Borough updates commercial agriculture laws The assembly voted unanimously Tuesday to change borough land use code to establish use designations for commercial agriculture and crop production. The changes clean up the code to define permissible land uses for personal-use agriculture, crop production and commercial agriculture. Crop production is allowed now allowed under the new code […]
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Canada’s new cruise guidelines pave way for summer season
Canada announced this week new guidelines for cruise ships, following a two-year ban during the pandemic that reduced sailings to Alaska. The guidelines allow ships to depart from or call on Canadian ports but maintain strict covid vaccination and testing requirements for crew and passengers. The announcement is a positive step toward having a successful […]
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EOC stands down
The Haines Borough Emergency Operations Center (EOC) deactivated its response to the covid-19 pandemic effective March 1, EOC commander Carolann Wooton wrote to the manager and assembly in a March 1 memo, almost two years from when it began. “While there are still active cases each day, the rate of vaccination in Haines is very high with […]
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Wages rose last decade- but not by much
Wages in the Haines Borough rose by 8% last decade, a growth rate outpaced by most other census areas in Alaska, according to the state’s March economic trends report. The borough’s average wages in 2020 were $40,632, up from $37,757 in 2010, as reported by the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development. Haines was tied with […]
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Borough receives 43 capital improvement plan proposals
The Haines Borough received 43 capital improvement plan proposals as part of a public engagement program launched this year. Nine of the ideas were nominated by residents, and the rest were put forward by borough staff. The deadline for residents to propose projects was March 1. Borough staff will evaluate and score proposals based on feasibility and […]
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Duly Noted
Casey Bradford and Danielle Abe were married on New Year’s Eve at Portage Cove with Casey’s father Scott Bradford presiding as marriage minister. Casey’s mom Candi Bradford, aunt Cristy Myers, uncle Lance Jorgenson-Geise, and cousin Kenzy Myers were on hand for the ceremony. The bride and groom wore camo and XtraTuff boots and instead of a cake, enjoyed a wedding waffle on New Year’s Day morning at Port […]
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Guarded optimism marks summer tourism outlook
This summer could be a banner tourism season. Or it could be a bust, brought on by a yet unknown coronavirus variant and a new program of restrictions and cancellations. Or it could be somewhere in between those extremes. With optimism about historically strong cruise bookings yet lingering uncertainty associated with the pandemic, borough officials […]
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Haines cleared of community spread
School will be mask-optional starting next week Haines Borough School District superintendent Roy Getchell will make masks optional for students and staff on March 7. The Alaska Department of Health and Human Services has cleared all known cases of community transmission in Haines (cases where the source of infection is unknown) and there are no […]
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Census undercounted Haines residents; population likely grew
According to the U.S. Census, Haines’ population fell by 17% between 2010 and 2020 — the largest decline in Alaska. But as many residents suspected, that number is inaccurate, state researchers found. In fact, the state estimates that Haines’ population in July 2021 will be 2,614 — about 500 people more than were recorded in […]
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Committee considers reforming nonprofit funding structure
The Haines Borough Government Affairs and Services (GAS) Committee is again considering a reform to the borough’s nonprofit funding process following two years of requests from groups for public funding without a formal application process. “What I would love to see is getting away from this Oliver Twist thing that we saw last year, where nonprofit organizations […]