News

T.J. Hovest conducts the Juneau Volunteer Marching Band during an Independence Day weekend concert on Sunday at Sealaska Heritage Plaza. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

Marching back to Juneau’s traditions for Independence Day

Concert by Juneau Volunteer Marching Band a prelude to their participation in July 4 parade.

T.J. Hovest conducts the Juneau Volunteer Marching Band during an Independence Day weekend concert on Sunday at Sealaska Heritage Plaza. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
(Michael Penn / Juneau Empire File)

Police calls for Thursday, June 29, 2023

This report contains information from law enforcement and public safety agencies.

  • Jul 3, 2023
(Michael Penn / Juneau Empire File)
(Michael Penn / Juneau Empire File)

Police calls for Friday, June 30, 2023

This report contains information from law enforcement and public safety agencies.

(Michael Penn / Juneau Empire File)
(Michael Penn / Juneau Empire File)

Police calls for Saturday, July 1, 2023

This report contains information from law enforcement and public safety agencies.

(Michael Penn / Juneau Empire File)
Image from the exhibition “For Our Children: Chilkat Regalia Woven in the Lineage of Jennie Thulnaut and Clarissa Rizal,” on display at the Juneau-Douglas City Museum this month. (Photo courtesy of the Juneau Arts and Humanities Council)

Here’s what’s happening for First Friday

Plenty of colorful displays and activities will still be available to Juneau residents after the last of the July 4 fireworks fade, with more than… Continue reading

Image from the exhibition “For Our Children: Chilkat Regalia Woven in the Lineage of Jennie Thulnaut and Clarissa Rizal,” on display at the Juneau-Douglas City Museum this month. (Photo courtesy of the Juneau Arts and Humanities Council)
Don Sakis checks the fire in his Riteway wood stove at his home on Jan. 23, 2018, in Palmer. Sakis and his family have heated their home with the stove for 35 years. Attorneys general from 10 states plan to sue the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, alleging the agency’s testing and certification program for home wood heaters is ineffective — raising health concerns — and that EPA has failed to undertake a timely review of performance standards for new heaters. (Loren Holmes/Anchorage Daily News via AP)

Alaska among 10 states planning to sue EPA over standards for residential wood-burning stoves

Attorneys general from 10 states plan to sue the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, saying its failure to review and ensure emissions standards for residential wood-burning… Continue reading

  • Jul 3, 2023
  • Associated Press
Don Sakis checks the fire in his Riteway wood stove at his home on Jan. 23, 2018, in Palmer. Sakis and his family have heated their home with the stove for 35 years. Attorneys general from 10 states plan to sue the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, alleging the agency’s testing and certification program for home wood heaters is ineffective — raising health concerns — and that EPA has failed to undertake a timely review of performance standards for new heaters. (Loren Holmes/Anchorage Daily News via AP)
Juneau Police Department Chief Ed Mercer is retiring at the end of July after a career of more than 30 years in Southeast Alaska law enforcement. (Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire File)

JPD Chief Ed Mercer retiring

Lifetime Southeast Alaska resident departing July 31 after career of more than 30 years.

Juneau Police Department Chief Ed Mercer is retiring at the end of July after a career of more than 30 years in Southeast Alaska law enforcement. (Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire File)
This photo shows Lemon Creek Correctional Center in Juneau. The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities is seeking a contractor for an estimated $5-10 million project to address structural repair and renovation at the Juneau prison. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

Juneau prison to undergo multimillion-dollar repair and renovation project

State seeks contractor for work estimated to cost between $5-10 million.

This photo shows Lemon Creek Correctional Center in Juneau. The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities is seeking a contractor for an estimated $5-10 million project to address structural repair and renovation at the Juneau prison. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)
Photos by Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire Salissa Thole sings a pop song while a couple dances in the background during a “Neighborhood Cabaret” show at the Glory Hall on Thursday evening. The shows being performed at various location in Juneau are the first of three productions during this year’s Alaska Theater Festival.

Sound shelter from the storm

Cabaret show at the Glory Hall an appreciative exchange between musicians, staff and audience.

Photos by Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire Salissa Thole sings a pop song while a couple dances in the background during a “Neighborhood Cabaret” show at the Glory Hall on Thursday evening. The shows being performed at various location in Juneau are the first of three productions during this year’s Alaska Theater Festival.
President Joe Biden speaks about the student debt relief portal beta test in the South Court Auditorium on the White House complex in Washington, Oct. 17, 2022. A sharply divided Supreme Court has ruled that the Biden administration overstepped its authority in trying to cancel or reduce student loans for millions of Americans. Conservative justices were in the majority in Friday’s 6-3 decision that effectively killed the $400 billion plan that President Joe Biden announced last year. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)

The Supreme Court rejects Biden’s plan to wipe away $400 billion in student loan debt

A sharply divided Supreme Court on Friday effectively killed President Joe Biden’s $400 billion plan to cancel or reduce federal student loan debts for millions… Continue reading

  • Jun 30, 2023
  • By Mark Sherman Associated Press
President Joe Biden speaks about the student debt relief portal beta test in the South Court Auditorium on the White House complex in Washington, Oct. 17, 2022. A sharply divided Supreme Court has ruled that the Biden administration overstepped its authority in trying to cancel or reduce student loans for millions of Americans. Conservative justices were in the majority in Friday’s 6-3 decision that effectively killed the $400 billion plan that President Joe Biden announced last year. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)
Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File Locals gathered for a whale of a time near “Tahku,” the whale sculpture under shimmering lights and loud booms for the annual firework display over Gastineau Channel in 2022.
Capital City Weekly

