Pablo Arauz Peña, KTOO

The City and Borough of Juneau announced its next vaccine clinic will be on March 23 at Centennial Hall.

The city will distribute about 800 doses of the Pfizer vaccine at this next clinic. Registration opens next Monday at noon.

Earlier this week, the state opened up the vaccine to anyone 16 and older who lives and works in Alaska. While most eligibility requirements were lifted, those who sign up must have been physically in the state for at least five days prior to March 23.

Those who are on the waitlist for the clinic happening March 15 through March 20 are not automatically signed up for the clinic. 

The clinic requires everyone attending to wear a mask.

Eligible adults can sign up online for an appointment at noon on Monday or by calling 586-6000. Anyone making an appointment on behalf of someone who doesn’t speak English can email covidquestions@juneau.org.

Emergency operations manager Robert Barr said that most of the vaccines are provided by the state of Alaska and there may be additional vaccines. He said the city will know more by this weekend.

In this newscast:

• House lawmakers will be questioning a Department of Labor director this evening over its handling of COVID-related safety violations at two seafood plants.
• Three and a half weeks may not seem like a big deal in pandemic times but for local businesses that depend on tourism in Juneau, it could make or break the season.
• When a Haines couple lost their 4-month-old kitten within hours of departure, they didn’t expect her to return home on a regional flight ten days later.
• The Biden administration is supporting a controversial road through a remote refuge on the Alaska Peninsula that is home to migrating waterfowl.
• Today’s votes on Merrick Garland and Michael Regan divided Alaska’s senators: Lisa Murkowski voted yes on both, and Dan Sullivan voted no.

Three and a half weeks may not seem like a big deal in pandemic times but for local businesses that depend on tourism in Juneau, it could make or break the season.

The Juneau Assembly recently loosened travel restrictions starting May 1. After the pandemic devastated business for last year’s tourism season, Liz Perry at Travel Juneau said the changes mean a lot for local businesses that depend on tourists.

“That was the big hurdle for us,” Perry said. “With that being lifted, we’re seeing some daylight.”

At last week’s regular assembly meeting, assembly member Wade Bryson recommended rolling back emergency guidelines to May 1 instead of May 26. He said those three and a half weeks could make a big impact.

“On not only businesses, but tax revenue from the sales tax that is created from it, we need to start on the right foot, adding three and a half weeks to what is going to be a very dismal tourism year can make a very positive difference,” Bryson said.

But assembly member Michelle Hale objected on the basis of safety, especially with the threat of other COVID-19 variants. Even if most residents are eventually fully vaccinated.

“My concern is that we get it almost to the finish line. And then we relax our restrictions and with these variants, for example, we could get ourselves very close and then be in a very serious situation,” Hale said.

Meanwhile, Perry at Travel Juneau said she doesn’t know how much business to expect, but she sees an increase in confidence for consumers who want to book flights.

Although, not everyone is so optimistic. The lifting of restrictions will likely be helpful for businesses that serve independent travelers, but those that depend on cruise ships are still losing out.

Serene Hutchinson is the general manager for Juneau Whale Watching Tours.

She said 90% of her business typically comes from cruise ship passengers. And with the season on hold while Canada’s waters are closed to cruise ships, she’s already refunded thousands of dollars.

“I’m not interested in giving any more refunds. And to be honest, consumers aren’t interested in booking anything that they may have to try to get a refund for. Everyone’s really burned out on that,” Hutchinson said.

Hutchinson said if some businesses are going to survive the season, they’ll need to aggressively market to independent travelers. She said that even if every hotel and short-term rental was booked to capacity for five months, it would still only be a drop in the bucket compared to the amount of visitors Juneau is used to getting.

But it’s not all doom and gloom for Hutchinson. One-fifth of Juneau residents have already been fully vaccinated and she said that’s a good sign. So she’s still holding out for some business.

“To independent travelers, I say, ‘Come in the water’s fine. Let’s go whale watching.’” Hutchinson said. “To my neighbors. I say, ‘You know, trust us, trust us to do our best to look out for our home and our neighbors, while also showing visitors a great, safe time.’”

Just like other local businesses, Hutchinson is cautiously optimistic about what visitors she can get. Cruise ships or not.

In this newscast:

• Health officials are calling on Petersburg to maintain health precautions to get through the local COVID-19 outbreak.
• Sitka Police are investigating a hit-and-run that culminated in a fatality early Monday morning.
• A fire destroyed Chevak’s old school building, damaging power and sewer lines and destroying a community dream.
• The federal government is extending the public comment period for a proposed critical haibtat for ringed and bearded seals.
• At least 15 people told state health officials that they may have caught COVID-19 at a banquet last month that was attended by Alaska’s governor and multiple state legislators.

In this newscast:

• Today is International Women’s Day. In Petersburg, women speak about what the holiday means to them.
• Forty-six mushers and hundreds of sled dogs took off from Willow yesterday afternoon for the 2021 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.
• Misdemeanor jury trials will resume in Alaska’s state courts starting April 19.
• Officials from the Alaska Black Caucus say a visitation ban at all of Alaska’s correctional facilities because of the coronavirus pandemic should be loosened.
• Four men who say they were illegally imprisoned for nearly two decades for the murder of a teenager in Alaska will have their lawsuit go forward after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to get involved in the case.

In this newscast:

• A tribal health organization has given the City and Borough of Juneau thousands of doses of the Pfizer vaccine for its next vaccination clinic.
• After a nationwide search, Bartlett Regional Hospital’s board of directors is closer to choosing its next Chief Executive Officer.
• Hikers and dog walkers along a Juneau trail last Monday spotted something unusual, an eagle hanging upside down in the trees.
• The Haines Avalanche Center and the Great Bear Foundation recently hosted an informational presentation about winter bear dens in Haines.
• Alaska legislators, their staff and others who work in the Capitol will be able to get COVID-19 vaccinations starting today.