Site Logo
Attendees at the Southeast Conference Mid-Session Summit listen to a live video speech by U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, at Elizabeth Peratrovich Hall on Tuesday. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

News

Report: Juneau second-best summer job place in U.S. for youths — in part because there are fewer of them

Update of annual Southeast Alaska economic report features other contrasting up-and-down trends

Venietia Bingham, owner of V’s Cellar Door, testifies in opposition to a resolution seeking to nearly double the number of licenses for establishments allowed to serve alcohol during a Juneau Assembly meeting on Monday night. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

News

Proposal to nearly double places in Juneau able to serve alcohol delayed by Assembly until November

Existing establishments worry about impact of seasonal operators; supporters cite new opportunities.

This screenshot from a court filing by the Alaska Department of Law shows two identical pairs of wool booties taken from a tourist shop near Denali National Park. One pair bears the label “made in Nepal,” while the other says that it was made in Alaska. (Screenshot)

News

Mythical ‘Yakutat alpaca’ items costs Denali-area clothing shop $53,000 in fines

No such creature exists, despite claims of store officials say re-branded foreign products.

The Red Devil Mine, which produced mercury on and off from the 1930s to 1971, is seen from the air in 1960 in this archival photo from the University of Alaska Anchorage’s collection. The Bureau of Land Management has approved a plan to clean up what is considered the last remaining source of contamination: tailings spread over the property. (Photo by Don Grybeck/University of Alaska Anchorage Consortium Library archives and special collections)

News

Federal regulators approve long-term plan for cleaning site of Alaska mercury mine

Nearly a century after a Western Alaska mine began producing mercury, cleanup of the site is entering a…

Juneau School District administrators and board members listen to a presentation about the district’s multi-million deficit during a Jan. 9 meeting. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire file photo)

News

School board asks city to take over $4 million in ‘shared costs,’ provide zero-interest loan

Request to be evaluated by Assembly members Wednesday as district tries to fix budget crisis.

Multiple vehicles line up at the entrance of Waste Management’s Capitol Disposal Landfill in Lemon Creek on Jan. 30, 2023. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire file photo)

News

Landfill fees rising 9% for residential trash, nearly tripling for metal, starting March 1

Increase follows near-tripling of rates last year that’s blamed for widespread illegal dumping.

Thunder Mountain High School senior Thomas Baxter (30) shown in action against Kodiak on Thursday, scored 30 points to lead the Falcons over the Ketchikan Kings at Kayhi on Saturday. (Klas Stolpe/For the Juneau Empire)

Sports

Thunder Mountain boys split series at Ketchikan

Baxter raises Falcons from 54-45 Friday fall to 61-43 win Saturday

Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé junior Gavin Gerrin (1) scores from past the arc over Kodiak junior Mac Abellera (00) during the Crimson Bears 75-50 win over the Bears on Saturday at the George Houston Gymnasium. (Klas Stolpe/For the Juneau Empire)

Sports

Juneau-Douglas boys sweep visiting Kodiak

Crimson Bears defend home den against northern island Bears

Thunder Mountain High School senior Kara Strong, Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé junior Nadia Wilson (12), TMHS junior Kerra Baxter (22) and JDHS freshman Layla Tokuoka (14) battle for a rebound during the Falcons 42-28 win over the Crimson Bears on Saturday at the George Houston Gymnasium. (Klas Stolpe/For the Juneau Empire)

Sports

Juneau-Douglas, Thunder Mountain girls split local road games

Crimson Bears win 42-40 at Falcons’ Thunderdome, Falcons win 42-28 at George Houston Gymnasium.

Capital Transit buses will operate on revised schedules starting Monday. (City and Borough of Juneau photo)

News

Changes to Capital Transit routes including Riverside Drive, Vintage Business Park start Monday

New schedule includes rerouting bus near school on Back Loop Road where safety upgrades occurring.

Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé’s Caden Johns (#5), seen here in a Dec. 16, 2023, game against Palmer High School, was the lone JDHS player named to the all-tournament team during the Division II state hockey tournament in that concluded Saturday in Soldotna. Luke Bovitz (#4) was one of two key players missing during the tournament due to injuries. The Crimson Bears finished fourth in the tournament. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire file photo)

Sports

Crimson Bears finish hockey season with pair of wins to finish fourth at DII state tournament

Caden Johns makes all-tournament team as JDHS rebounds from opening loss that thwarted title hopes.

Students swing on a playground at Meadow Lakes Head Start in Wasilla. (Image by Lela Seiler, courtesy of CCS Early Learning)

News

Stagnant funding results in Alaska pre-K school closure, instability for vulnerable children

Head Start programs scramble as COVID-19 relief and a one-time state funding boost peter out.

An extended advisory forecasting up to eight more inches of snow by 9 a.m. Sunday, in addition to about four inches of snow that fell between Friday evening and Saturday afternoon, is issued by the National Weather Service Juneau at 12:50 p.m. Saturday. (National Weather Service Juneau)

News

Advisory for latest weekend storm extended, with more than a foot of snow possible by 9 a.m. Sunday

Storm that began Friday night continues pattern that led to record snowfall in January.

Thunder Mountain senior Thomas Baxter (30) defends Kodiak junior Kelly Ticman during the Falcons 71-49 home win over the Bears, Thursday at the Thunderdome. (Klas Stolpe / For the Juneau Empire)

Sports

Thunder Mountain boys basketball team too fast for Kodiak

Falcons show depth of bench in 71-49 win at home.

Kenai Central’s Avery Martin tries to split Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kale’s Dylan Sowa and Camden Kovach on Thursday at the Division II state hockey tournament at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex in Soldotna. (Jeff Helminiak/Peninsula Clarion)

Sports

JDHS loses 4-2 to Kenai in DII state hockey tournament opener

No. 4 seed Crimson Bears lose chance for title as No. 5 Kardinals get first-ever opening game win.

Bulk food purchased with the $1.68 million Gov. Mike Dunleavy put towards supporting food banks is staged for delivery in Food Bank of Alaska’s Anchorage warehouse on April 21, 2023. (Photo by Claire Stremple/Alaska Beacon)

News

Alaska’s federal food stamp funding at risk, USDA letter warns

The state may lose funding if it continues to break federal rules

Sen. Shelley Hughes, R-Palmer, speaks to Sen. Mike Shower, R-Wasilla, on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)

News

New bill would require Alaska schools to pay for armed volunteer guards

A new proposal from Palmer Republican Sen. Shelley Hughes would require Alaska school districts to train a volunteer…

Felix Toner, a Juneau resident who was active in fighting efforts to move the capital, was named Citizen of the Year award at the Juneau Chamber of Commerce’s annual banquet on Jan. 30, 1984. (Brian Wallace / Juneau Empire file photo)

News

Empire Archives: Juneau’s history for the week of Feb. 4

Three decades of capital city coverage.

Adjutant General Torrence Saxe, head of the Alaska National Guard, speaks at a Sept. 23, 2022, news conference in Anchorage. Behind him are Gov. Mike Dunleavy and Rep. Mary Peltola. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

News

Alaska plans to send National Guard members to Mexico border in support of the federal government

The state of Alaska is planning to send members of its National Guard south to the Mexican border,…

The Unuk River is one of the transboundary watersheds of Southeast Alaska. (U.S. Geological Survey Alaska Science Center photo)

News

Southeast Alaska tribes seek Canadian recognition due to transboundary issues

A group of Southeast Alaska tribes is asking Canada to recognize their right to have a voice in…