News

A Bergmann Hotel resident walks down the hall past an eviction notice posted on a door.

With upcoming changes to derelict hotel, uncertainty lingers for tenants

The owners of the Bergmann Hotel have hired an Anchorage-based consultant to help them stop the once-prestigious hotel’s descent into dereliction. Some community members —… Continue reading

A Bergmann Hotel resident walks down the hall past an eviction notice posted on a door.
Juneau District Court Judge Keith Levy speaks to a Juneau resident during an arraignment hearing on Wednesday. Judge Levy is retiring.

Juneau district court judge to retire later this year

Sometimes when Keith Levy rounds a corner in the grocery aisle, he’ll see someone he’s sent to prison. The encounter isn’t an awkward one.“They’ll say,… Continue reading

Juneau District Court Judge Keith Levy speaks to a Juneau resident during an arraignment hearing on Wednesday. Judge Levy is retiring.

Two judgeships opening in Southeast Alaska

The Alaska Judicial Council is now receiving applications for judgeships on the Juneau District Court and the Palmer Superior Court.The vacancies will occur due to… Continue reading

City street cleaning begins

The City and Borough of Juneau’s Streets and Fleet Maintenance Division has started its 2016 Spring Clean Up project.The Spring Clean Up project is an… Continue reading

State education board begins commissioner post discussion

The State Board of Education & Early Development will meet next month to discuss applications for the Commissioner of Education & Early Development position.The meeting… Continue reading

Around Town

Knights of Columbus Bishop Kenny Council brunch, 10 a.m.-noon, St. Paul’s Catholic Church. $10 for a family and $4 for an individual.Open trap shooting, 10… Continue reading

Metlakatla plaintiff motions rejected

KETCHIKAN — The federal judge assigned to the Civil Rights Act complaint of two Metlakatla residents, on Wednesday, denied two motions by the plaintiffs while… Continue reading

Unclaimed vehicles sent to public auction

The Juneau Police Department will host an outcry auction for impounded vehicles Saturday.The public viewing is scheduled for 11 a.m.—1 p.m. Wednesday at 9390 La… Continue reading

Marine Park Plaza’s seasonal parking ends

Seasonal parking at the Marine Park Plaza is coming to an end on Wednesday.Docks and Harbors personnel will block off access to the entrance of… Continue reading

Docks & Harbors meetings moved, cancelled

The City and Borough of Juneau’s upcoming Docks & Harbors Harbor Fee Review Committee meeting scheduled for Wednesday has been rescheduled.The meeting will now take… Continue reading

Friday recap: House passes Medicaid reform bill

With a bipartisan vote, the Alaska House has approved a wide-ranging reform of the state’s government-run health care system.Senate Bill 74, which includes a variety… Continue reading

Public (again) speaks out overwhelmingly against bill restricting sex ed

Of the 48 people who testified on a school accountability bill, most of them spoke against a section regarding who can teach sex ed.The Senate… Continue reading

Amendment restricts who can teach sex ed

A senator who tried to ban abortion providers like Planned Parenthood from teaching sex ed in schools introduced an amendment that would impose even greater… Continue reading

John Binkley, president of CLIA Alaska (formerly the Alaska Cruise Association), speaks to the Juneau Chamber of Commerce at the Hangar Ballroom on Thursday. CLIA Alaska and international affiliate, Cruise Lines International Association, filed a lawsuit against the city of Juneau for the use of head tax money on a new waterfront park anchored with a full-sized bronze statue of a breaching humpback whale.

Lawsuit looms heavy over chamber luncheon

The presentation John Binkley gave during Thursday’s Juneau Chamber of Commerce luncheon was a little longer than he had originally planned when the chamber asked… Continue reading

John Binkley, president of CLIA Alaska (formerly the Alaska Cruise Association), speaks to the Juneau Chamber of Commerce at the Hangar Ballroom on Thursday. CLIA Alaska and international affiliate, Cruise Lines International Association, filed a lawsuit against the city of Juneau for the use of head tax money on a new waterfront park anchored with a full-sized bronze statue of a breaching humpback whale.
Hazel LeCount, left, and her daughter, Shannon, look for what to salvage on Thursday after Sunday's fire at the Channel View Apartments. The fire started in apartment 5E on the fifth floor of the 22-apartment building managed by St. Vincent de Paul. All the water end up in LeCount's apartment, 1E, on the first floor. The odor is so foul that the women can only stay in the room for a few minutes at a time.

Displaced and in despair: Nonprofit helps those affected by apartment fire

The water that took over a 54-year-old Juneau woman’s home after an apartment fire brought back a memory as it simultaneously took most of her… Continue reading

Hazel LeCount, left, and her daughter, Shannon, look for what to salvage on Thursday after Sunday's fire at the Channel View Apartments. The fire started in apartment 5E on the fifth floor of the 22-apartment building managed by St. Vincent de Paul. All the water end up in LeCount's apartment, 1E, on the first floor. The odor is so foul that the women can only stay in the room for a few minutes at a time.

Cruise association president: Ketchikan taxes not a concern

KETCHIKAN — Cruise Line International Association President John Binkley says the group’s suit against Juneau shouldn’t concern Ketchikan.CLIA filed a suit on Tuesday alleging that… Continue reading

Izzy Luna (far left) explains to a fellow eight-grader the struggles impoverished women face to meet feminine hygiene needs during a fair at Dzantik'i Heeni Middle School. Luna and her project partners - Ava Brown and Chloe McAdams (from left to right) took the issue on for a language arts class project. The girls are collecting tampons, panty liners and pads at school and at Safeway to give to Juneau women in need.

Juneau middle schoolers tackle real world issues

Heroin use, suicide, gender equality — these topics saturate conversations in Juneau and around the nation, but another unlikely place they’re showing up is an… Continue reading

Izzy Luna (far left) explains to a fellow eight-grader the struggles impoverished women face to meet feminine hygiene needs during a fair at Dzantik'i Heeni Middle School. Luna and her project partners - Ava Brown and Chloe McAdams (from left to right) took the issue on for a language arts class project. The girls are collecting tampons, panty liners and pads at school and at Safeway to give to Juneau women in need.

Photo: Donation to Friends of the Flags

Members of the Capital City Celebrations Committee provide a check from the Juneau Community Foundation's Capital City Celebration Fund for $2,608 to the volunteer organization… Continue reading

Around Town

GED orientation class, 9 a.m., The Learning Connection, 210 Ferry Way. GED orientation is designed to improve the success rate of those taking the tests.… Continue reading

Police & fire for Friday, April 15, 2016

This report contains public information available to the Empire from law enforcement agencies. This report includes arrest and citation information, not conviction information. Anyone listed… Continue reading