Ketchikan: Assembly agrees to pay McGraw by Deanna Garrison, KRBD -The Ketchikan Gateway Borough Assembly Monday night voted to make its final payment of $1.7 million to McGraw Custom Construction for work the contractor did on a remodel of Schoenbar Middle School. The borough and contractor are embroiled in a legal battle over the project, which was completed 12.5 million over budget and two and a half years late. - Listen to this KRBD story... KRBD www.krbd.org Top Stories U.S. News U.S. Politics Alaska Ketchikan

Ketchikan: Pioneers of Southeast: The Ryus Family a feature story By LOUISE BRINCK HARRINGTON - Imagine my surprise when I began researching the Ryus family of Ketchikan-assuming all members were either dead or had no ties to Southeast Alaska-and found out that several descendents are living and one is even working on an engineering project in town!

Many old-timers remember Ryus Drug, which was located on the corner of Front and Dock Streets, and we are all familiar with Ryus Float at the foot of Dock. But what about the Ryus family and how the float got its name?

1901: Joseph Emmett Ryus I

After exploring Nome during the 1898 gold rush Joseph Emmett (J. E.) Ryus arrived in Ketchikan on January 7, 1901. He liked the seaside village, believed in its future and decided to start a business. Together with his two grown sons, Floyd and Leroy, he formed the Ryus Drug Company.

J. E. had experience in the drug store business, traveled to Seattle, returned in April of 1901 with an assorted stock of drugs and supplies and set up shop in a small building on the steamship dock.

By 1902 the Ryus Drug Store had grown to such an extent that he tore down the old building and built a bigger one.

The following year, 1903, the enterprising Ryus, expanded his business holdings and began developing an entirely different operation. Located at Loring, Alaska (25 miles north of Ketchikan), called the Ketchikan Ooligan Smoking and Oil Company, the new business worked to extract oil from both ooligan and dog fish, according to a 1903 issue of the Mining Journal.

J. E. Ryus was a busy man.

In addition to their sons, he and his wife Emma had a younger child, a daughter named Florence. In 1905 the family built a home not far from the drug store on what was then called "Garrett's Hill," above today's tunnel.

Fire!

On July 4, 1906 a hot stove caught fire in a restaurant next door to the drug store. Whipped by high winds the fire spread to Ryus Drug and burned both buildings to the ground.

J. E. Ryus was unhappy but undaunted. Wasting no time he hired carpenters to begin rebuilding. He went to Seattle, purchased building supplies and fixtures and stock, and loaded it all on a ship bound to Ketchikan. When the supplies arrived he unloaded directly from the ship into the store. By September the new building was open for business and stood for years on the corner of Front and Dock. - More...
Saturday - August 11, 2007

Ketchikan: VISTA Volunteer Prepares to Leave; Recalls Year of Service - Combine the commitment and talents of an enthusiastic AmeriCorps*VISTA volunteer with the passions of a young teenager and what do you get? A valuable contribution to our community's work force. This is a story of just that scenario, and a young man, Jesse Harrington, who is now preparing to leave Ketchikan after his year's commitment as a VISTA worker under the sponsorship of Ketchikan Youth Initiatives.

Looking back over his year of service, Harrington recalls that the most memorable youth to arrive at the Youth to Work program's doorstep was also one of the first to enroll in the program. "This young person came to one of our recruitment events and we could tell right away that he was going to do wonders; he immediately started showing up early to get the room set up before class. He was a very quiet, well-mannered young man." He said, "Upon speaking with him further we discovered funny things happened every time he started speaking about building or repairing computers, his face would get all red with excitement and you could see a fire burning in his eyes." Harrington said he knew his task to find a computer repair shop that would hire a 15 year old wouldn't be easy.It wasn't said Harrington, but after a short stretch of waiting he was ready to start his first day at very great computer repair store. He said he thought for sure, "This is not going to fly for very long," but every time Harrington called that place prepared for bad news all they could tell him was how great youth worker was and how quickly he had picked up the material.

Harrington said the Youth to Work project was all a dream, a dream of Bobbie McCreary and Ketchikan Youth Initiatives, his sponsora dream that made so much sense that it just had to become a reality for our local youth. On January 5, 2007 there was a meeting hosted by Ketchikan Youth Initiatives, the Job Center and the University of Alaska Southeast-Ketchikan at the Creekside Meeting Center to discuss how the group could more effectively get Ketchikan's youth ready to be part of the local workforce. "We had 27 different members of the community in attendance, mostly employers or people that currently work with youth, the cream of the crop so to speak." said Harrington. During that meeting many collaborations were made and much attention was returned to the issue at hand. How do we as a community make our youth more employable? said Harrington. - More...
Saturday - August 11, 2007

Fish Factor: If it comes from Alaska... By LAINE WELCH - Sarah Palin could soon be the "poster-gov" of Alaska seafood on national TV.

The Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute is negotiating with the Food Network to feature Palin with Alton Brown, a sort of Bill Nye the Science Guy of cooking. A major goal of the match up is to help clear up confusions about seafood in the marketplace.

Their message will be simple: if it comes from Alaska, it is good for you.

"When people go into a store they see seafood labeled wild sustainable .organic ocean raised farmed fish ­ it's really a jumble of phrases out there. She can help set the record straight," said ASMI director Ray Riutta.

Alton Brown hosts two programs on the Food Network - 'Good Eats' and "Feasting on Asphalt.' Brown and the Governor will feature advice on purchasing Alaska seafood and cooking tips. Palin might also appear with the Network's wildly popular Rachael Ray and Bobby Flay, and be part of a media tour that includes Good Morning America, Today and Oprah.

Riutta said Gov. Palin's background as a commercial salmon fisherman makes her "a natural" to promote Alaska seafood. She also represents an important population ASMI is trying to reach ­ women professionals in their 30s and 40s.

A nation-wide Consumers Report survey revealed that 62 percent of Americans want to know where their foods come from. Sensational headlines about contaminated and tainted foods have people scrutinizing labels like never before. Riutta said Alaska as "the source" offers strong reassurance of food safety.

"We've done testing on Alaska as a brand, at least domestically, and the numbers are overwhelming in favor of the Alaska seafood brand. We're sure that carries overseas as well," Riutta said. ASMI has a $1.6 million budget for fall and winter on the Food Network and other TV outlets.

COOL Comments

Seafood origins are not as straightforward when it comes to cans. For the past two years, federal laws have required Country of Origin Labels (COOL) on most seafood items at U.S. retail counters. The COOL labels must also identify if the fish or shellfish is wild or farmed.

But when the interim law went into effect two years ago, the Alaska industry was angered when the feds pulled a last minute switch and put canned, pouched and smoked seafood in the 'processed foods' category. That made those products ineligible for coverage under COOL.

But when the interim law went into effect two years ago, the Alaska industry was angered when the feds pulled a last minute switch and put canned, pouched and smoked seafood in the 'processed foods' category. That made those products ineligible for coverage under COOL. - More....
Saturday - August 11, 2007

Viewpoints Opinions/Letters Basic Rules Borough Manager does not answer key question By Mary Lynn Dahl - Saturday Special Session Location Raises Serious Concerns By Senator Bert Stedman - Thursday Education: A Wise Investment By Gregory Vickrey - Thursday VENEERGATE II By David G. Hanger - Thursday Asking for owner of dog to step up and do the right thing By Maia Bowers - Thursday Racism By Lonnie Guthrie - Thursday Learn first hand of improvements taking place in Iraq By Rob Holston - Thursday Growth on Gravina? By Anita Hales - Thursday Green Acres By Debby Otte - Thursday Stevens Akutan Airport By Rocky C. Caldero - Tuesday 40 Acres and a Mule By Jay Jones - Tuesday Senior Baseball By Susan, Lacey & Travis Marks - Tuesday How growth possible is Gravina? By Rob Glenn - Tuesday Inconsistent By John P. Suter - Tuesday The other side... By Amber Williams-Baldwin - Tuesday How do you like talking to Bombay? By Mark Neckameyer - Tuesday Nader Prattle By Al Johnson - Tuesday AM Jerry Cegelske is my hero! By Ardath Piston - Tuesday AM Bejeweled Downtown By Derek Flom - Tuesday AM Where our taxes go By Chris Barry - Tuesday AM Trolleys By Dawn Rauwolf - Tuesday AM Doubled Edged Sword By Don Hoff Jr. - Tuesday AM Buttinskies, tax dollars, bridges, and more... By Tyrell Rettke - Friday AM Sorely Misguided By Jerry Cegelske - Friday AM Buttinskis, Bridges, Smoking, and Tourist Traps By James (Bud) Burke - Thursday PM Ban horse trolleys before cell phones By Chris Tucker - Thursday PM Cell phone ban By Penny Eubanks - Thursday PM Running for re-election By Dave Lieben - Thursday PM Eyes roll when we hear, bridge blah, blah, blah By Edward Brown - Thursday PM Ketchikan needs to expand By James A Llanos Jr - Thursday PM Rights, somebody & somewhere to nowhere By Patti Brady - Thursday PM Hot Seat By Rob Glenn - Thursday PM More Letters/Viewpoints Webmail your letter or Email Your Letter To: editor@sitnews.us Ketchikan Ketchikan Police Report AK Troopers Daily Dispatch Today's Forecast Satellite Today's Weather Images Marine Forecasts Ketchikan Weather Data Current AK Weather Map CLASSIFIEDS Publish ad Please select the proper category before posting. CLASSIFIEDS' CATEGORIES Announcements and       Help Wanted For Sale / Free Stuff Garage Sales Homes / Apts/ Property Pets Wanted Lost & Found Local Services Publish your ad July - August 2007 S M T W T F S 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21  22  23  24  25  26  27  28  29  30  31 01  02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 More Front Page Archives

