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On the first day of the year, volunteers got Petersburg’s new bike park into a rideable state with the second-annual Petersburg Bike Park work party and barbecue, one year after ground was broken on the project.
In February, sport fishermen learned they wouldn’t be fishing for king salmon at Petersburg’s Blind Slough in the summertime because of low projections for adult kings returning to the Crystal Lake Hatchery. Jeff Rice is the state’s sport fish biologist for Petersburg and Wrangell.
“They have to swim a two mile stretch from the rapids to the hatchery in very shallow, very warm water in July,” he said. “The biggest factor as far as getting them back to the hatchery, is making it through that two mile stretch.”
More low projected returns triggered a bag limit reduction for anglers fishing for hatchery kings in the saltwater of Wrangell Narrows and Blind Slough Terminal Harvest Area. That happened fifteen days after the sport fishery opened in June.
The commercial golden king crab fishery exceeded expectations in the waters near Petersburg just four days into the fishery, with three times the participation. The harvest level in that area was the highest in the region.
Land use and housing were big topics for the borough assembly early in the year – with both some success and some frustration. An effort to open up Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority land for housing is stalled, more than a year after the project was proposed. But a major subdivision proposed by Skylark LLC can go ahead – the borough changed its code, making it possible to sell land at below market value in order to develop cheaper housing in Petersburg. Assembly member Jeigh Stanton Gregor voted for the change.
“It’s a foot in the door for trying to make it easier for more housing and more affordable housing,” he said. “So put it simply, I figure we’ll give it a shot. And if it doesn’t work, we can do something else.”
Petersburg’s teachers union negotiated for months with the school district over teacher contracts in 2024. Both the union and the district said eight years of nearly flat education funding from the state complicated the negotiations. School Board President Sarah Holmgrain was frustrated when Gov. Mike Dunleavy vetoed Senate Bill 140, which would have increased education funding. The bill had passed the legislature with almost unanimous support. An attempt to override his decision failed.
“A lot of these concerns could be solved if the legislature did their job and went around the governor just said, ‘We got the votes. You can say what you want, but this is what our districts need, despite what your personal vendetta is against public education,’” she said.
The teachers union and school district finally reached a tentative agreement in May. But it depended on the borough funding the district to the $3.4 million dollar cap, and on Gov. Dunleavy signing one-time education funding. Both of those things happened in June, and the teacher contracts are a-go for three years.
Petersburg’s school district also got a new superintendent, Robyn Taylor, after Erika Kludt-Painter retired from the role after 23 years working for the district.
Trident Seafoods had announced in late 2023 that it was selling four of its Alaska-based plants. In April the company officially sold the Petersburg processing plant to E.C. Phillips & Son.
And in late April, the U.S. Coast Guard decommissioned the cutter Anacapa at a ceremony in Port Angeles, Washington. The ship was stationed in Petersburg for more than three decades. The 110-foot boat patrolled Southeast Alaska waters and helped save many lives. Josh Rathmann was a petty officer second class boatswain’s mate aboard the Anacapa.
“It was a good boat. I think it’s a living legend, you know, especially in Southeast,” he said. “It’s served the community and the region for years and years and years.”
In late May, six canoes holding dozens of travelers from Prince of Wales Island, Ketchikan, and even the Lower 48 landed in Petersburg. They were headed to Juneau for Celebration, the largest gathering of Tlingít, Haida, and Tsimshian people in the world.
The local tribe, the Petersburg Indian Association, organized a welcome a Petersburg’s drive-down dock. A potluck dinner followed, with singing, dancing and tables overflowing with foods from gumboots to pizza.
In June, KFSK welcomed Olivia Shmidt to the station for a few months as the 2024 news intern. She reported on a range of topics, including invasive species, public safety, and art.
Petersburg held its municipal elections in early October, reelecting longtime assemblymember Bob Lynn, and voting in new assembly member James Valentine. And voters approved nearly $20 million dollars in new debt for the water and sewer department. About half of that is expected to help fund changes to the borough’s wastewater system because of new state and federal regulations. The requirements frustrated Petersburg Utility Director Karl Hagerman.
“We discharge into Frederick Sound, without disinfection and the permit parameters that we have in place, we’ve met those without any issues,” he said. “So myself and other members of the department feel that this is really not needed. But the state of Alaska does have authority over water quality standards, and they’re saying it is needed.”
But he said there is no way around it, the borough needs to comply with the regulations.
Voters also approved upgrades to Petersburg’s middle and high school. The money will cover a new roof and security upgrades. The state will pay for roughly two-thirds of the roof project. The school district plans to fund the remaining nearly $1.5 million dollars through a bond – meaning residents will pay for it through property taxes over the next couple of decades.
And residents and visitors alike can now stroll along the Petersburg Indian Association’s new boardwalk and trail, which stretches from Sandy Beach park to City Creek. It was finished in December, but eager visitors walked it for months before it was completed, ignoring ongoing construction.
Petersburg’s Rock-N-Road Construction harvested an enormous Christmas tree for the Capitol lawn, and Petersburg’s Joey Boggs escorted it all the way across the country.
With the end of the year came changes in KFSK’s newsroom. News director Shelby Herbert headed north to report from Fairbanks, and reporter Olivia Rose joined the station. She reported for the town’s newspaper, the Petersburg Pilot, for nearly a year and a half, covering everything from community theater to municipal wastewater. In a December interview, she said she was drawn to Petersburg because it seemed like a place that really valued journalism.
“When you do community journalism, when you’re working with a small local community, you’re able to get to know your neighbors better,” she said. “You get to learn more about the human experience because you’re connecting with it on this other level that maybe you couldn’t find in a larger city. So I think that really propels my drive to do this job.”
