Alaska Gov. Bill Walker will address a joint meeting of the Haines Borough Assembly and Haines Chamber of Commerce starting 11:30 a.m. Friday at the Chilkat Center. Haines Borough Mayor Jan Hill said Walker will have about 20 minutes to make his comments about three main topics: “the state of the state,” including the state budget deficit, a proposed makeover […]
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Posted inNews, Elections
Final votes counted
At Tuesday’s Haines Borough Assembly meeting, members conducted a canvass of 30 questioned and absentee ballots from the Oct. 4 municipal election. The votes did not change the election’s outcome. The final count showed Heather Lende with 501 votes; Tom Morphet, 436; Diana Lapham, 370; Ryan Cook, 305; Judy Erekson, 241, and Leonard Dubber, 150. Lende and […]
Posted inNews
Lende and Morphet poised to be seated
By John Stang Heather Lende and Tom Morphet won the Haines Borough Assembly election Tuesday – defeating four others including the sole incumbent running for re-election. The unofficial tallies are Lende, 483; Morphet, 423; incumbent Diana Lapham, 363; Ryan Cook, 299; Judy Erekson, 230; and Leonard Dubber, 146. Morphet’s win affects the Chilkat Valley News, of which […]
Posted inNews
Conflict of interest on heliski committee?
By John Stang Five people are on a Haines Borough committee to recommend whether to approve two companies’ requests to expand their heliskiing zones. But two of those five committee members are partial owners of the same two heliskiing companies that made the requests. They are Scott Sundberg, co-owner of SEABA, and Sean Brownell, co-owner of Alaska Heliskiing. […]
Posted inNews, Haines Borough
Finance committee grapples with sales tax exemptions
A committee recommends that Haines explore the idea of having the Haines Borough administration – not the assembly – decide whether nonprofit groups should get local sales tax exemptions. The concept is to review and nail down criteria for exemptions, and then let borough administration officials make those decisions. Disputed decisions could be appealed to the assembly. […]
Posted inNews
Aesthetics committee revived for uplands
Haines’ long-dormant waterfront aesthetics committee will take its first crack to brainstorm how the Haines Borough should upgrade the uplands portion of the Small Boat Harbor. Whatever the aesthetics committee recommends will then go to the Haines planning commission – a body that has long felt it has been left out of harbor expansion design matters. The […]
Posted inNews
Haida author works to keep language alive
It’s like describing a color to a blind person. Sondra Segundo struggled to say how the almost extinct Haida language is more colorful than English. More descriptive. But words failed her. It’s a difficult language to learn. Segundo, a 46-year-old middle school teacher, and her aunt Jeane Jimenez, 66, can carry on only basic-level conversations […]
Posted inLetters to the Editor
Police service is appreciated and needed
I would like to publicly thank the Haines Borough Police Department and the officers who responded when I needed them. These men put their lives on the line to keep this community safe. In an abstract sense, one may think that perhaps cutting the number of officers down is not a bad idea. Then the moment comes […]
Posted inLetters to the Editor
Keeping the arts alive a group effort
Alaska Arts Confluence says thank you to all who so generously give of their time, money and emotional support to others. Your positive energy and good makes Haines a wonderful place to live, work and raise families. We thank those who give to the community by volunteering and serving on nonprofit boards, business people across […]
Posted inLetters to the Editor
Things to consider in candidates
Take a closer look at the candidates. Qualities to consider when choosing assembly members: CREATIVE – Will they bring new ideas, and creative thoughts to help solve problems? STAMINA – Will they stay focused on the issue at hand until it’s resolved? HUMILITY – Will they admit a mistake? Will they defend the body even […]