Marsha Mercer: Summertime and the ethics is easy - Ted Stevens offered the FBI a house key, but agents said no thanks. They had their own ways to get into his home in Girdwood, Alaska.

No, they didn't break down the front door. They called a locksmith. And the news media.

People could see agents in business suits taking pictures of cases of wine. One agent carried to a van a garbage bag filled with heaven-knows-what.

The best reality show is still reality.

And it doesn't get much better than this. The day after FBI and Internal Revenue Service agents raided his home, the longest-serving Republican in Senate history threatened in a private luncheon with GOP senators to hold up the ethics bill that was rolling through the Senate. He didn't want to give up flying home with lobbyists. - More...
Tuesday AM - August 07, 2007

Ann McFeatters: A bridge to more disasters - And so our latest true-life, made-for-cable-TV disaster unfolds.

Remember the talk about the nation's crumbling infrastructure after levees failed during Hurricane Katrina? Remember those SUV-eating sinkholes in Brooklyn? Remember the report that $120 billion a year is wasted on road repairs because our highways are decaying? Remember when the electric grid caused a power blackout that affected millions? Remember the Hawaii dam that collapsed, killing seven people? How about the analysis that 13,000 highway fatalities each year occur because of congestion or poor maintenance and design?

The catastrophe in downtown Minneapolis caused by an arterial bridge collapsing in rush-hour traffic is the latest in unheeded warnings that, physically, the United States is in bad shape.

We Americans who have rejoiced in -- and boasted about -- the grandeur of our cities, the comfort of reliable electricity, the wonder that has been our national highway system, the easy readiness of tap water and our can-do eagerness to build the best have been blind about growing fissures in that very infrastructure. - More...
Tuesday AM - August 07, 2007

Dale McFeatters: Ethics vs. earmarks - Amidst much self-congratulation, Congress after several false starts has succeeded in passing a bill tightening its ethics regulations. And if the new regs won't terribly diminish the role of cash and lobbyists' clout in the legislative process, they will make it a lot more transparent.

Members of the House and Senate and their political committees must fully disclose those lobbyists who raise more than $15,000 for them in a six-month period by "bundling," wrapping donations from numerous sources into a single package. Lobbyists must disclose donations made to committees, charities, organizations and foundations associated with members of Congress. These disclosures are to be carried on easily searchable databases.

The bill would end what was almost a way of life in Washington by banning meals, travel and gifts paid for by lobbyists and their clients. And the bill would end a tradition at the national political conventions by prohibiting lawmakers from attending lobbyist-paid events in their honor. - More...
Tuesday AM - August 07, 2007

Editorial: Bottled-water boondoggle - The surge in bottled-water sales is one of those consumer crazes that would be funny if it weren't so damaging to the environment.

The International Bottled Water Association says that national sales by volume rose 9.5 percent and might go up 10 percent this year. Sales have been surging the past decade. This is because of heavy marketing, which has helped make drinking from a bottle with a pretty company label on it chic and drinking good old-fashioned no-name tap water in a glass (made out of glass) unacceptably tacky in a status-obsessed society.

But in fact, tap water is safe -- and indeed often better than the most expensive bottled stuff.

Indeed, much expensive bottled water sold is tap water! Take Aquafina, which comes from the public water supply of lovely Ayer, Mass. It's all about marketing -- not health. It's one of the great consumer scams of the past decade. - More...
Tuesday AM - August 07, 2007