Julie Rae and Jan McPhetres recently returned from a challenging tour of the Bernese Oberland in Switzerland. Rae and McPhetres completed eight day hikes in the Alps, which Rae said were filled with blue skies, warm temperatures, wildflowers and the sound of cow bells. They also went to Zurich, where they took part in The Street Parade, the […]
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Posted inNews
Borough finances healthy, well-managed, auditor says
The Haines Borough has a healthy amount of savings, better than many other Alaska municipalities, according to the 2020 financial audit. Based on average monthly spending and roughly $6.2 million in savings accounts (not counting the borough’s permanent fund), Haines has 8.6 months of operating funds in reserve. “We consider that to be reasonable,” auditor Max Mertz […]
Posted inNews, Haines Borough
Assembly approves ATV access for Beach Road neighborhood
Displaced Beach Road residents will be allowed ATV access to homes until further notice after the Haines Borough Assembly voted unanimously to support the measure at a meeting Tuesday night. “I know I originally said during (a Feb. 1 meeting with Beach Road residents) that I was going to press this. I started to back off and […]
Posted inThis Week in History
This week in history
‘Alvin’ finds a friend Feb. 1, 1971 Who finds a bear cub wandering around in the snow in January? Who, indeed, but Mary and George Meacock. “It’s the first time in the 44 years I’ve been in Alaska that I’ve seen such a thing, “ said George. “I looked out the window,” said Mary, “and […]
Posted inNews
State waffles on $1.4 million crisis stabilization grant
The fate of a $1.4 million crisis stabilization grant from the state remains up in the air. On Dec. 10, the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) announced it would channel $1.4 million CARES Act dollars into Haines via Bartlett Regional Hospital in Juneau to expand behavioral health services in the community and […]
Posted inThank You Letters
Grateful to those who helped
I am grateful the Haines Borough Assembly approved construction of temporary road access for Beach Road residents. I am grateful that Roger Schnabel had the equipment, knowledge and courage to construct the temporary road. He didn’t stop there. Roger maintained a presence throughout the week assisting residents as needed, including constructing at least two temporary driveways for […]
Posted inNews, Alaska Marine Highway System
AMHS draft summer schedule proposes increase from 2020
Haines would receive four to five ferries per week between May 1 and Sept. 30 under the Alaska Department of Transportation (DOT)’s proposed summer schedule, released Jan. 25. On the first and third weeks of the month, a ferry will dock in Haines Tuesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. On weeks two and four, the community […]
Posted inNews
TAB works on tour companies’ mitigation plan
What are the basics any good COVID-19 mitigation plan should address? The Haines Borough Tourism Advisory Board (TAB) is working to answer this question as it finalizes a list of recommendations for tour operators. At a working group meeting Tuesday, TAB members and tour operators discussed mitigation measures for protecting employees, clients and the community. In January, […]
Posted inNews
Beach Road residents ask for road access, power and ability to move home
At a townhall meeting Monday, Beach Road residents asked that the Haines Borough Assembly continue working to improve access to the neighborhood, which was cut off from the rest of town by a landslide on Dec. 2, although opinions differed when it came to what improved access should look like. On Jan. 22, the assembly approved construction […]
Posted inNews
GAS committee discusses commercial user fees in Porcupine area
The Haines Borough officials are discussing a fee system for commercial users to maintain Porcupine Road and other roads in the area that lie within the Historic Dalton Trail Road Maintenance Service Area. On Tuesday, the borough’s government affairs and services committee drafted a fee schedule imposing fees on commercial operators who use the roads such as […]