Outgoing mayor Tom Morphet sat down with Chilkat Valley News reporter Lizzy Hahn a few days before he passed the mayoral title over to Doug Olerud. Morphet was elected mayor in 2023. This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity. Lizzy Hahn: Looking back over the past three years, was there a shift in […]
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Chilkat Valley Newsletter Friday Oct. 23
Oct. 23, 2026 / This week from the CVN Built with Newsletter Glue. If you’d no longer like to receive emails from the Chilkat Valley News, you can unsubscribe here.
Posted inLocal News
SERB approved for new barge landing
The State of Alaska will lease tidelands to Southeast Roadbuilders for an improved barge landing on Lutak Road. The company first applied for the lease in 2023, kicking off a review process that concluded earlier this month, when the state’s Department of Natural Resources announced their decision to approve the lease. That paves the way […]
Posted inLocal News
Local state house candidates lay out issues as Election Day nears
With two weeks until the Nov. 3 election, candidates for the Chilkat Valley’s state house seat are taking different routes to voters, but hearing many of the same concerns. Andi Story, a Democrat who has held the seat since 2018, said constituents are worried about education, and the rising costs of living while Annette Kreitzer, […]
Posted inDuly Noted
Duly Noted: Oregon, fishing a capybara and more
Patty Brown’s Oregon road trip delivered a little bit of everything: music, old friends, former students and professional development. In Grants Pass, Brown attended a performance by 87-year-old Judy Collins and reports making eye contact with the “Judy Blue Eyes” herself, a moment she won’t soon forget. From there, Brown caught up with former fourth-grade […]
Posted inThis Week in History
This Week in History: Southeast Honor Festival, a bear and more
10 Years Ago: A week of music will culminate with performances by the top student musicians in the region Wednesday, and a show by an internationally acclaimed vocal group Thursday. About 150 students participating in choir, band and string ensemble are scheduled to arrive Monday for the Southeast Honor Festival, three days of rehearsals and […]
Posted inObituaries
Frank Holmes dies at 89
Longtime Lutak resident and retired educator Frank Holmes, 89, died Oct. 3 in Albany, Oregon of “a convergence of illnesses,” daughter Stephanie Holmes-Farmer said. Holmes was somewhat of a medical miracle, having survived cancer and several heart-stopping events in his lifetime, including one that put him in a medically induced coma. Neighbor and fellow teacher […]
Chilkat Valley Newsletter Friday Oct. 16
Oct. 16, 2026 / This week from the CVN Built with Newsletter Glue. If you’d no longer like to receive emails from the Chilkat Valley News, you can unsubscribe here.
Posted inLocal News
Assembly Briefs: taxes, past and future elections
Takshanuk Watershed Council tax error Takshanuk Watershed Council will not have to pay a property tax bill it received this year. Untangling this took the assembly roughly 20 minutes of digging into why the watershed council got the bill in the first place. The watershed council applied for multiple community-purpose exemptions in 2025 for five […]
Posted inSoutheast News, Local News
More cruise visitors, fewer residents, Haines by the numbers
Summer cruise-ship tourism came to an end in mid-September and the Haines tourism department is piecing together the actual count of how many cruise-ship passengers landed in Haines. In 2025, 67,833 passengers arrived in Haines via a cruise ship. In 2026, this number was up nearly 5,000 from the previous year, with roughly 72,000 passengers […]