The borough manager’s draft budget was brought to life Tuesday when 11 department heads pitched assembly members on operations and goals. “Budgets really are a numerical way to talk about what people do, and I thought this was an important thing for all of us,” borough manager Debra Schnabel said afterward. “It’s important for assembly members to […]

It starts with a generic question. A one-liner email appears in your inbox from what appears to be Haines Borough Mayor Jan Hill. “Are you available?” The recipient responds. It escalates. “The Mayor says, ‘I’m in a bind. I’m stuck in Juneau and I lost my wallet, can you do me the favor of going and getting gift cards and […]

Roughly $60 million more came into the Haines Borough economy last year, creating close to a 10 percent increase in sales tax revenue from 2017. In a year-end sales tax revenue report released last week, the Haines Borough reported $3.3 million in revenue, marking a third year of steady increase across nearly all industries. Retail, tourism and petroleum and […]

Mud Bay land owners brought forward a petition to the borough assembly’s Government Affairs and Services (GAS) Committee on Tuesday, calling for the prohibition of resource extraction in their neighborhood. Lutak residents said they felt “blindsided” by a proposal to add language in their zoning code that allows resource extraction. The committee ultimately voted to advance the […]

The Haines Borough Assembly passed a motion Tuesday to direct the manger to ask the companies working on the highway construction projects this summer to do their best to limit the delay to a maximum of 15 minutes. The request, brought forward by the Tourism Advisory Board, is intended to reduce negative tour experiences that could hurt […]

Mayor’s Tier 3 stand at odds with assembly Mayor Jan Hill’s recent testimony on the Tier 3 nomination process raised concerns from some assembly members and the public this week about how she represents the borough. By charter, the Haines Borough operates with a manager form of government, which means the manager may direct municipal officers and […]

A resident’s written complaint on landfill management in the Haines Borough has caused the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation to engage Community Waste Solutions in correcting concerns about exposed garbage. On March 10, Haines resident Burl Sheldon filed a written complaint to borough manager Debra Schnabel on ongoing landfill practices that he said violate Alaska statues by allowing wildlife […]

In the wake of Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s proposed budget that would slash about $1.7 million in state funding to the borough, assembly member Brenda Josephson has suggested placing a hiring freeze on “non-essential positions” until the Haines Borough Assembly finalizes its 2020 budget. She defined non-essential positions as jobs outside of the school district, public works, or […]