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The Odess Theater is seen on May 22, 2019, on the campus of the Sitka Fine Arts Camp, which operates the former home of Sheldon Jackson College. (Photo by Flickr user Jasperdo/Creative Commons)

Sitka Fine Arts Camp withdraws immigration lawsuit after feds reconsider issue

A key employee for one of Alaska’s major arts organizations has received a federal immigration visa, ending a lawsuit over the case. Sitka Fine Arts… Continue reading

The Odess Theater is seen on May 22, 2019, on the campus of the Sitka Fine Arts Camp, which operates the former home of Sheldon Jackson College. (Photo by Flickr user Jasperdo/Creative Commons)
U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (left) views the Mendenhall River on Tuesday as Juneau Assembly member Wade Bryson explains changes that occurred to the riverbank due to record flooding from Suicide Basin last Saturday. Juneau state representatives Sara Hannan and Andi Story were among the other officials taking part in the trip. (Tom Mattice / City and Borough Of Juneau)

Flood cleanup, fundraising events planned this weekend

As state and federal officials consider large-scale actions, residents can offer immediate help.

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (left) views the Mendenhall River on Tuesday as Juneau Assembly member Wade Bryson explains changes that occurred to the riverbank due to record flooding from Suicide Basin last Saturday. Juneau state representatives Sara Hannan and Andi Story were among the other officials taking part in the trip. (Tom Mattice / City and Borough Of Juneau)
A team photo of the 2023 Juneau Huskies, who kick off their season with a home game against East Anchorage at 3 p.m. Saturday. (Courtesy of Juneau Huskies Football)

Juneau Huskies start another title prowl

After losing state title game last year, there’s only one way to go up as season starts Saturday

A team photo of the 2023 Juneau Huskies, who kick off their season with a home game against East Anchorage at 3 p.m. Saturday. (Courtesy of Juneau Huskies Football)
The offices of the Alaska Permanent Fund Corp. are seen Monday, June 6, 2022 in Juneau. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)

Alaska Permanent Fund Corp. plans to open Anchorage office by year’s end

It’s the first time the corporation has opened a satellite office outside its Juneau headquarters.

The offices of the Alaska Permanent Fund Corp. are seen Monday, June 6, 2022 in Juneau. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)
Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File
The Dusky Rock sits at Aurora Harbor on the morning of Saturday, June 3. The vessel was towed there from Sandy Beach on the evening of Friday, June 2, after three people died within a three-day period aboard the vessel while anchored offshore.

Medical examiner: Carbon monoxide poisoning, drug intoxication cause of three boat deaths

The bodies were discovered in a three-day period, all while aboard a boat earlier this summer.

Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File
The Dusky Rock sits at Aurora Harbor on the morning of Saturday, June 3. The vessel was towed there from Sandy Beach on the evening of Friday, June 2, after three people died within a three-day period aboard the vessel while anchored offshore.
Drag queen Gigi Monroe performs an opening song during a Drag Storytime at the Mendenhall Valley Public Library on Saturday, Aug. 5. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Drag queen Gigi Monroe performs an opening song during a Drag Storytime at the Mendenhall Valley Public Library on Saturday, Aug. 5. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
New University of Alaska Chancellor Aparna Palmer speaks to the Greater Juneau Chamber of Commerce at a luncheon Thursday afternoon. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

New UAS chancellor talks student access, visibility ahead of semester start

Aparna Palmer shared her goals with the Greater Juneau Chamber of Commerce.

New University of Alaska Chancellor Aparna Palmer speaks to the Greater Juneau Chamber of Commerce at a luncheon Thursday afternoon. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)
A map shows gale-force winds are likely throughout Southeast Alaska during a storm this weekend that is also expected to result in two to three inches of rain in Juneau, according to the National Weather Service. (Map by the National Weather Service)

Weekend storm with gale-force winds may pose risks for flooded riverbank, salmon derby

Storm is expected to peak Saturday, officials warn trees along Mendenhall River may come loose.

A map shows gale-force winds are likely throughout Southeast Alaska during a storm this weekend that is also expected to result in two to three inches of rain in Juneau, according to the National Weather Service. (Map by the National Weather Service)
Steve Vick delivers a speech at Auke Village Recreation Area after completing his nine-day, 92-mile swim from Skagway on Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2005. Vick swam to call attention to the proposed Juneau to Skagway road. (Brian Wallace / Juneau Empire Archives)
Steve Vick delivers a speech at Auke Village Recreation Area after completing his nine-day, 92-mile swim from Skagway on Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2005. Vick swam to call attention to the proposed Juneau to Skagway road. (Brian Wallace / Juneau Empire Archives)
A wildfire burns in Kihei, Hawaii late Wednesday. Thousands of residents raced to escape homes on Maui as blazes swept across the island, destroying parts of a centuries-old town in one of the deadliest U.S. wildfires in recent years. (AP Photo/Ty O’Neil)

Wildfire devastates Hawaii’s historic Lahaina; dozens killed, mass evacuation of area

Hawaii officials have launched a mass evacuation effort for visitors and residents stranded north of a historic Maui town that was largely destroyed by wildfire.… Continue reading

  • Aug 10, 2023
  • By Rebecca Boone Associated Press
A wildfire burns in Kihei, Hawaii late Wednesday. Thousands of residents raced to escape homes on Maui as blazes swept across the island, destroying parts of a centuries-old town in one of the deadliest U.S. wildfires in recent years. (AP Photo/Ty O’Neil)
Steve Bradford (left) and Mark Kissel, both vice presidents of the Riverside Condominiums Homeowners Association, discuss repairs to two of the complex’s buildings on Wednesday as a bulldozer places rock fill under a corner of one building exposed by erosion during record flooding of the Mendenhall River last Saturday. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

