Scott Sundberg should not vote on his own seven proposals to expand his company’s heliskiing area, according to a Haines Borough attorney’s recommendation. However, Sean Brownell can vote on his own proposals, according to the written opinion of attorney Patrick Munson of Anchorage, who provided legal advice to the borough on this matter. The nuance is that […]
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Borough to tackle glitch in heliskiing ordinance
Proposed legislation to cut back on conflicts of interest on the Haines Borough’s heliski review committee was sent to the Tourism Advisory Board. The borough assembly voted 6-0 Tuesday to do that because the tourism board is already reviewing the part of the borough’s code that addresses commercial tour permits. Borough manager Bill Seward recommended a change […]
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Conflict of interest on heliski committee?
By John Stang Five people are on a Haines Borough committee to recommend whether to approve two companies’ requests to expand their heliskiing zones. But two of those five committee members are partial owners of the same two heliskiing companies that made the requests. They are Scott Sundberg, co-owner of SEABA, and Sean Brownell, co-owner of Alaska Heliskiing. […]
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Assembly nails down heliskiing timetable
The Haines Borough Assembly changed the law to delay the next heliskiing mapping efforts until 2019. However, it also grandfathered in two existing applications to expand helicopter-skiing zones, allowing the borough to decide their fates in the next several months. On Tuesday, the assembly took two actions regarding applications to expand heliskiing zones. First, the assembly voted […]
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Alaska Heliskiing loses 350 skier days
Citing Alaska Heliskiing’s 2012 safety record, Haines Borough Manager Mark Earnest cut the company’s skier-day allocation by 25 percent for the 2013 season. Earnest this week allocated 1,050 skier days to the guide company, 350 fewer than the company’s request of 1,400. “It was based on safety record. And I made a determination I was not going to allocate […]
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Borough OKs permit for Alaska Heliskiing
Alaska Heliskiing broke state law, Haines Borough code and its own safety plan during a season that included the deaths of a client and guide, but its violations “do not rise to a level of ‘substantial noncompliance’” for revoking the company’s tour permit, clerk Julie Cozzi ruled this week. “I do not view commercial tour permits as […]
Posted inLocal News
Heliski firm fined for illegal landing
The only licensed commercial heliski operator in the Chilkat Valley recently paid a $150 fine for landing illegally on Rainbow Glacier this spring. The fine was assessed by borough manager Robert Venables on June 30 and news of its collection was circulated to assembly members this month by the borough clerk. In his letter to […]
The Chilkat Valley Rewind for Sept. 20
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Posted inLocal News
Dock meeting leaves Lutak Dock project in limbo
The Lutak Dock redesign project is in limbo after a meeting borough manager Alekka Fullerton described as a “huge step back.” Borough staff say they’re ready to submit a “white paper,” a document that explains to the federal agency funding much of the project what the new dock design, selected in April, will entail. As […]
Posted inPublic Safety, Local News
SEABA rescues snowmachine rider caught in avalanche
An injured snowmachiner caught in an avalanche near the border was picked up by a Southeast Alaska Backcountry Adventure helicopter Wednesday evening and brought into Haines for medical treatment. SEABA founder Nick Trimble said a group with the injured person contacted SEABA directly for help, which is not unusual, but rarely happens. “We’ve done a […]