Site Logo
Mercedes Muñoz smiles at her dog, Coco, as she works on shaping ceramic pieces on her potter’s wheel. Muñoz is set to host first ever show at the her late grandmother’s galley, the Rie Muñoz Gallery, on Sunday which will feature her summer collection of work. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

News

Local artist continues family legacy ahead of upcoming art show: The granddaughter of the late local artist Rie Muñoz is set to host her first art show sharing her same gallery

“We’re kind of breathing new life into this space that we all care about so much and love…

Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire 
A for sale sign sits outside a house in the Mendenhall Valley area. The City and Borough of Juneau’s finance staff recently released an online FAQ dedicated to answering a series of frequently asked questions about the borough’s real estate mandatory disclosure policy.

News

Disclosure FAQ met with more questions

Local Realtors share their take on new web page; city officials say more answers coming.

In this October 2018 photo, Bjorn Dihle inspects the acid mine drainage flowing into the Tulsequah River from a containment pond filled by effluent from the Tulsequah Chief Mine in British Columbia, Canada. (Courtesy Photo / Chris Miller)

News

Cleanup could be coming for Tulsequah Chief mine

Environmental groups welcome end of receivership after decades of limbo.

This photo shows an aerial view of the Montana Creek area. A master plan draft for the area is currently in the works. (Courtesy / CBJ Parks and Recreation)

News

Montana Creek’s draft master plan takes another step forward

It proposes projects like new public use cabins, parking areas, new trails and maintenance.

Sockeye salmon return to Steep Creek to spawn. Alaska’s overall commercial salmon harvest across all species is currently up 15% from 2021 (2020 for pinks) with Bristol Bay and the Prince William Sound largely carrying the weight while other regions lag, according to data from the most recent Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute weekly salmon harvest update. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire)

News

Statewide salmon harvest on the upswing compared to last year, species vary in harvest success

See the salmon stats here.

Democratic U.S. House Candidate Mary Peltola hugs a supporter during a campaign event in Juneau on Friday. Peltola emerged as the top finisher in the first round of results on election night, but is facing two better-known Republican challengers who may prevail when the new ranked choice ballots get a final tabulation Aug. 31. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

News

Update: Unofficial results roll in

Peltola, Murkowski take early leads

A student heads to the main entrance of Thunder Mountain High School to start the first day of school. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

News

New school year starts ‘a lot closer to normal’

Classes are back in session and with it comes a few new changes, according to school officials

This photo shows polls at the Auke Bay Ferry Terminal along with all other poll stations opened at 7 a.m. and will close at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 16. (Jonson Kuhn / Juneau Empire)

News

Unpredecented election draws strong interest, some confusion

Juneau voters turn out steadily as world watches ranked choice vote, famous candidates

A resident of downtown posted a series of photos on “Juneau Bear sightings” Facebook page that showed a bear eating garbage in the area on Thursday evening. According to the source, no amount of noise was able to scare the bear away from the area. (Courtesy / Angelique Buzzek)

News

Officials urge locals to lock car doors after bears caught opening vehicles

Bear activity is back on the rise and will only increase as hibernation grows nearer said officials.

2022 marks the 76th year the Goldern North Salmon Derby has existed in Juneau. The derby, which also doubles as a fundraiser, has raised nearly $2 million and given scholarships to more than 300 local high school and graduate students. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

News

A dawdling derby

This year’s salmon derby seemed to lack numbers, participants according to officials

Colby Nelson throw one of the 11 fish he and Patrick Willis caught on Saturday for the derby. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

News

A slow derby doesn’t stop local fishermen

Slow and steady wins the… salmon derby.

City Borough of Juneau’s senior project planner Beth McKibben sits outside Foodland IGA on Saturday to talk to residents about the public review draft of the CBJ’s blueprint area plan for the future of downtown Juneau, which recently was released for the public to comment on. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

News

Foodland and area plan: Residents get a chance to speak with officials on Juneau’s downtown blueprint

Blueprint and blueberries.

Two king salmon sit in ice after being weighed at the Auke Nu Cove weigh station. The fish were caught by James Jack SR at 14.4 pounds and Leonard Johnson, at 11.1 pounds. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire) (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

News

Getting down and derby

Salmon derby kicks off with slow start

This is a photo of a young Gabrielle Shaawatgoox George-Frank smiling as she holds a fish caught near Angoon, Alaska where her family originates from. George-Frank is one of the five students who received this year’s Golden North Salmon Derby’s annual scholarships. (Courtesy Photo / Gabrielle Shaawatgoox George-Frank)

News

Salmon derby scholarship helps local student reach longtime goal

She shares what the upcoming event’s scholarship means to her.

This combination photo shows hiring signs in the windows of businesses in downtown Juneau this spring. As of Wednesday, the City and Borough of Juneau has 23 open employment positions, some with multiple vacancies within them according to the CBJ website. (Peter Segall/ Juneau Empire)

News

Help wanted Juneau: City feels the sting of the nationwide worker shortage

Openings include multiple City and Borough of Juneau departments.

on Monday night the Assembly gave the OK for Docks & Harbors to begin formulating a plan that would use $20 million of city funds to go toward electrifying two city-own cruise ships docks and redo some of the work at Juneau’s’s already existing electrified dock built in 2001. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

News

City takes step toward dock electrification

“There are many pieces to plugging in”

Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire 
Aaron Surma, the executive director for National Alliance on Mental Illness Juneau and the Juneau Suicide Prevention Coalition, leads a safety plan workshop Tuesday night hosted by NAMI and the Juneau Suicide Prevention Coalition. The workshop was a collaborative brainstorming session with Juneau residents about how to create a safety plan that people can use to help someone who is experiencing a mental health or suicide crisis.

News

Study shows a rise in anxiety and depression among children in Alaska

Increase may indicate growing openness to discussing mental health, according to experts.

Radio equipment sits atop Saddle Mountain near Juneau. The Juneau Police Department shares this equipment with other agencies. JPD is currently operating on a radio system that was dated to stop working eight years ago and faces an $11 million gap in funding to pay for a new one according to the police chief who presented a slideshow on the topic at the Assembly Committee of the Whole meeting Monday night. (Courtesy photo / Juneau Police Department)

News

Juneau Police Department seeks to update radio system

The department faces an $11 million gap in funding to pay for a new one

Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire
Laird Jones, a Juneau resident who attended a sharing event Friday, shares the story of his great-aunt’s death while attending the Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania. She is still buried in one of its graveyard’s 14 unmarked graves, Jones said. His family is on a mission to bring her home to Alaska and to share her story.

News

Boarding school sharing event highlights family’s fight to bring their loved one home

“She is so far from here, we want to bring her home to be with family”

A sign points to a weigh-in station for the Golden North Salmon Derby in 2021. This year, the Auke Bay weight station will be at Auke Nu Cove, near the ferry terminal. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire File)

News

The fish that keeps on giving: The Golden North Salmon Derby is back and it’s fishy fun for a good cause

Don’t leave it to salmon else.