Efforts underway to save two condominium buildings exposed by flood

Property managers hopeful tons of rock fill can allow people in 12 units to return home

Steve Bradford (left) and Mark Kissel, both vice presidents of the Riverside Condominiums Homeowners Association, discuss repairs to two of the complex’s buildings on Wednesday as a bulldozer places rock fill under a corner of one building exposed by erosion during record flooding of the Mendenhall River last Saturday. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
People attend a candlelit vigil that was held at the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center to honor Paul Rodriguez Jr., pictured, who drowned while kayaking on Mendenhall Lake in July. The search for his body has been called off following the record flooding from Suicide Basin during the weekend, officials say. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)

Search for body of missing kayaker will not resume following flood

It will remain suspended unless new leads are discovered, trooper says.

People attend a candlelit vigil that was held at the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center to honor Paul Rodriguez Jr., pictured, who drowned while kayaking on Mendenhall Lake in July. The search for his body has been called off following the record flooding from Suicide Basin during the weekend, officials say. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)
This photo taken in Juneau on Monday is of the Ghaanka Yéil S’áaxhw (Raven of the Roof, Hat) from the L’uknaxh.ádi clan in Sitka. The item from repatriated from the University of Pennsylvania. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

Tlingit and Haida to receive $143K in grants toward repatriation projects

The funding was awarded under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act.

This photo taken in Juneau on Monday is of the Ghaanka Yéil S’áaxhw (Raven of the Roof, Hat) from the L’uknaxh.ádi clan in Sitka. The item from repatriated from the University of Pennsylvania. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)
This rendering depicts Huna Totem Corp.’s proposed new downtown development project that was approved for a conditional permit by the City and Borough of Juneau Planning Commission Tuesday night. (City and Borough of Juneau)

Major $150 million downtown waterfront development project passes another hurdle

Nearly three-acre Huna Totem Aak’w Landing Project approved by planning commission.

This rendering depicts Huna Totem Corp.’s proposed new downtown development project that was approved for a conditional permit by the City and Borough of Juneau Planning Commission Tuesday night. (City and Borough of Juneau)
This is a photo of a vehicle crash site early Wednesday morning near 34 Mile on Glacier Highway. A teenager has been arrested with driving under the influence and third-degree assault resulting from injuries suffered by the passenger. (Courtesy/ Capital City Fire/Rescue)
This is a photo of a vehicle crash site early Wednesday morning near 34 Mile on Glacier Highway. A teenager has been arrested with driving under the influence and third-degree assault resulting from injuries suffered by the passenger. (Courtesy/ Capital City Fire/Rescue)
The riverfront in Kotlik, a Yup’ik community of about 600 people, is seen in 2009. Kotlik, on the north end of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, is one of the communities in the Kusilvak Census Area. A new study published in the Lancet found that Alaska Natives in the Kusilvak Census Area have the nation’s highest rate of death from intentional self-harm or interpersonal violence. (Photo provided by the Alaska Division of Community and Regional Affairs)

Alaska construction employment statistics show uneven post-pandemic recovery, wage deflation

Employment in Alaska’s construction industry had not yet returned to pre-COVID-19 levels as of the end of 2022, even though the industry was damaged less… Continue reading

The riverfront in Kotlik, a Yup’ik community of about 600 people, is seen in 2009. Kotlik, on the north end of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, is one of the communities in the Kusilvak Census Area. A new study published in the Lancet found that Alaska Natives in the Kusilvak Census Area have the nation’s highest rate of death from intentional self-harm or interpersonal violence. (Photo provided by the Alaska Division of Community and Regional Affairs)
A statue of William Henry Seward stands outside the Dimond Courthouse in downtown Juneau. The family of a Juneau man who died after suffering a blunt-force neck injury filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Carver Construction LLC, arguing it breached its duty to ensure the family’s residence was reasonably safe amid ongoing renovations. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)

Family files wrongful death suit against Juneau construction company

Fatal fall in 2021 the result of company’s breach of duty, lawsuit states.

A statue of William Henry Seward stands outside the Dimond Courthouse in downtown Juneau. The family of a Juneau man who died after suffering a blunt-force neck injury filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Carver Construction LLC, arguing it breached its duty to ensure the family’s residence was reasonably safe amid ongoing renovations. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)
Gov. Mike Dunleavy, seen here at an event at the Auke Bay Ferry Terminal in March, on Tuesday issued a state disaster declaration for the Suicide Basin flood that occurred during the weekend. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)

Governor issues state disaster declaration for Suicide Basin flood

Decision triggers relief funds for individuals as well as public entities

Gov. Mike Dunleavy, seen here at an event at the Auke Bay Ferry Terminal in March, on Tuesday issued a state disaster declaration for the Suicide Basin flood that occurred during the weekend. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)
A sign marks a house along the Mendenhall River that is condemned following a glacial dam outburst Saturday that resulted in weekend flooding along the river. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)

Bursting ice dam in Juneau highlights risks of glacial flooding around the globe

The gray, two-story home with white trim toppled and slid, crashing into the river below as rushing waters carried off a bobbing chunk of its… Continue reading

A sign marks a house along the Mendenhall River that is condemned following a glacial dam outburst Saturday that resulted in weekend flooding along the river. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)
Brian Wallace / Juneau Empire Archives
Senate Counsel Sam Dash speaks during a special session as Gov. Bill Sheffield sits in the background.
Brian Wallace / Juneau Empire Archives
Senate Counsel Sam Dash speaks during a special session as Gov. Bill Sheffield sits in the background.