Hoonah

Hoonah (Tlingit: Xunaa or Gaaw Yata Aan) is a largely Tlingit community on Chichagof Island, located in Alaska's panhandle in the southeast region of the state. It is 30 miles (48 km) west of Juneau, across the Alaskan Inside Passage. At the 2020 census the population was 931, up from 760 in 2010. In the summer the population can swell to over 1,300 depending on fishing, boating, hiking and hunting conditions. Hoonah is the only first-class city on the island, the 109th-largest island in the world and the 5th- largest island on the U.S. mainland. "Xunaa" means lee of the north wind, i.e., protected from the North wind. "Zipline" opens at Icy Strait Point, the world's largest zipline, in May 2007. Two police officers from the city were shot and killed in an ambush on Front Street in August 2010. The suspect subsequently barricaded himself inside his own home on August 29, 2010. He was taken into custody the next day. The town is featured on the Discovery Channel show Alaskans Bush People. The city is home to the Alaska Native tribe, the Huna Tlingits. The tribe is a federally recognized tribe, authorized to act on behalf of theHuna Tlingsit. The U.N. World Food Program is based in the city.

History

The town of Hoonah is featured on the Discovery Channel show Alaskan Bush People. Two police officers from the city were shot and killed in an ambush on Front Street on August 29, 2010. A fire and subsequent series of explosions destroyed the Icy Strait Lumber Mill. ZipRider! the world's largest zipline opens at Icy strait Point. The town was settled by clans fleeing glacial advance in Glacier Bay and a landslide-induced tsunami in Lituya Bay along the outer coast in the 1750s. The first school house and teacher's residence was established in November 1881. A territorial school and government school were built in 1923. In 1932 the government school was demolished and replaced by a Bureau of Indian Affairs school. Six graduating seniors made up the Hoonsah City Schools class of 2015. The Hoonshah Indian Association was constituted as a federally recognized tribe, authorized to act on behalf of the Huna Tlingit, in 1936. The cannery was shut down in 1954, but continued to see use by commercial fishermen for storing and repairing their boats and gear. Hoonsshah is now a tourist attraction at Iced Strait Point, home to the world-renowned Icy Strait Zipline. The city is home to a number of tourist attractions, such as the Alaska National Park and Preserve, and the Alaska State Park and Marine Museum. Hoonhah is located on Alaska's Kenai Peninsula, which was once part of the Yukon Territory.

Geography

Hoonah is on the north shore of Chichagof Island, on Icy Strait, at 58°634N 135°2611W (58.109435, -135.436349). The communities of Whitestone Logging Camp (which was being dismantled in early 2011) and Game Creek just south of the city limits. Other incorporated communities nearby include Tenakee Springs to the south and Pelican to the west. Tongass National Forest borders the area and has an unpaved road system of over 300 miles (480 km). Recreation areas include Game Creek, Kennel Creek, and Freshwater Bay which has a small boat harbor, all to the east; and Whitestone boat landing and False Bay recreation area to the southeast. These areas are inaccessible in winter due to deep snow. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city of Hoonah has a total area of 7.3 square miles (18.9 km²), of which 6.0 sq miles (15.6 km²) are land and 1.3sq miles (3.3km²), or 17.59% are water. The city is home to the Alaska Department of Transportation, which runs a ferry service between the island and the mainland. The ferry service runs in the summer and winter months, when it is possible to get to and from the island by air. The island has a population of about 2,000. The population of the island is about 3,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Climate

According to the Köppen climate classification system, Hoonah has a humid continental climate (Dfb) The city has a population of 1,000 people. The city is located in the province of Hoonshauk in the state of Haut-Hoonah. It is located at an altitude of 2,000 metres (7,000 feet) above sea level. The town has a dry continental climate, with a Humid continental climate with a dry summers and wet winters. It has a wet winters and dry summers, and a wet summers and dry winters. The climate is humid continental, with dry winters and wet summers. The area has a hot dry summer and wet winter, with high temperatures in the summer and cool winters in the winter. The weather is wetter in the spring and summer, with wetter winters and milder summers in the autumn and winter. Hoona has a rainy summer and dry winter, and wetter summers in spring and autumn. The winters are wetter than the summer, and the summers are milder than the winter months in the fall and winter months. In the winter, the temperature drops to -20 °C (6 °F) or -30 C (4 °D) in the city. The summers are wet and dry, with highs of -30°C and lows of -40 °C (5 °S) or higher. The temperature is warm and dry in the winters.

Demographics

Hoonah is the principal village for the Huna Tlingit who originally settled Glacier Bay, Icy Strait, Cross Sound, and the Outer Coast. As of the census of 2000, there were 860 people, 300 households, and 215 families residing in the city. The former Hoonah Air Force Station, once a White Alice Communications System facility during the Cold War, is now the start point of a zip-line, one of the longest in the world. The old fish cannery, which ceased operations in the 1950s, was obtained by theHuna Totem Corporation (HTC), the village ANCSA Corporation. The cruise ship passengers, visiting fishing vessels, and summertime boaters who dock in the Hoonsah city small boat harbor, all bring revenue to the city in the warm-weather season. The mild weather attracts tourists much like that of Seattle, attracts tourists to Seattle, and Hoonshah is a popular destination for whale-watchers. The city is located on the Alaskan Aleutian island of Kodiak, which is home to the Kodiak Inuit people. The Kodiak-Alaskan Inuit population is the largest in the Aleut population, followed by the Inuit of the Cook Inlet, who are the second-largest in the state. The Inuit are the majority of the population of the city, with the Inupiat making up the third-largest group of residents. The town has a population of 860, with 348 housing units.

