JUNEAU, AK – The Central Council of the Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska (Tlingit & Haida) announced all buildings have reopened to the public following a closure issued in March 2020.“The Tribal Emergency Operation Center [TEOC] is confident in the safety protocols we have set in place to protect Tlingit & Haida staff as well as the public coming into our buildings,” said Jason Wilson, Incident Commander of the TEOC. “Serving as the Incident Commander over this past year, I have been continually impressed by our staff and their resiliency to keep serving our citizens through this pandemic. I know we are all glad to see our tribal citizens walk in our doors again and are looking forward to moving safely into normalcy.”
Under the Tribe’s Back to Office plan, we are requesting that visitors limit the number of people in their party. Upon arrival, guests will be required to complete a health screening at the visitor checkpoint with a security guard and will be issued a visitor badge. Those who do not wish to declare if they’ve been vaccinated will be asked to wear a mask.
“On behalf of all our staff at Tlingit & Haida, we are excited to finally see our tribal citizens in person again,” said President Richard Chalyee Éesh Peterson. “We’ve overcome a year full of surprises and difficulties, but we have come out stronger together. As Tlingit and Haida people, we are used to being near each other and this whole pandemic experience has been so unnatural for us. I am grateful for the vaccines and all those who helped distribute them because we can finally hug, laugh and cry together.”
Due to the alert levels remaining low in Juneau, Tlingit & Haida entered Phase III of its Back to Office plan which returned all employees to their primary office location. To ensure tribal citizens and the general public remain healthy and safe, stringent sanitization protocols have been implemented at all buildings including entrances, communal areas and personal office spaces. Employees are also required to adhere to building safety & security procedures, work in a way that promotes physical distancing and are encouraged to wear a mask if unvaccinated.
