Author: Katherine Rose

The Sitka Assembly is on notice that there’s another difficult year ahead for local schools.

Parents of a Mt. Edgecumbe High School student who died last spring have been trying ever since to recover his personal belongings from the school. The late teen’s mother is looking for closure and accountability.

Multiple government agencies responded to a fuel spill in the Indian River area on Friday (12-20-24).

The Sitka Assembly wants to overhaul the commercial use of local trails and parks, but it’s proved to be a big job. After a first look at the plan, the assembly on Tuesday (12-17-24) sent it back to City Hall for more work.

A homesick letter was a summer camper right of passage for decades. That changed when cell phones made checking in with parents a whole lot easier. But more campers may be writing letters next summer, now that the Sitka Fine Arts Camp is going cellphone-free. 

After permitting delays, construction of Sitka’s new marine haulout is underway, though there have been some unexpected snags. When the Sitka Assembly met last night (11-26-24), members approved another $500,000 in funding, along with a $300,000 grant that will cover some unexpected construction costs, along with a permanent concrete washdown pad.

Finding solutions to address problem bears was at the top of the list when the Sitka Assembly and the Sheet'ká Ḵwáan Sitka Tribe of Alaska met on Monday (11-18-24) for the bi-annual government to government meeting.

Winter is the time when most Sitkans turn their attention to other pursuits besides fishing, but not the members of the local Fish & Game Advisory Committee. During November and December, the local Fish & Game Advisory Committee considers hunkers down with a thick book of proposals for changes in the management in Southeast’s fisheries. Over the last two weeks, they’ve focused exclusively on herring.

(Screenshot from USCG rescue video) A Sitka Coast Guard helicopter crew rescued three fishermen...