Police patrolman Max Marty joined the Haines police department in September 2025. Both he and police chief Jimmy Yoakum spent 17 weeks attending the state police academy in Fairbanks. The duo completed their training Feb. 1 and have been in Haines since.Marty sat down with Chilkat Valley News reporter Lizzy Hahn on April 2 to […]
Hybrid electric fishing boat gets traditional send-off
A decade of work on a hybrid electric boat propulsion project culminated Thursday as U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski shattered a bottle of champagne on the bow of the F/V Mirage, and saw it move under electric power along the dock at Sitka’s Gary Paxton Industrial Park. Tradesmen worked at the industrial park over the past […]
Southeast king salmon harvest limit set 50% higher than last year
The 2026 Southeast harvest limit for king salmon is more than 50% higher than the limit for 2025. This year, Southeast Alaska fishermen can catch a total 205,300 treaty king salmon — fish that didn’t come from Alaska hatcheries — according to a March 31 announcement by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. State […]
Murkowski reminds legislators: State needs a real fiscal plan
Alaska’s senior U.S. senator, Lisa Murkowski, knows from experience how difficult it is for the state to adopt a long-term fiscal plan, rather than simply hoping for federal dollars and high oil prices to pay the bills. “Alaska will need a legitimate fiscal plan as the federal budget inevitably tightens,” she told state House and […]
Lutak Dock concepts to be considered during joint meeting tonight
Borough elected officials will meet Wednesday evening to begin selection of a Lutak Dock concept. Moffatt & Nichol, the borough’s contracted advisors on the dock project, will present three potential design concepts at the joint meeting of the borough assembly, planning commission and Ports and Harbors advisory committee. One of the design concepts is essentially […]
Ferry system may avert summer crisis
Reopening of a federal grant program could reduce, but not eliminate, a cash squeeze at the Alaska Marine Highway System this summer. The months-long delay in the program jeopardized the ferry system’s operating budget for this summer. But, even with the reopening of the grant applications, the Marine Highway will need state funds to cover […]
Organizers say boost from 50th Alaska Folk Festival means this year’s is even bigger
Traditional week of concerts, dances and workshops starting Monday also features neon, puppets and new documentary about festival’s historic half century
Ketchikan loses out in competition for free tunnel to airport
Ketchikan is not getting a free, mile-long, 12-foot-diameter tunnel to link the community with its airport across the water. The Ketchikan Gateway Borough had been one of 16 finalists for a national company’s offer to pay for building a tunnel but did not measure up in the final decision. The Boring Co. will be moving […]
May 1 fare increase on state ferries, first since 2022
Tickets to ride the Alaska Marine Highway System will go up a little more than 2% effective May 1, the first fare increase since 2019. That 2019 increase instituted “dynamic pricing” of higher fares on popular routes, much like airlines and hotels price their rates to maximize revenues. But dynamic pricing was not popular among […]
Gold Medal Hall of Fame completes a marriage dream
“I was surprised, I was pretty content just being a Hall of Fame wife,” Juneau Lions Club President Marie Beierly said after being selected into the Gold Medal Hall of Fame. “This was definitely something we did not expect, and we just enjoyed the years we have been involved with Gold Medal. I guess it […]

