As immediate measures to prevent further erosion of the slumping, Mount Ripinsky hillside, the Haines Borough will extend two drainage pipes, redirect an uphill drainage eastward and pursue an impermeable liner for a roadside ditch, manager Mark Earnest said last week. In the future, the borough may also encourage or require retention of trees on the hillside, Earnest said, following up […]

Haines Borough officials last week addressed the topic of safety in relation to management of heli-skiing, following concerns raised by the family of a heli-skier killed in an avalanche during a tour in March. Borough officials said the municipality isn’t responsible for ensuring safety during heli-tours, but they consider a company’s safety record in evaluating […]

Property owners and Haines Borough officials are set to question experts on a mystery that’s lingered for eight months and cost upwards of $100,000 to investigate: What caused a horseshoe-shaped parcel of prime land against Mount Ripinsky to slide toward Portage Cove last January? And what, if anything, can be done to keep it from happening again? Representatives of […]

A third and expected final public hearing on a proposed Haines Borough financial disclosure law for local leaders bogged down Tuesday when assembly member Debra Schnabel raised a list of issues, including changing the definition of “sources of income.” Another change proposed for the meeting would have added real estate brokers to a list of professions that under the […]

There’s no impending business in ore shipments from new mines in the Yukon Territory, but the Haines Borough can improve its chances of landing such business by marketing itself as a port, members of the borough’s Port Development Steering Committee were told Thursday. A slide presentation by representatives of consulting firm Northern Economics recommended steps for the […]

As of Tuesday’s first day of classes, 280 students enrolled in Haines Borough School District schools, an 8 percent drop that would qualify the district for supplemental, “hold harmless” funding from the state. The district makes an official enrollment count, which determines its level of state funding, in October. If the numbers hold steady, the district would […]

Haines Borough administration recommendations on changes to heli-skiing management came under fire by critics of the industry during an assembly committee meeting Tuesday. Mayor Stephanie Scott said the purpose of the meeting was to get “a sense of assembly direction” before bringing the recommendations back for statute considerations by Sept. 11. Rob Goldberg reacted indignantly to a […]

The Haines Borough will redouble efforts to secure $900,000 in funding for paving of Third Avenue after losing a federal earmark for the work. Funds for the work were removed from the federal Denali Commission. An Aug. 2 report by the U.S. General Accounting Office said the federal Department of Transportation properly redirected the money to the […]

The Haines Borough Assembly will meet as a committee Tuesday to review the past heli-skiing season and consider a host of regulatory changes. The meeting starts 5:30 p.m. at the assembly chambers. Critics of the industry say global positioning technology has confirmed that flights operated out of prescribed boundaries on several occasions during the past season and […]