Joshua Kindred, environmental counsel for the Alaska Oil and Gas Association, speaks at the Southeast Conference&

Stand for Salmon initiative bad for business, says Southeast Conference

Southeast Conference speakers on Tuesday took a stance against the “Stand for Salmon” initiative, a proposed change to habitat protections which could see a statewide… Continue reading

Joshua Kindred, environmental counsel for the Alaska Oil and Gas Association, speaks at the Southeast Conference&
Devany Plentovich, a program manager for the Alaska Energy Authority, speaks at the Southeast Conference&

Could biomass be the future of energy in Juneau?

Businesses and homes in Alaska are looking to find more efficient ways to heat their buildings, and multiple Juneau organizations have identified one possible solution:… Continue reading

Devany Plentovich, a program manager for the Alaska Energy Authority, speaks at the Southeast Conference&
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New finds at Greens Creek promise to extend mine’s life

Exploration work at Greens Creek Mine has yielded results that could extend the mine’s life, it announced this week in a press release. Greens Creek… Continue reading

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The Kensington Mine in 2007. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)

Mining Subcommittee welcomes public comment on possible ordinance changes

The City and Borough of Juneau Assembly Mining Subcommittee has not taken public comment at its meetings to date. That will change soon. As the… Continue reading

The Kensington Mine in 2007. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)
Recommendations for areas to include in Juneau’s borough annexation application. The CBJ Assembly agreed to include areas A, B, C (the area above the dotted line) and D in its application, but removed Funter Bay, in area D, from its application. (Courtesy of the City and Borough of Juneau)

City will not annex Funter Bay

The City and Borough of Juneau will not be annexing Funter Bay. During a lengthy voting process Monday night, the CBJ Assembly members decided to… Continue reading

Recommendations for areas to include in Juneau’s borough annexation application. The CBJ Assembly agreed to include areas A, B, C (the area above the dotted line) and D in its application, but removed Funter Bay, in area D, from its application. (Courtesy of the City and Borough of Juneau)
Steve Behnke, the chair of the Juneau Commission on Sustainability’s Energy Committee, speaks to the City and Borough of Juneau Assembly Committee of the Whole on Monday, Jan. 29, 2018. The committee voted to forward the Renewable Energy Strategy to the full Assembly, and the Assembly unanimously approved the adoption of the plan on Monday. (Alex McCarthy | Juneau Empire)

City sets goal to be 80 percent renewable by 2045

On Monday night, city officials officially set a goal for Juneau to rely on 80 percent renewable energy by 2045. The City and Borough of… Continue reading

Steve Behnke, the chair of the Juneau Commission on Sustainability’s Energy Committee, speaks to the City and Borough of Juneau Assembly Committee of the Whole on Monday, Jan. 29, 2018. The committee voted to forward the Renewable Energy Strategy to the full Assembly, and the Assembly unanimously approved the adoption of the plan on Monday. (Alex McCarthy | Juneau Empire)
Dee Longenbaugh at her desk at her bookshop, The Observatory, in Juneau, Alaska, on July 29, 2009. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)

Longtime business owner, community figure dies at 84

Longtime Juneau business owner and community figure Iris D. “Dee” Longenbaugh died at her Juneau home this past Friday, and word spread quickly. Longenbaugh, who… Continue reading

Dee Longenbaugh at her desk at her bookshop, The Observatory, in Juneau, Alaska, on July 29, 2009. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)
Debrah Clements, with her 19-month-old daughter, Ezmae, talks about the airport shopping district at their shop, Martha’s Flowers, in the Airport Shopping Center on Friday, Feb. 9, 2018. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

Businesses near airport band together

Small signs have begun popping up in the windows of businesses near the Juneau International Airport: “Proud member of Juneau’s Airport Shopping District.” Still in… Continue reading

Debrah Clements, with her 19-month-old daughter, Ezmae, talks about the airport shopping district at their shop, Martha’s Flowers, in the Airport Shopping Center on Friday, Feb. 9, 2018. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

Red Cross Southeast moves office

The Southeast office of the American Red Cross will move to a new location by the end of the month, it was announced Friday. The… Continue reading

Members of the Southeast regional MathCounts winning team from Dzantik’i Heeni Middle School. From left: coach Mary Borthwick, Marina Lloyd, Krishna Bathija, Addy Mallott and Edward Hu. The top two individual performers from Saturday’s contest outside of those four, Floyd Dryden’s Elizabeth Djajalie and Montessori Borealis’s Alex Yu, will make up a six-person team heading to a March state competition in Anchorage. (Kevin Gullufsen | Juneau Empire)

Students make it count at MathCounts

How many integers between 100 and 1000 contain no digits other than 3, 4 or 5? It’s a deceptively simple question, but try to answer… Continue reading

Members of the Southeast regional MathCounts winning team from Dzantik’i Heeni Middle School. From left: coach Mary Borthwick, Marina Lloyd, Krishna Bathija, Addy Mallott and Edward Hu. The top two individual performers from Saturday’s contest outside of those four, Floyd Dryden’s Elizabeth Djajalie and Montessori Borealis’s Alex Yu, will make up a six-person team heading to a March state competition in Anchorage. (Kevin Gullufsen | Juneau Empire)
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Southeast Conference summit looks to lay out solutions to economic issues

More than 40 speakers will take a look at the future of the region’s economy at the Southeast Conference’s Mid-Session Summit this week. The conference,… Continue reading

