Water begins flowing over Suicide Basin ice dam, NWS tells Juneau to finish flood prep

Water is spilling over Suicide Basin's ice dam near Juneau, and the National Weather Service is telling residents along Mendenhall Lake and River to finish flood prep now.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read

Juneau hangar owners say the airport's own repaving flooded them, and it won't say if that's true

Juneau hangar owners say the airport's own regrading and repaving caused flooding now rotting their buildings, and it won't say if its work is to blame.

by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min read

Sealaska Heritage publishes fifth graders' documentary on Walter Soboleff

Auke Bay Elementary students produced a documentary on Dr. Walter Soboleff. The film fills a gap in classroom history materials.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read

Alaska Senate Majority sets Anchorage press availability on stalled gas session

Alaska's fourth special session on the gas pipeline tax has gone two weeks without a vote, as a looming Cook Inlet supply cliff raises the stakes.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read

Juneau moves to repair Mendenhall riverbank and protect flood-hit homes

Juneau moves to repair 1,300 feet of Mendenhall riverbank to protect flood-hit homes, one of several recovery measures on the agenda after the 2024 flood.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read

Juneau pilots pay $12 a gallon for fuel, and want an alternative to the airport's only seller

Juneau pilots pay over $12 a gallon for avgas, about 50% more than Anchorage, from the airport's only seller. Fifty-plus want a self-serve option added.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read

Juneau's paratransit service for seniors has failed riders for nine months

A 96-year-old left at Foodland, 25 calls for one trip: Juneau's paratransit for seniors has failed nine months, the commission says — and the city renewed it.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read

A Whittier man trying to sell booze on a family glacier-tour boat

A Whittier man is fighting a plan to serve alcohol on the family Ptarmigan glacier-tour boat, which has run dry for decades. The Assembly decides by Aug. 15.

by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min read

Sealaska Heritage concludes ninth annual education conference

Sealaska Heritage Institute concluded its ninth annual education conference in Juneau, drawing hundreds of educators from Alaska and beyond for sessions on culturally responsive teaching.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read

Alaskans split over ranked choice repeal at state ballot measure hearing

Alaska voters will decide in November whether to repeal ranked choice voting, the top-four primary, and campaign finance disclosure rules approved in 2020.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago3 min read

Bartlett hospital recruiting four directors at once among 29 openings

Bartlett Regional Hospital is recruiting four directors at once and 29 positions total, the most of any Juneau employer on the state's weekly job list.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read

HESCO barrier repair was a week from done, Juneau committee told

Juneau's HESCO flood barriers were nearly complete in early July, with the Army Corps finishing Phase 2 of temporary defenses protecting nearly 1,900 homes under evacuation advisory.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min readFrom Jul 8

Juneau Assembly amends senior hardship tax test to 300% poverty line

Juneau Assembly raised the income limit for senior and disabled veteran property tax hardship exemptions to 300% of federal poverty guidelines, broadening eligibility for tax relief.

by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago3 min read

Juneau sets hearing on $1.5M City Hall sale to Sealaska Heritage Institute

Juneau hears testimony Aug. 17 on selling the old City Hall site to Sealaska Heritage Institute for $1.5M for an arts center, or opening it to higher bids.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read

A Haida class spends two years recovering a 74-line migration story

A Haida class spent two years retranscribing a single 74-line migration story, uncovering meaning a century-old English translation had flattened — and connecting a scattered Haida diaspora through the work.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read

Juneau aging commission chair tells Assembly paratransit has failed seniors for nine months

Juneau concerned that folks aren't getting rides.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read

Juneau hunters can take two low-cost Fish and Game classes this August

Juneau hunters can grab two cheap Fish and Game classes before fall, scope mounting for $15 or a full day of wilderness survival for $25. Spots are limited.

by Bill AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read

A Juneau builder with a long wetlands-filling history moves to settle federal charges

Federal and state authorities lodged a settlement with Duran Construction over Clean Water Act wetlands violations, but the public comment period has not yet been scheduled.

by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago2 min read

Juneau's casino opened on shifting ground and now faces suits on two fronts

Juneau's tribal casino opened through a federal opening since rescinded, and now faces the state, a family lawsuit and doubt about whether it's even legal.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min readFrom Jun 5