Southeast

Overnight drilling comes to Ketchikan's aging viaducts, part of a plan to repair them now and replace them later

Overnight drilling comes to Ketchikan's two 1950s viaducts, which carry 14,000-plus vehicles a day, as the state plans to repair them and replace them later.

by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 2mo ago2 min read

Juneau's harbor fund is near its lowest point ever, and charter boats may be asked to help fill the gap

Juneau's harbor fund is near its lowest ever after the city cut $450,000 a year, and the port may charge charter boats more per passenger to fill the gap.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read

Sealaska endorses Peltola for U.S. Senate

Sealaska endorsed Peltola for U.S. Senate, but the association of the 12 Alaska Native regional corporations' leaders backed her opponent, Sen. Dan Sullivan.

by Maggie AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read

Alaska's largest fisheries lab swaps ozone for ultraviolet to treat its water

Alaska's largest fisheries research lab is swapping ozone for ultraviolet light to disinfect its water. A Juneau plumbing firm won the $155,653 job.

by Melinda Communities.News2mo ago1 min read

Juneau tourism task force takes final public testimony Oct. 15

Juneau's tourism task force set a second testimony session for Oct. 15, pushed back so residents can read the draft recommendations before speaking.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read

Petersburg ships most of its trash to Washington; its unlined landfill is up for renewal

Petersburg's household trash gets barged to Washington state. What stays behind goes into an unlined landfill where groundwater monitoring was waived.

by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 2mo ago1 min read

Juneau weighs $5.5 million more for flood recovery on a river that floods every year

Juneau is putting another $5.5 million toward flood recovery. The city still calls the Mendenhall barriers temporary and hasn't said who pays long term.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read

Ketchikan's long rebuild of the road toward Saxman inches ahead, with a waterside path and a tangle over land

Ketchikan's rebuild of the highway toward Saxman, adding a waterside path for walkers and bikers, drew more federal money as cost estimates keep swinging.

by Melinda Communities.News2mo ago2 min read

Juneau-area gillnetters get another opener, but directed king fishing stays closed on low abundance

Juneau-area gillnetters get another opener through Wednesday, but directed king fishing stays closed across four Southeast districts on low king numbers.

by Bill AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read

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

Auke Bay quarry wins bigger blasts and Saturday hours through 2036

An Auke Bay rock quarry can now blast 60 percent bigger, start earlier and work Saturdays, through 2036. No residents showed up to the hearing.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read

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 ago3 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

Where to watch spawning salmon around Ketchikan this month

Want to watch Fish, it's like watching paint dry but consequences… Cool ones!

by Bill AlaskaNews2mo ago1 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

Sitka's sole finalist for city administrator is gone, and the Assembly is starting over

The sole finalist Sitka introduced for city administrator last month is gone, and the Assembly interviews two new candidates Friday, with no explanation given.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read

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

Southeast gillnetters ride a strong pink run, with the season about to turn toward coho

Southeast gillnetters are working a strong pink salmon season, with several areas open into Thursday and the focus set to turn toward coho later this month.

by Bill AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read

Federal charter keeps water sampling going on the Unuk, downstream of three British Columbia mines

A $15,510 charter keeps USGS crews sampling the Unuk River this fall. Three large British Columbia mine projects sit in development upstream.

by Maggie AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read

Southeast seiners get another opening, with one district carrying a below-forecast pink season

Southeast seiners get another opening Tuesday, with one district carrying more than half the catch in a pink season running below the regionwide forecast.

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 AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read

Hoonah and Ketchikan dock projects renew marine mammal permits without breaking ground

Two Southeast dock projects keep renewing federal permits to make noise underwater. The permits keep expiring. The water remains undisturbed.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read

A pro-Republican group discloses small ad debts for two House candidates, listing the creditor at its treasurer's address

A pro-Republican group's pre-primary filing disclosed $728 in ad debts for two House candidates, listing the creditor at its treasurer's own address.

by Lucas Brown3mo ago2 min read

Trump takes aim at Alaska's U.S. Senate Primary Election

Trump waded into Alaska's Senate primary, telling voters which of two similarly named Dan Sullivans to pick — flexing GOP-base clout in a state he carried.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago3 min read

An FAA cleanup contract for Gustavus, most of it at Metlakatla

A small new FAA contract targets Gustavus, where PFAS 'forever chemicals' from firefighting foam have kept residents on hauled-in water since 2018.

by Melinda Communities.News3mo 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.News3mo ago1 min read

A Sitka nonprofit seeks to bend the rules to build more housing

A Sitka housing nonprofit is asking the city to waive parking and allow smaller lots so it can fit more homes on a lot on Halibut Point Road.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo 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 3mo 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

In Kake, showing up means a vote on fish and game

Any voting-age Kake resident who shows up can nominate and vote at the fish and game advisory committee's Aug. 26 meeting in the subsistence-salmon village.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read

Davidoff Street closes Saturday morning for Sitka manhole repair

Somebody blew their lid. I'm just kidding, but the road will be closed down temporarily.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 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 AlaskaNews3mo 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

Deep Inlet reopens to the commercial fleet after the hatchery takes its cut

Alaska reopened Deep Inlet to commercial salmon fishing after the state hatchery finished cost-recovery operations, ending a closure that began June 28.

by Bill AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read

Yaadás clan historian says he only recently traced how his clan got the beaver crest

Yaadás clan historian Benjamin Young recently traced two competing accounts of how his Haida clan acquired the beaver crest, one from early ethnography and one from fur trade history.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago2 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

Gillnetters near Ketchikan and Haines get an extra day on the water

Drift gillnetters near Ketchikan and Haines got an extra day on the water this week, with some inlets and canal waters closed off in exchange.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read