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Niko Sanguinetti, the curator of collections and exhibits at the Juneau-Douglas City Museum, arranges artifacts that are being collected to document life in Juneau during the COVID-19 pandemic in the basement of the museum on Jan. 6, 2021. Beth Weigel, director of the museum watches in the background. (Dana Zigmund/Juneau Empire)

City museum documents history in the making

The Juneau-Douglas City Museum is considering how the future may view the past.

Niko Sanguinetti, the curator of collections and exhibits at the Juneau-Douglas City Museum, arranges artifacts that are being collected to document life in Juneau during the COVID-19 pandemic in the basement of the museum on Jan. 6, 2021. Beth Weigel, director of the museum watches in the background. (Dana Zigmund/Juneau Empire)
Trump supporters try to break through a police barrier, Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021, at the Capitol in Washington. As Congress prepares to affirm President-elect Joe Biden’s victory, thousands of people have gathered to show their support for President Donald Trump and his claims of election fraud. (AP Photo / Julio Cortez)

US Capitol breached as Trump supporters clash with police

The U.S. Capitol locked down after protesters breached barricades.

Trump supporters try to break through a police barrier, Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021, at the Capitol in Washington. As Congress prepares to affirm President-elect Joe Biden’s victory, thousands of people have gathered to show their support for President Donald Trump and his claims of election fraud. (AP Photo / Julio Cortez)
Abby Jones, an emergency worker for Capital City Fire/Rescue, checks in a Juneau resident for free asymptomatic testing on Dec. 31, 2021. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire)

City shares testing, vaccination updates

Less than 1 in 100 people being tested is coming up positive.

Abby Jones, an emergency worker for Capital City Fire/Rescue, checks in a Juneau resident for free asymptomatic testing on Dec. 31, 2021. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire)
In this undated file photo provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, an airplane flies over caribou from the Porcupine caribou herd on the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in northeast Alaska. (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)

US holds first oil lease sale for Alaska’s Arctic refuge

Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority, was the sale’s main bidder.

In this undated file photo provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, an airplane flies over caribou from the Porcupine caribou herd on the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in northeast Alaska. (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
Tom Wagner, left and Bob Schroeder hold up a banner protesting resource extraction in the Arctic at Saviko Park on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2020. Members of environmental groups 350Juneau and Native Movement held a traveling demonstration Wednesday, taking the banner to several locations in Juneau, including the state capitol. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

Environmentalists in Juneau protest Arctic drilling, say fight continues

Similar “banner drops” were happening around the world.

Tom Wagner, left and Bob Schroeder hold up a banner protesting resource extraction in the Arctic at Saviko Park on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2020. Members of environmental groups 350Juneau and Native Movement held a traveling demonstration Wednesday, taking the banner to several locations in Juneau, including the state capitol. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
Trump supporters try to break through a police barrier, Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021, at the Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

Alaska leaders condemn violence at US Capitol

Many of Alaska’s elected representatives were on-site when rioters breached the building.

Trump supporters try to break through a police barrier, Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021, at the Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Deputy City Clerk Di Cathcart collects ballots from the ballot drop box at Don D. Statter Harbor the afternoon of Saturday, Sept. 19. Ballot drop boxes could factor into future municipal elections, too, depending on direction from the assembly. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire)

Assembly to consider voting processes for future elections

Hybrid vehicles are popular in the capital city, but hybrid elections?

Deputy City Clerk Di Cathcart collects ballots from the ballot drop box at Don D. Statter Harbor the afternoon of Saturday, Sept. 19. Ballot drop boxes could factor into future municipal elections, too, depending on direction from the assembly. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire)
Kevin McCallister and Alexus Forehand smile with their recently born daughter, Madelynn Rose. The McCallisters of Skagway are the parents of the first baby born at Bartlett Regional Hospital in 2021. (Courtesy Photo / BRH)

Bartlett Regional Hospital welcomes first baby of 2021

The Skagway family will return home with a baby- and a boat.

Kevin McCallister and Alexus Forehand smile with their recently born daughter, Madelynn Rose. The McCallisters of Skagway are the parents of the first baby born at Bartlett Regional Hospital in 2021. (Courtesy Photo / BRH)
Petty Officer 1st Class Cynthia Oldham / USCG Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star navigates heavy seas in the Gulf of Alaska, Thursday, Dec. 10, 2020. The icebreaker is supporting an increasingly prioritized mission in the region, according the the Coast Guard.

Coast Guard icebreaker sets U.S. record for northernmost winter approach

The mission is as much to reaffirm presence as to train a new generation of coldwater sailors.

Petty Officer 1st Class Cynthia Oldham / USCG Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star navigates heavy seas in the Gulf of Alaska, Thursday, Dec. 10, 2020. The icebreaker is supporting an increasingly prioritized mission in the region, according the the Coast Guard.
Caribou from the Porcupine Caribou Herd migrate onto the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in northeast Alaska. A U.S. judge on Tuesday refused to halt oil and gas lease sales in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge that were pushed by the Trump administration in its final days. (Courtesy Photo / U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)

Judge allows oil, gas lease sales in Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

Judge refuses to halt oil and gas lease sales in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

Caribou from the Porcupine Caribou Herd migrate onto the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in northeast Alaska. A U.S. judge on Tuesday refused to halt oil and gas lease sales in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge that were pushed by the Trump administration in its final days. (Courtesy Photo / U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
A crane sits in the city-owned Aurora Harbor on Nov. 6, there for a project to repair the docks. The construction industry was one of the few in Southeast Alaska which wasn't dramatically impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to state economists. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire File)

Southeast Alaska’s economic recovery expected to be slow

When will tourists come back?

