Author: Jack Darrell

A controversial – and what some called confusing – ordinance was narrowly voted down at the November 20 Ketchikan Gateway borough assembly meeting. The ordinance sought to bar assembly members from voting on outside committees. Some assembly members said the ordinance was really part of Ketchikan’s ongoing debate about banning books at the local library.

At the end of October, federal authorities arrested a group of drug traffickers led by Heraclio Sanchez-Rodriguez, an inmate in a California prison. In an indictment unsealed on October 26, the group was charged with kidnapping, carjacking, murder, and the trafficking of fentanyl, methamphetamine, heroin and cocaine throughout Alaska. They did it via packages shipped through the postal service.

The Ketchikan Police Department is setting up a gun range by the dump. Police Chief Jeff Walls announced that the plan was moving forward at the monthly “Ketch-Up” meeting on Wednesday. Walls said it is the first time the department will have its own shooting range, which will open new opportunities for the department.

Museums Alaska, a statewide museum association, announced today (11/17) that it is awarding twelve grants across the state. Two of Ketchikan’s museums will be getting some of the funding.