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Petersburg’s municipal employees could finally have a new, labor contract after more than a year and a half of rocky relations with the city administration. Representatives for the Petersburg Municipal Employees Association and the city have signed a tentative agreement this week. It still needs to be ratified by union members and the City Council. Matt Lichtenstein has more detail

The Alaska Mental Health Trust is changing its approach to a major land exchange with the federal government. A legislative proposal to swap 20 thousand acres of its property in Southeast towns for federal lands it could log or develop has made little headway in an increasingly gridlocked congress. So the agency plans to propose an administrative exchange, which could be approved by the Forest Service instead. Matt Lichtenstein Reports:

City and State crews were busy in Petersburg Friday, cleaning up damage caused by heavy rains and winds. Friday morning, a large landslide blocked Mitkof highway in Petersburg. The storm also caused an extensive power-outage, and downed multiple trees and electrical lines. The Alaska Airlines cargo terminal lost a substantial part of its metal roof to the wind and several vehicles around town were damaged by fallen trees. The slide out Mitkof highway was at least the second in as many years in the same area. Another large slide of rocks, trees and mud blocked the road in late September 2009 as well. And that wasn’t the first time either. Following heavy rains back in December, 1988, yet another big slide blocked the highway around the same spot. There were also major slides at that spot and just to the north in 1986. Matt Lichtenstein has more on this Friday’s storm damage on the highway and elsewhere in town.

Local residents Saturday night can enjoy the talents of the guitarist and composer Chris Proctor, as the national fingerstyle champion makes his first visit to Petersburg. Proctor will perform at a fund raiser dinner, silent auction and concert put on by the Petersburg Arts Council. He’s been recording his acoustic guitar music for nearly three decades and has performed around the world. His work appears on 10 CDs. The latest studio recording is the 2007 album “Ladybug Stomp” and he plans to release another album next year. Joe Viechnicki spoke with Proctor about his performance this weekend.

Residents in central Southeast Alaska are starting to make their formal arguments for and against the formation of a new Petersburg borough government. There’s about one month left in the first of several public comment periods in the state’s review of the borough petition.