Author: kfskadmin

Taxation was the top issue for a largely critical audience that turned out to a forum on borough formation in Petersburg Wednesday night (4/16). Local officials have yet to gather enough signatures to submit the town’s borough petition to the state. So, they arranged the question and answer session to address public concerns…..and there were plenty.

This week marks the 10th anniversary for Petersburg Search and Rescue. The all-volunteer group started-up in 1998 and its members have since coordinated or participated in 28 searches by land, sea and air. Petersburg SAR is part of the city’s fire department and was founded by firefighter Doug Jenny. Matt Lichtenstein asked Jenny and SAR Captain John Pickens about some of the searches they’ve done

Southeast Alaska has its second highest snowpack on record this year according to federal data. The pack measured far above average at locations across the region this month.

The cost of living at Petersburg’s city-owned assisted-living facility could get a lot more expensive for residents who pay their own way.
The City Council is considering a fifty-percent increase in rent and service charges for the eight of the assisted living apartments there. At a meeting Monday night, city staff initially recommended an eighty-percent hike to get the struggling facility into the black, but councilors were uneasy with that much of an increase all at once.

Petersburg officials will address questions and concerns over the town’s borough petition in a public forum tonight (4/16). The borough would incorporate 43 hundred square miles of land and water. Supporters say the plan would broaden the tax base for local education, maintain or increase several sources of state and federal funding, and help ensure more local control over planning and development in the area. Borough opponents have raised concerns that outlying residences and communities will have to pay taxes for services they don’t receive….and they worry about losing their local autonomy under a new layer of government. The city council finalized the proposal in February after two years of work by consultants, staff and a commission of area residents. However, it’s still short of the signatures the city needs for submission to the state’s local boundary commission. Tonight’s forum will be the city’s first effort to discuss the finished proposal with the public…..many of the questions will go to Jim Brennan, who serves as the borough attorney in both Petersburg and Wrangell. Matt Lichtenstein asked Brennan about tonight’s forum and a couple of the issues that are likely to come up.