How to celebrate the many sights and sounds of July 4

“Voices of Alaska” theme for downtown parade reflects range of Juneau’s traditional holiday events

Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File Locals gathered for a whale of a time near “Tahku,” the whale sculpture under shimmering lights and loud booms for the annual firework display over Gastineau Channel in 2022.
The setting sun over Kotzebue Sound is seen on an evening in 2010. (Photo provided by Alaska Division of Community and Regional Affairs)

Would-be child care providers in remote Alaska say it’s all but impossible to get a state license

Kotzebue’s child care center closed more than a decade ago, and the community hasn’t had one since. Tracey Schaeffer and her daughter Bailey are trying… Continue reading

The setting sun over Kotzebue Sound is seen on an evening in 2010. (Photo provided by Alaska Division of Community and Regional Affairs)
(Michael Penn / Juneau Empire File)

Police calls for Wednesday, June 28, 2023

This report contains information from law enforcement and public safety agencies.

(Michael Penn / Juneau Empire File)
A temporary pedestrian bridge over Montana Creek, seen here Thursday, is now open as a replacement for the bridge that suffered substructure damage from weather events last September. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

Temporary bridge installed over Montana Creek, no funding yet for permanent one

The opening follows 10 months of closure due to substructure damage of previous bridge.

A temporary pedestrian bridge over Montana Creek, seen here Thursday, is now open as a replacement for the bridge that suffered substructure damage from weather events last September. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)
The Tazlina berths at the Auke Bay Terminal in March. The Alaska Marine Highway System’s proposed winter schedule is now available for public review, the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities announced Thursday afternoon. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)

Winter ferry schedule now open for review

Public comments are being accepted through July 12.

The Tazlina berths at the Auke Bay Terminal in March. The Alaska Marine Highway System’s proposed winter schedule is now available for public review, the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities announced Thursday afternoon. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)
The Hubbard and LeConte ferries are seen at a Southeast Alaska port in this picture published June 1. (Photo courtesy of the Alaska Marine Highway System)

State ferry system says it is unable to provide hiring numbers

Alaska Marine Highway has been short of onboard employees for more than two years.

The Hubbard and LeConte ferries are seen at a Southeast Alaska port in this picture published June 1. (Photo courtesy of the Alaska Marine Highway System)
In this June 21 photo, meteorologist David Percy films the daily “Alaska Weather” program in a makeshift studio at the National Weather Service office in Anchorage. The “Alaska Weather” program she oversees, the only weather show produced by the National Weather Service, will have its last on-air broadcast Friday after Alaska Public Media dropped distribution, forcing it to YouTube. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)
Capital City Weekly

How’s the weather up there? It’ll be harder for Alaska to tell as a longtime program goes off air

ANCHORAGE — Before Morris Nashoanak heads out for days in search of bearded seals, beluga whales or salmon, he catches the weather on TV. But… Continue reading

In this June 21 photo, meteorologist David Percy films the daily “Alaska Weather” program in a makeshift studio at the National Weather Service office in Anchorage. The “Alaska Weather” program she oversees, the only weather show produced by the National Weather Service, will have its last on-air broadcast Friday after Alaska Public Media dropped distribution, forcing it to YouTube. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)
Activists demonstrate as the Supreme Court hears oral arguments on a pair of cases that could decide the future of affirmative action in college admissions, in Washington, Oct. 31, 2022. The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that colleges and universities must stop considering race in admissions, forcing institutions of higher education to look for new ways to achieve diverse student bodies. In a 6-3 decision, the court struck down admissions plans at Harvard and the University of North Carolina, the nation’s oldest private and public colleges, respectively. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

Supreme Court strikes down affirmative action in college admissions, says race cannot be a factor

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Thursday struck down affirmative action in college admissions, declaring race cannot be a factor and forcing institutions of higher… Continue reading

Activists demonstrate as the Supreme Court hears oral arguments on a pair of cases that could decide the future of affirmative action in college admissions, in Washington, Oct. 31, 2022. The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that colleges and universities must stop considering race in admissions, forcing institutions of higher education to look for new ways to achieve diverse student bodies. In a 6-3 decision, the court struck down admissions plans at Harvard and the University of North Carolina, the nation’s oldest private and public colleges, respectively. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
Bamby Kinville-James (left center) and Jeni Brown (right center) lead a song during a rally held at the steps of the Alaska State Capitol on May 5 to recognize Missing and Murdered Indigenous Peoples Awareness Day. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)

Justice Department boosts resources for missing and murdered Indigenous cases in Alaska

Four specialists, one possibly in Juneau, will work with tribes and state to focus on rural areas.

Bamby Kinville-James (left center) and Jeni Brown (right center) lead a song during a rally held at the steps of the Alaska State Capitol on May 5 to recognize Missing and Murdered Indigenous Peoples Awareness Day. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)
The Alaska State Capitol in Juneau is seen on Monday, June 19, 2023. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)

New state child care task force paints bleak picture of Alaska’s system

It has one year to deliver a final report on solutions to the governor

The Alaska State Capitol in Juneau is seen on Monday, June 19, 2023. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)