While hopes for a bustling 2020 cruise ship season continue to dwindle, prospects for future summers may be looking up. At an assembly meeting Tuesday night, Haines tourism director Steven Auch announced that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has expressed interest in increasing port calls to Haines in future years. Auch said RCCL executives cited Haines’ […]
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Posted inNews, Public Safety
Police tell residents to stay home as state mandates ‘social distancing’
Governor Mike Dunleavy’s self-quarantine mandate hit home for Bob Lix, 89, this week after the Haines Police department called and told him, and his family, not to leave his apartment. Police also told Ian Seward and out-of-towner Tyler Young to self-quarantine. Young traveled to Haines from Oregon on Wednesday, March 25 to purchase Seward’s 38-foot wooden troller […]
Posted inLetters to the Editor
Outside workers not ‘essential’
I encourage residents to contact Haines Borough Assembly members, Mayor Jan Hill and manager Debra Schnabel and urge them not to exempt from 14-day quarantine workers arriving from outside our community to work on elective construction projects like the harbor expansion. The existing harbor works fine for now. Expanding the harbor is a project we’ve delayed for decades. There’s no good public […]
Posted inLetters to the Editor
Quarantine vital for seasonal workers
The borough of Haines has rallied in its implementation of safety measures for its citizens. Initially, we went beyond the state’s mandates for quarantine and shelter in place. These proactive safety measures are to be commended. We have staved off the pandemic locally thus far. However, on the COVID 19 teleconference on Tuesday evening, the […]
Posted inNews
Residents question quarantine enforcement at town hall meeting
At a virtual town hall meeting Tuesday night, Emergency Operations Center members and medical and emergency services staff fielded questions from Haines residents related to COVID-19 and social-distancing measures in the community. Many questions focused on the potential for people entering the community to circumvent quarantine requirements, especially construction crews, who will be exempt. Haines […]
Posted inThis Week in History
This Week in History
March 3, 1969 Archive news from 50-ish, 25 and 10 years ago. Industrial expansion will hit Haines by September. John Schnabel announced this weekend his Schnabel Lumber Company will add a veneer plant to the mill complex on Lutak Inlet including barge facilities which should affect cargo transportation in this area. “We expect to have 40 more […]
Posted inNews, Haines Borough
Haines assembly issues ‘shelter in place’ order
At a meeting on Tuesday, the Haines Borough Assembly passed a series of resolutions and ordinances to mitigate the threat COVID-19 poses for public health and the local economy. The measures include issuing a “shelter in place” order, requiring that people entering the community quarantine for 14 days, extending last week’s emergency declaration and appropriating emergency funds […]
Posted inNews
Haines Borough issues disaster declaration
Haines Borough Mayor Jan Hill issued a declaration of emergency Tuesday as the state and nation adapt to a torrent of recommendations, mandates and information regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. The declaration, outlined in code, qualifies the borough to receive financial assistance from the federal government, borough manager Debra Schnabel said. Schnabel has been meeting twice daily with public officials and […]
Posted inNews
Haines braces for dismal tourist season
COVID-19 could have a severe impact on Haines tourism this summer and, by extension, the Haines economy as a whole. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended people avoid traveling on cruise ships as a safety measure. Cruise Lines International Association announced its members would voluntarily suspend sailings for 30 days. Royal Caribbean Cruises […]
Posted inNews
Assembly: Put Ocean Rangers under DEC
The Haines Borough Assembly voted unanimously to send a letter to the Alaska Municipal League in support of a bill that would eliminate the state’s Ocean Ranger program and give the Department of Environmental Conservation the authority to set up a replacement oversight program through regulation. The bill would eliminate on-board marine engineers (called Ocean Rangers) who […]