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Mayo Schmidt, President and CEO of Hydro One Limited, left, listens to Dennis Vermillion, Senior Vice President of Avista Corp. and President of Avista Utilities, during a public meeting with leadership from AEL&P, Avista and Hydro One at the Juneau Arts and Culture Center on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2018. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

RCA will address public questions, but not about Snettisham hydroelectric project

Juneau residents have filed an unusually high amount of public comments about the proposed purchase of the city’s electric utility, and the Regulatory Commission of… Continue reading

Mayo Schmidt, President and CEO of Hydro One Limited, left, listens to Dennis Vermillion, Senior Vice President of Avista Corp. and President of Avista Utilities, during a public meeting with leadership from AEL&P, Avista and Hydro One at the Juneau Arts and Culture Center on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2018. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)
Mayo Schmidt, President and CEO of Hydro One Limited, center, gives an overview of the Ontario-based electric utility as Scott Morris, Avista Chairman, President and CEO, left, and Dennis Vermillion, Senior Vice President of Avista Corp. and President of Avista Utilities, listen during a public meeting with leadership from Hydro One, Avista and AEL&P at the Juneau Arts and Culture Center on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2018. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

Multiple organizations request new public comment period after lengthy Hydro One statement

This Monday night, Hydro One and Avista Corp. issued a joint reply to the dozens of comments that Juneau residents have made in reference to… Continue reading

Mayo Schmidt, President and CEO of Hydro One Limited, center, gives an overview of the Ontario-based electric utility as Scott Morris, Avista Chairman, President and CEO, left, and Dennis Vermillion, Senior Vice President of Avista Corp. and President of Avista Utilities, listen during a public meeting with leadership from Hydro One, Avista and AEL&P at the Juneau Arts and Culture Center on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2018. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)
Annika Schwartz, left, Jinyue Trowsil, center, and Clara Don, all eighth grade students at Montessori Borealis, react with smiles after winning the Juneau School District final in the Battle of the Books at Floyd Dryden Middle School on Thursday, Feb. 8, 2018. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

Battle of the Books team repeats as middle school champs

A dozen books, hundreds of pages and months of reading all led to Thursday afternoon for a group of Juneau middle school students. The annual… Continue reading

Annika Schwartz, left, Jinyue Trowsil, center, and Clara Don, all eighth grade students at Montessori Borealis, react with smiles after winning the Juneau School District final in the Battle of the Books at Floyd Dryden Middle School on Thursday, Feb. 8, 2018. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)
The city-owned property at 9290 Hurlock Avenue currently houses a Juneau Youth Services building. (Courtesy photo | City and Borough of Juneau)

Glory Hole withdraws application to move to Valley

The Glory Hole Shelter will not be moving to the Mendenhall Valley anytime soon. This week, the shelter’s board of directors withdrew its application to… Continue reading

The city-owned property at 9290 Hurlock Avenue currently houses a Juneau Youth Services building. (Courtesy photo | City and Borough of Juneau)
Jane Lindsey, director at Juneau-Douglas City Museum, talks on Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2018, about her upcoming retirement. Lindsey has worked at the museum for 18 years and has been the director since 2005. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

Museum director retiring after 13 years

For the past 18 years, Jane Lindsey has tried to answer a key question for the Juneau-Douglas City Museum. “How do you tell a pretty… Continue reading

Jane Lindsey, director at Juneau-Douglas City Museum, talks on Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2018, about her upcoming retirement. Lindsey has worked at the museum for 18 years and has been the director since 2005. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)
Juneau School District Director of Student Services Bridget Weiss, right, and Superintendent Dr. Mark Miller talk about the district’s decision on Thursday, Oct. 19, 2017, to send a formal request to the Alaska School Activities Association to consolidate its football, cheer and hockey teams to Juneau-Douglas High School. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

City on verge of committing funds to Pre-K programs

City officials are on the verge of something they haven’t done in recent memory: committing money specifically for early childhood education. A count of students… Continue reading

Juneau School District Director of Student Services Bridget Weiss, right, and Superintendent Dr. Mark Miller talk about the district’s decision on Thursday, Oct. 19, 2017, to send a formal request to the Alaska School Activities Association to consolidate its football, cheer and hockey teams to Juneau-Douglas High School. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

Juneau pedestrian taken to hospital after being struck by car

A Juneau pedestrian ended up in a Seattle hospital Tuesday night after a car hit her near Switzer Creek. At about 7:09 p.m., according to… Continue reading

Tyler Blevins and Abe Ortega guide a clock on Front and Franklin streets as it’s hoisted onto a truck for transportation. (Kevin Gullufsen | Juneau Empire)

Front Street clock to be refurbished

Downtown Juneau’s iconic Front Street clock was taken down Tuesday. If everything goes to plan, it’ll be back in May. It may look a bit… Continue reading

Tyler Blevins and Abe Ortega guide a clock on Front and Franklin streets as it’s hoisted onto a truck for transportation. (Kevin Gullufsen | Juneau Empire)
In this file photo from April 2012, Juneau Superior Court Judge Louis Menendez, center, holds a conference with Assistant Public Defender Eric Hedland, left, and then-District Attorney David Brower during a criminal trial. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)

Applicants line up for open judge position in Juneau

There’s been no shortage of applicants to fill the seat left by departing Juneau Superior Court Judge Louis Menendez. Ten attorneys have applied to take… Continue reading

In this file photo from April 2012, Juneau Superior Court Judge Louis Menendez, center, holds a conference with Assistant Public Defender Eric Hedland, left, and then-District Attorney David Brower during a criminal trial. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)