I dig into questions about the forces and institutions that shape Juneau, big and small, delightful and outrageous. What stirs you up about how Juneau is built and how the city works?
The Juneau Police Department Honor Guard during a past 9/11 memorial. (Photo courtesy Glacier Valley Rotary Club)
Tomorrow is the 13th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
In Juneau, the Glacier Valley Rotary Club has a memorial planned at Riverside Rotary Park at 9:40 a.m. The ceremony takes place at the same time of day as when hijackers crashed into the World Trade Center towers in New York and the Pentagon near Washington, D.C., killing thousands.
The program includes the Juneau Police Department Honor Guard, Eagle Scout candidate Konnor Mueller, Capital City Fire/Rescue’s Carl Bottorf and bagpipe music by Scott Marnon.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Carl Bottorf’s last name. It was misspelled as “Rottrof.”
Part of the Tongass National Forest. (Photo Courtesy U.S. Department of Agriculture)
A regional committee tasked with advising the U.S. Forest Service on how to manage logging in the Tongass begins three days of meetings in Juneau today.
The committee’s work is part of a yearslong process to rewrite the federal rules for what can and cannot be done in the Tongass National Forest.
Last year, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack laid out a goal of phasing out old growth logging in favor of young growth in 10 to 15 years. He said the transition supports ecologic, social and economic sustainability in the forest.
The Tongass Advisory Committee’s recommendations are due in May. They’ll inform a rewrite of the Forest Service’s land use plans for the Tongass that’s expected in 2016.
Houston Laws, left, and Klas Stolpe snap a selfie minutes before starting their solo attempts of the 109.4-mile Klondike Road Relay on Friday. (Photo courtesy Houston Law)
Officials say there are three people attempting the feat: Klas Stolpe, 54, and Houston Laws, 29, both of Juneau; and Will Kidnew, 26, of Chicago. They’re the first to attempt the Skagway-to-Whitehorse race by themselves. It’s usually a 10-part relay.
Event coordinator Kevin Patterson says he doesn’t know what to expect.
“Since it is the first year of them running. So we’re not sure how long it will actually take them,” Patterson says. “Will in particular from Chicago, he’s actually estimating he would get to the finish line by about 6 o’clock tomorrow morning.”
This is Stolpe’s first race that’s longer than a marathon.
“Officially it is, I mean, of course, like a lot of the Juneau crowd, I fell in with a good group of guys, and once in a while, they drag you out onto the mountain for, you know, 30 plus miles, but you don’t realize it until you’re done,” Stolpe says.
Stople asked Laws, an experienced ultrarunner, to keep him company on the Klondike. A few minutes before starting the race in Skagway on Friday, Laws described their plan.
“We’ll budget some times to walk. We’ll budget some time to rest. Probably average at least five resting points for 30 minutes, totally off our feet, the feet out of the shoes, changing socks if necessary. Changing clothes to help with chafing, and just trying to be as comfortable as you can be doing a 100-mile race.”
Laws says he thinks they’ll average bout 13-minute mile pace through the varied terrain.
“Really take the hills easy is the plan, and really reserve a lot of the energy for the time we hit the last 20 miles. It really pays off to take it easy in the beginning.”
More than 170 teams are participating in the race.
These new custom bike racks in Marine Park double as public art. The city began installing them this week. (Photo courtesy CBJ Parks & Recreation)
These new custom bike racks outside the Dimond Park Aquatic Center double as public art. The city began installing them this week. (Photo courtesy CBJ Parks & Recreation)
The City & Borough of Juneau began installing a Minneapolis bike rack maker’s coolest custom racks of 2013 this week.
The unique designs include rain boots at Marine Park, a tugboat at Sandy Beach, hockey sticks at Treadwell Ice Arena, a Raven at Sigoowu Ye Park, and planets at Twin Lakes.
The total project is cost about $25,000, says city parks and landscape superintendent George Schaaf.
“We were pleasantly surprised by the cost of the racks, that they really weren’t that much more expensive than a standard rack that you buy out of a catalog,” Schaaf says.
Renderings of custom, two-tone bike racks Juneau is buying that will double as public art. (Courtesy Dero Bike Rack Co.)
There will be 15 new racks with 12 custom designs. Each rack accommodates at least two bikes. Schaaf says he’s interested to hear feedback from the community.
The city worked with local landscape architecture firm Corvus Design and Minneapolis-based Dero Bike Rack Co. for the custom order.
The city hopes the bike racks will be installed by the end of October, weather permitting.
George Schaaf is a member of the KTOO Board of Directors.
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Byron Mallott leads a rally on the Capitol Steps. His running mate Hollis French is in the khakis to the left, and Tlingit elder Marie Olson is to the right. (Photo by Jeremy Hsieh/KTOO)
About 60 people attended a rainy campaign rally on the steps of the Capitol building for Democratic gubernatorial candidate Byron Mallott on Sunday.
Mallott’s stump speech was about 9 minutes long. He hit on themes of respect for organized labor and public employees, and serving Alaskans in all communities of all cultures.
Mallot pledged to “reach out, listen, consider, (and) heed the voice of every single Alaskan.”
His voice was hoarse from campaigning. He was sipping tea from a thermos after his address.
The nod to labor comes after trying to court the Alaska AFL-CIO’s endorsement at a convention in Fairbanks last week. The Alaska Dispatch News reported that the labor union opposes Republican Gov. Sean Parnell, but would not endorse a challenger–unless Mallott and independent Bill Walker merge their campaigns.
Polls indicate the three-way race favors Parnell, while a two-way race would be much closer.
On Sunday, Mallott maintained his commitment to run as a Democrat.
“Well, you know, polls in Alaska can be, can be unreliable….There hasn’t been a lot of polling. The general election is just beginning. We have a long way to go.”
Running mate Hollis French lumped Walker and Parnell together.
“This race is going to offer Alaskans a very simple, very simple test for who they want to be the next governor,” French said.
“You can have an oil company lobbyist, an oil and gas attorney, or the man who ran the Permanent Fund.”
Parnell used to lobby for ConocoPhillips. Walker is an Anchorage lawyer with an emphasis in oil and gas. Mallott was executive director of the Alaska Permanent Fund Corp. from 1995 to 2000.
“And I think once the state realizes that’s their choices, everything is going to be fine,” French said.
Gov. Sean Parnell announced appointees to state boards today that include two Juneau residents, Wayne Jensen and Jill Burkert.
(Photo courtesy Candy Behrends)
Wayne Jensen, a partner in the architectural firm Jensen Yorba Lott, will serve on the Alaska Historical Commission. The commission advises the governor and legislature on Alaska’s history, oversees the state historic preservation plan and performs other functions related to historical sites. Jensen’s seat is reserved for an architect.
(Photo courtesy University of Alaska Southeast)
Parnell also appointed Jill Burkert to the Governor’s Council on Disabilities and Special Education. The council serves as a planning and coordinating agency of the state departments of Health and Social Services, Education and Early Development and others that provide services or special education to people with disabilities.
Burkert is an associate professor and special education program director at the University of Alaska Southeast. She has a doctorate in curriculum and instruction in special education from the University of South Florida. She travels to schools throughout Alaska teaching others how to become special education teachers and advocates. Burkert’s seat is reserved for a non-governmental organization.
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