Both Wrangell boat lifts are in operation. The new one is in the back. (Delton Claggett/KSTK)

Wrangell’s new boat lift hauled its first vessel out of the water over the weekend.

Harbormaster Greg Meissner says the honors went to the St. Jude, a 98-foot fish-packer out of Ketchikan.

“The gentleman we’re pulling out just showed up in Wrangell. He’s been chomping at the bit and working with us and trying to adjust his schedule to get hauled out. So he’s happy he’s coming out of the water. He’ll do some work on the boat and get it out when the season starts,” Meissner says.

The 300-ton lift is the biggest in Southeast and one of the largest in Alaska. Wrangell also operates a 150-ton lift.

Borough Manager Jeff Jabusch says the lifts are part of the development of the community’s Marine Service Center. He expects it to support local vessel-owners, as well as out-of-towners.

Wrangell’s new Ascom boat lift hauls the 98-foot fish-packer St. Jude out of the water Saturday, May 24. (Delton Claggett /KSTK)

“I know there’s boats around Southeast that have to go a long ways to get pulled out of the water to do just some general bottom maintenance and other things – new zincs and bottom paint and that kind of thing,” Jabusch says.

The lift was built by the Italian company Ascom and cost about $1.3 million. Jabusch says it’s part of a larger project mostly funded by a legislative grant.

Harbormaster Meissner says some of the funds were used to improved the new lift’s support structure.

“The dock was built to hold a 200-ton machine in its payload. So we had to go in and strengthen the dock to handle the payload, plus the weight of a 300-ton machine,” he says.

Wrangell officials hoped to have the lift up and running sooner. But it faced delays.

A competing company, Marine Travelift, challenged the city’s contract award. Then, a shipping company sent it to the wrong place.

“They brought it across on a ship to Tacoma. And they took it from Tacoma to Seattle and inadvertently took it to the barge that went to Anchorage. And since nothing on it said ‘Wrangell’ at the time, off to Anchorage it went. So it took a two-week detour on the way to Wrangell,” he says.

Meissner says the municipality did not pay for the extra shipping.

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The Assembly authorized the Borough Manager to enter into a contract with Italian company ASCOM S.p.A. to purchase a 300-ton marine vessel hoist for Wrangell’s Marine Service Center.  The initial period for companies to bid for the sale ended in November.  There were two companies with qualified bids, the Italian firm and the North American company Travelift.  The bid from ASCOM S.p.A. was substantially cheaper than its competition coming in at nearly $400,000 less.  After a thorough study and hands-on testing, PND engineers and hoist operators found no significant difference between the two firms’ equipment.

The final contract is for a purchase amount of $1,315,000 which will be paid by a grant from the State of Alaska Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development.  The city received the grant for $2.75 million dollars last year.  The remaining funds will be used to make dock repairs and other improvements at the Marine Service Center.

The city received another State of Alaska grant for the Cassiar Street Roadway and Utilities Improvement Project.  The Assembly voted to approve a design contract for the second stage of the project to the company R & M Engineering-Ketchikan, the same firm who successfully completed the first phase.

Last night’s meeting was the first time the Assembly took a look at an ordinance to amend the Borough’s municipal code that deals with remote zoning in Wrangell.

There will be a public hearing on this issue on January 22^nd.

Finally, the Assembly approved three resolutions affecting city employees.  The resolutions will update employees’ job descriptions to bring them in line with federal and state laws including the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Family Medical Leave Act, Affirmative Action, and federal immigration law.  These changes will also guarantee protection for whistle-blowers and require compliance with drug testing.

Although the change of certain job descriptions will mean a corresponding change of job titles and pay plan, it will not affect any employee’s current pay.

On a more personal note, the Assembly bid farewell and good luck to Maria Weeg and former mayor Jeremy Maxand as they move on to new endeavors.

City Hall will be closed on January 21^st in observance of the Martin Luther King Junior holiday.

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