Emily Kwong, KCAW - Sitka

A 41-year-old Sitka man -- missing in a kayak since Thursday morning -- is presumed dead. The Coast Guard suspended the search for 41-year-old Jesse Mills Friday afternoon. Mills was reported missing by his wife after he failed to return from a solo kayaking trip on Wednesday night. Download Audio

Sitka has a sister city in Nemuro , Japan. Like Sitka, Nemuro is an ocean-facing fishing port, but bigger - about 30,000 people to Sitka’s 10,000. And on Monday, Nemuro citizens visited Sitka’s city hall to commemorate their decades long relationship. Download Audio

The state of Alaska has canceled standardized testing in schools this year. Upwards of 70,000 students were scheduled to take Alaska Measures of Progress (AMP) assessments across a five-week window, but in a press release issued on April 1, Alaska’s Department of Education & Early Development called the whole thing off. The reason? Ongoing problems connecting to an online server – in Kansas. Download Audio

The state of Alaska has suspended online standardized testing in schools this year because of ongoing problems connecting to a Kansas-based server. In a press release issued this afternoon, the Department of Education said that “repeated technical disruptions have rendered the affected tests invalid.”

The August 18th landslide in Sitka was unprecedented, claiming the lives of three men and raising safety concerns about the Benchlands, a strip of land nestled between the mountains and the ocean. The city sold four parcels, totaling 20 acres, to Sound Development LLC in 2013 and construction was in progress when the landslide hit, damaging one home and completely destroying another. Download Audio

While Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton marshaled support in Washington this weekend, a lesser known candidate - Rocky De La Fuente came to Alaska. De La Fuente was the only presidential hopeful in the state for the democratic caucus. And he brought his campaign - with its dark horse ambitions - to Sitka.

In Sitka, a Citizen’s Task Force has been meeting for several months to come up with a strategy for keeping the community’s basic services, while adjusting the tax structure. The Task Force is ready to reveal their plan called “The Grand Bargain.” Download Audio

The pioneer home system is older than the state of Alaska. The first home, in Sitka, was repurposed from abandoned marine barracks in 1913. The state-funded system now operates in six locations and provides care to 440 of Alaska’s senior citizens. And demand is only growing. But as lawmakers grapple with the budget, some wonder whether the state can keep funding the homes at all. Download Audio

For decades, the question of whether Sitka can afford two hospitals has percolated, with little success at consolidating services. That era may be coming to a close. Last week, the Assembly entertained a motion from Charles Clement, CEO of the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC) to renew talks with Sitka Community Hospital about collaborating on medical services. This raised alarm bells for some citizens. Download Audio

Missed connections were hard to avoid this Valentine’s Day in Sitka and Angoon. The fiber optic cable serving both island communities is damaged, leaving customers with spotty to no service. Installed in 2008, the cable runs 1,400 feet below the ocean’s surface. Picture a bundle of glass strands, thinner than a human hair, encased in plastic. And surrounding that is an armor of steel, made of 12-gauge strands. Download Audio

The past three weeks have been turbulent at Mt. Edgecumbe High School in Sitka. The Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program, or ANSEP, has proposed turning the 70-year-old boarding school into an accelerated high school, with an emphasis on science and engineering. It all began when ANSEP founder Herb Schroeder presented his idea to lawmakers in January, as a draft piece of legislation. Now, Edgecumbe students and teachers, are asking questions about ANSEP’s motivations – and whether the plan would even work. Download Audio

Lieutenant Governor Byron Mallott signed the state marijuana regulations into law last month (01-22-16) and the state will begin accepting license applications on February 24th. But there’s a wrench in the works: the original bill fails to properly authorize background checks. Download Audio

Throughout this year’s hunting season, Sitka’s airport has been contending with an unusual issue: dead deer. Carcasses have been washing up on the runway since November, attracting birds. And this has posed a big problem to business as usual. Download Audi0

The Alaska legislature gaveled in Tuesday (01-19-16), in what will be the fourth session for Representative Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins of House District 35, representing his hometown of Sitka, Petersburg, and 20 other rural Southeast communities. In sharing his goals for the session, Kreiss-Tomkins has a few policy ideas up his sleeve.

At it's Tuesday meeting, the Sitka Assembly decided to contest the state’s proposed setback distance for pot business. Sitka joins Petersburg in penning a letter to the Department of Law, requesting the setback be reduced to 200 feet. Download Audio

Sitka is the fourth recipient of a statewide “Alaskan Clean Harbors” certificate. Along with Homer, Seward, and Haines, Sitka’s harbor system was recognized in October by the Alaska Clean Harbors Advisory Committee for meeting 88 best management practices. Download Audio

In an effort to get Alaskans on the same page, state budget director Pat Pitney has spent the past six months leading fiscal dialogues in communities throughout Alaska. And Thursday, she brought her talking points to Sitka, along with a wooden scale to illustrate the state budget crisis. Download Audio

The Alaska Native teenager at the epicenter of a tasing incident in Sitka last year has hired legal counsel. Though he’s not yet filed a lawsuit, the lawyer representing Franklin Hoogendorn intends to bring his case before a Sitka jury. Download Audio

On a clear night in September, a group of vandals desecrated a 200-year old cemetery in Sitka, tipping over headstones. The caretaker, 65-year-old Bob Sam, discovered the damage the next morning. Some of the marble slabs were broken beyond repair. This is the story of how the cemetery caretaker enlisted the help of local police to protect the rights of the dead. Download Audio