Katherine Rose, Author at KCAW

Former trooper academy leader sworn in as Sitka’s interim police chief

KCAW spoke with Interim Police Chief Chad Goeden after he was sworn in on Thursday (7-3-25).

State hires new superintendent for Mt. Edgecumbe High School

Alaska’s state-run boarding school has a new superintendent.

City may invest additional $715K in haulout ahead of opening

Sitka’s new boatyard is getting another wave of funding. Tuesday night (6-10-25) the Sitka Assembly approved a $715,000 appropriation that is expected to wrap up the first phase of construction for the city-owned haulout.

June 10, 2025: What’s on the agenda when the Sitka Assembly meets tonight?

The marine haulout at the Gary Paxton Industrial Park has already hauled at least one boat in a practice run, but it still needs some more components before it can open for public use.

Assembly conflicted out of hearing cell tower appeal

The Sitka Assembly was set to hear an appeal over a cell tower…until it didn’t. Too many assembly members had conflicts, so the group had to pass the appeal to a statewide board.

City to keep Lincoln Street open through June

The Sitka Assembly is leaving Lincoln Street open for at least another month. When the assembly met on Thursday (5-29-25), the group agreed that more time was needed before making a decision on whether to bring back street closures on days with high cruise traffic.

Three years after vote, questions remain for Maine town’s cruise future

It’s been nearly three years since the town of Bar Harbor, Maine voted to limit cruise traffic. In the years since, the citizen-led initiative has spurred lawsuits, an attempted repeal, and uncertainty about the future. While not entirely parallel, the case bears striking resemblance to Sitka’s, where a similar initiative to limit cruise traffic will be considered in a special election on May 28.KCAW’s Katherine Rose reached out to the chair of Bar Harbor’s Town Council, and advocates on either side of the issue to find out how things have been since the town started enacting the limit.

Early voter turnout high for Sitka’s special election

Voter turnout is high on a citizen initiative to limit cruise traffic in Sitka. Sitka’s special election is tomorrow (5-28-25), but voters have already shown up to the polls in high numbers.

With bubbles and a song, Alaska Supreme Court Justice addresses graduates at alma mater

Alaska Supreme Court Justice and Sitka’s former longtime public defender Jude Pate was honored by his alma mater, Lewis and Clark Law School in Portland Oregon. His address to the graduates began with bubbles and ended with a song.

Sitka may allow on-site cannabis consumption with code update

The City of Sitka is poised to permit on-site consumption in the community’s two cannabis retailers. On-site consumption has been legal for years under state law, but Sitka never adopted the policy. Now, retailers say they need private spaces to accommodate cruise ship passengers who have no other place they can legally use marijuana.