Transportation

Hoonah, being an island community, is only accessible by boat or plane. The city of Hoonah operates a small boat harbor, a large vessel mooring harbor and a new boat haul-out facility. The Alaska Department of Transportation built a new ferry facility that opened in early 2001. The airport offers service via bush carrier Alaska Seaplanes which offers multiple flights a day. Connections can be made in Juneau with Alaska Airlines for regional and interstate travel or to other bush carriers traveling to remote villages or communities from Juneau. The airport is planned for expansion to better allow military C-130s from the Coast Guard and Air National Guard to land in Hoonsah. The ferry service has traditionally offered residents a slower but more dependable and cheaper option to travel to and from Hoonshah to Juneau and other local communities. It is also possible to take the Alaska Marine Highway with the M/V LeConte with recent gaps in coverage due to state funding and needed repair work. There are no airports on the island, but there is a small airport in the town of Juneau, which is home to the state's only airline, Alaska Airlines. There is no ferry service on the Alaskan mainland, but a small ferry service is available to the mainland with the Alaska Seaplane service. The island has a population of about 2,000. It also has a small harbor, and a large boat haul out facility. It has no airport, but the airport has a 3,000-foot (910 m) runway.

Infrastructure

Hoonah has a K-12 school with approximately 120 students. The police department has a five-bed jail and employs four paid police officers, along with volunteer reserve officers. The Hoonah volunteer Emergency Medical Service (EMS) was recognized by the state of Alaska in 2009 for excellence. The city is an Alaskan first class city and provides all municipal services including police, utilities and road maintenance. Plans are underway to build a new jail. The Alaska State Troopers have an office post in Hoonsah, with one "brown shirt" wildlife enforcement trooper-pilot posted there. the Hoonshah Indian Association maintains a tribal office, a senior citizens center and other services to local tribal members. In 2015, a local brewery was established under the name Hoonsshah Brewing Company. the city also maintains a city park, built in 2010 near the harbor, and a youth activity center. the Alaska Courts maintain a court house in Hoonhah for district court, presided over by a magistrate. There are two grocery stores, a fuel dealership, hardware store, bar, hotel and restaurant-bar, two cafes, an auto service center, several gift shops, several bed and breakfasts, a U.S. post office and a regional Forest Service office for Tongass National Forest, a fish processing facility and a sporting goods store. It is located near the Tongass River, which runs through the center of the city. It has a population of about 3,000.

Health care

The SEARHC Hoonah Health Center is the primary health clinic in the community. It is open daily for basic and urgent care, and offers assistance after hours in emergency situations. Bartlett Regional Hospital in Juneau, roughly 40 miles away (or an approximately 20 minute flight), is the nearest hospital. Because no roads lead in or out, individuals in need of dire medical attention are often airlifted to Juneau or Sitka via air ambulance or Coast Guard helicopter. The community is also served by local Emergency Medical Service. The volunteer EMS team retains two fully functioning ambulances as well as a modified ambulance for off-road emergencies. In the summer of 2015, the health center was moved to a new, larger facility. The facility operates as part of the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (orSEARHC). It is located in the town of Hoonsah, Alaska, about 40 miles north of Juneau in the Alaskan Shield region of the Alaska Peninsula. The health center is located on a former logging site that was abandoned in the 1970s and 1980s. The current facility was built in the early 1990s. It was the first of its kind in the state and is located near the town's airport. It has been in operation since the 1990s and is now part of a larger regional health consortium. It offers services such as primary and emergency care, mental health services, and other health care services. The clinic is open to the public on a rotational basis and is open 24 hours a day.

Religion

Hoonah has eight churches. The city is home to the U.S. Army's Center for Worship and Service. Hoonah is also home to a Pentecostal and a Lutheran church. The town is also the home of the Salvation Army Corps and the Harbor of Faith Lutheran Church. It also has a Baptist and an Assemblies of God church. It is the site of a U.N. World Heritage Site. It was also the location of a World War II memorial. It has been home to an Army base since the 1950s and a Baptist church since the 1960s. It's also the birthplace of U.A.W.C.E. and the United States Air Force base. It had a population of 3,000 when it was founded in 1881. It now has 4,000 people and has a growth rate of 1.5% to 4.5%. It is also known as the "Town of God" and "The Town of Jesus Christ" in the Bible Belt. The community is known for its strong Christian heritage. The area has a large percentage of members of the United Methodist Church and a large number of Pentacostal churches. It also has a small number of churches of its own, including a United Presbyterian and a United PentecOSTal church. In addition to the churches, the town has a number of non-denominational churches, such as St. Nicholas Eastern Orthodox and Harbor of faith Lutheran churches.

Bibliography

Dombrowski, Kirk (2001) Against Culture: Development, Politics, and Religion in Indian Alaska. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press. The book was published in the U.S. in 2001, but has not yet been published in Canada. It is available in English and in Spanish, with an emphasis on the Spanish language. It has been translated into English and published in 2003, with a focus on the language of the Alaskan Alaskans.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Hoonah, Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, Alaska = 99. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 84. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 100. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Hoonah = 1.5 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Hoonah = 60.3 inches and the annual snowfall = 56.6 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 214. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 85. 64 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 18.4 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 85, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Hoonah, Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, Alaska which are owned by the occupant = 56.23%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 34 years with median home cost = $139,990 and home appreciation of -1.19%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $5.67 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $15,343 per student. There are 13.7 students for each teacher in the school, 78 students for each Librarian and 129 students for each Counselor. 4.09% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 12.04% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 3.44% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).