A crane sits in the city-owned Aurora Harbor on Nov. 6, there for a project to repair the docks. The construction industry was one of the few in Southeast Alaska which wasn't dramatically impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to state economists. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire File)
Peter Segall/ Juneau Empire File Gov. Mike Dunleavy speaks to local leaders at the Alaska Municipal League’s legislative conference in this February 2020 photo.

Lawyers for Dunleavy want part of law on appointments tossed

Appointments are at center of dispute.

Peter Segall/ Juneau Empire File Gov. Mike Dunleavy speaks to local leaders at the Alaska Municipal League’s legislative conference in this February 2020 photo.
Sarah Palmer holds up a swab before administering a COVID-19 test. The City and Borough of Juneau is offering free, asymptomatic testing. The drive-thru testing is available daily through Jan. 10 with the exception of New Year's Day. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire)

COVID cases trending down

Still on high alert.

Sarah Palmer holds up a swab before administering a COVID-19 test. The City and Borough of Juneau is offering free, asymptomatic testing. The drive-thru testing is available daily through Jan. 10 with the exception of New Year's Day. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire)
Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, speaks on the House floor on opening day of the 117th Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Sunday, Jan. 3, 2021. (Bill Clark / Pool)

Rep Young calls for bipartisanship while giving Pelosi oath

Young used Sunday’s occasion as an opportunity to try to bring together political parties.

Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, speaks on the House floor on opening day of the 117th Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Sunday, Jan. 3, 2021. (Bill Clark / Pool)
An airplane flies over caribou from the Porcupine caribou herd on the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in northeast Alaska. Conservationists will try to persuade a U.S. judge to stop the Trump administration from issuing leases to oil and gas companies in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The Anchorage Daily News reported that the videoconference Monday, Jan. 4, 2021, in U.S. District Court in Anchorage is expected to determine whether the Bureau of Land Management can open bids in an online lease sale scheduled for Wednesday. The agency has offered 10-year leases on 22 tracts covering about 1,563 square miles in the coastal plain, which accounts for about 5% of the refuge’s area. (Courtesy Photo / U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)

Court hears challenge to Arctic refuge oil leases

Attorneys for conservation groups asked a judge to halt the issuance of oil and gas leases in ANWR.

An airplane flies over caribou from the Porcupine caribou herd on the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in northeast Alaska. Conservationists will try to persuade a U.S. judge to stop the Trump administration from issuing leases to oil and gas companies in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The Anchorage Daily News reported that the videoconference Monday, Jan. 4, 2021, in U.S. District Court in Anchorage is expected to determine whether the Bureau of Land Management can open bids in an online lease sale scheduled for Wednesday. The agency has offered 10-year leases on 22 tracts covering about 1,563 square miles in the coastal plain, which accounts for about 5% of the refuge’s area. (Courtesy Photo / U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
President-elect Joe Biden speaks at a drive-in rally for Georgia Democratic candidates for U.S. Senate Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff, in Atlanta. The first full week of 2021 is shaping up to be one of the biggest of Biden’s presidency. And he hasn’t even taken office yet. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)

Murkowski, Sullivan share plan to affirm election results

Senators share thoughts ahead of unlikely flashpoint procedure.

President-elect Joe Biden speaks at a drive-in rally for Georgia Democratic candidates for U.S. Senate Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff, in Atlanta. The first full week of 2021 is shaping up to be one of the biggest of Biden’s presidency. And he hasn’t even taken office yet. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)
Residents on Wire Street near Twin Lakes clean up debris from a landslide caused by heavy rains on Dec. 2, 2020. The state of Alaska has set up a website to help people apply for state and federal relief money for damages caused by the storm. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire file)

Application opens for December storm disaster relief

There’s a Feb. 26. deadline.

Residents on Wire Street near Twin Lakes clean up debris from a landslide caused by heavy rains on Dec. 2, 2020. The state of Alaska has set up a website to help people apply for state and federal relief money for damages caused by the storm. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire file)
State Representatives stand at their desks during the Pledge of Allegiance in the Iowa House chambers, at the Statehouse in Des Moines, Iowa, in June 2020. As states brace for a coronavirus surge following holiday gatherings, one place stands out as a potential super-spreader site, the statehouses where lawmakers will help shape the response to the pandemic. (AP Photo / Charlie Neibergall)

Statehouses could prove to be hothouses for virus infection

Statehouses around the nation set to convene.

State Representatives stand at their desks during the Pledge of Allegiance in the Iowa House chambers, at the Statehouse in Des Moines, Iowa, in June 2020. As states brace for a coronavirus surge following holiday gatherings, one place stands out as a potential super-spreader site, the statehouses where lawmakers will help shape the response to the pandemic. (AP Photo / Charlie Neibergall)
In this Dec. 24 photo, Arsenio “Pastor” Credo receives the Moderna coronavirus vaccine from nurse Courtney Taber at the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium’s Ethel Lund Medical Center. (Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire)

Alaskans over 65 eligible for vaccinations earlier than first expected

Appointments can be made starting Wednesday.

In this Dec. 24 photo, Arsenio “Pastor” Credo receives the Moderna coronavirus vaccine from nurse Courtney Taber at the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium’s Ethel Lund Medical Center. (Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire)
In this July 13, 2007, file photo, workers with the Pebble Mine project test drill in the Bristol Bay region of Alaska, near the village of Iliamma. (AP Photo / Al Grillo)

Investors sue parent company behind proposed Pebble Mine

Investors claim company misled shareholders who have seen an 85% drop in stock value.

  • Jan 2, 2021
In this July 13, 2007, file photo, workers with the Pebble Mine project test drill in the Bristol Bay region of Alaska, near the village of Iliamma. (AP Photo / Al Grillo)