News

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

Preliminary report for fatal Admiralty plane crash indicates weather issues

The pilot of the plane that crashed on southern Admiralty Island last Friday had said he was going to take an alternate route due to… Continue reading

Don Statter Memorial Boat Harbor in Auke Bay in July 2015 as visitors wait to board whale watching vessels and fishing boats are double and triple parked along the floats. Juneau's Docks and Harbors Board is working to revise a portion of city code pertaining to a commercial fishing moorage discount.

Docks and Harbors Board debates discount

Juneau’s Docks and Harbors Board is working to revise a portion of city code pertaining to a commercial fishing moorage discount that some people have… Continue reading

Don Statter Memorial Boat Harbor in Auke Bay in July 2015 as visitors wait to board whale watching vessels and fishing boats are double and triple parked along the floats. Juneau's Docks and Harbors Board is working to revise a portion of city code pertaining to a commercial fishing moorage discount.

Volunteer greeters orient visitors to Juneau, one question at a time

Juneau resident Michelle Storer has been a volunteer greeter for the Juneau, Convention and Visitors Bureau for 33 years.“I think it’s a great way to… Continue reading

Copper thief pleads guilty

A man who was arrested last year for burglarizing the home of one of the most well known attorneys in Juneau and stealing several thousand… Continue reading

Bill to ban Planned Parenthood in schools dies in committee

In a 5-2 vote, a House committee put a stop to a bill Tuesday that would have banned abortion providers from teaching sexual education in… Continue reading

Around Town

Juneau Gastineau Rotary Club meeting, 7 a.m., The Prospector Hotel.English as a Second Language, 9-10:15 a.m., Gruening Park Learning Connection, 1800 Northwood Dr. Free eight… Continue reading

Police calls for Thursday, April 14, 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

Parental rights bill stays alive, for now

While a bill that would have banned abortion providers in schools died in committee, the less controversial elements of the bill continue to live on.Almost… Continue reading

SLAM opening unaffected by dumpster fire

A dumpster fire outside the State Library, Archives, and Museum Tuesday night will not delay the building’s opening day, according to the SLAM deputy director.Bob… Continue reading

Gov. Bill Walker tells a story during Mudrooms at Northern Light United Church on Tuesday evening. Mudrooms is a monthly storytelling event that has seven community members tell a seven-minute story. The $7 entry fee for the audience goes to local nonprofit organizations. About $57,000 has been raised and given to Juneau charities over the past five years.

Video: Gov. Bill Walker at Mudrooms

Once just a teenager growing up in Valdez in the ‘60s, Alaska Gov. Bill Walker regaled a Juneau crowd at the monthly Mudrooms storytelling event… Continue reading

Gov. Bill Walker tells a story during Mudrooms at Northern Light United Church on Tuesday evening. Mudrooms is a monthly storytelling event that has seven community members tell a seven-minute story. The $7 entry fee for the audience goes to local nonprofit organizations. About $57,000 has been raised and given to Juneau charities over the past five years.
In this March 2016 photo, work begins on the new park near the Douglas Bridge that will become the home to the life-size bronze sculpture of a breaching humpback whale. Part of the project funding comes from head taxes. The Cruise Lines International Association and its Alaska affiliate filed a lawsuit against the city and borough of Juneau on Tuesday in federal court in Anchorage. They're challenging the legality of so-called head tax fees paid by cruise passengers who visit Alaska's picturesque capital.

Cruise ship group: Statue plans are misuse of fees

JUNEAU — A life-sized whale statue has Juneau in hot water after a cruise ship association alleged it’s a symbol of the Alaska city’s misuse… Continue reading

In this March 2016 photo, work begins on the new park near the Douglas Bridge that will become the home to the life-size bronze sculpture of a breaching humpback whale. Part of the project funding comes from head taxes. The Cruise Lines International Association and its Alaska affiliate filed a lawsuit against the city and borough of Juneau on Tuesday in federal court in Anchorage. They're challenging the legality of so-called head tax fees paid by cruise passengers who visit Alaska's picturesque capital.