Alaska news

• Flights grounded for Obama stop in Alaska

  20-05-2016 23:17
  
  President Obama dances with and greets students at Dillingham Middle School on Wednesday, Sept. 2. Photo: Eric Keto/Alaska Public Media.President Obama is coming back to Alaska. But only for a few hours.
  Aviators in Southcentral Alaska are being asked to observe a temporary flight restriction Saturday evening, between 4:00 and 7:15 p.m. According to a newsletter from the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, the restrictions are due to a presidential visit.
  A notice to airmen from the Federal
  
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• Tudor, Old Seward intersection closed through at least part of Saturday

  20-05-2016 23:01
  The intersection of Tudor Road and the Old Seward Highway will remain closed through at least part of Saturday as crews repair a broken water main.
  Alaska Water and Wastewater Utility spokesperson Chris Kosinski says repair crews had to bring in heavier equipment late Thursday to excavate the affected portion of the water main.
  “We’ve exposed the pipe and it has about a fist-sized hole in it,” Kosinski said.
  Kosinski says the puncture occurred when a contractor working for
  
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• State, Southeast Conference agree to rework ferry system

  20-05-2016 23:00
  
  The state and a regional development group are combining forces to come up with a new business and management plan for the Alaska Marine Highway System.
  Gov. Bill Walker shakes hands with Southeast Conference President Gary White on Thursday at the Auke Bay Ferry terminal after signing an agreement to consider changes to Marine highway management. Transportation Commissioner Marc Luiken, left, Lt. Gov. Byron Mallott, second from left, and ferry Capt. Mike Neussl, right, look on. (Photo by E
  
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• After oil: Looking for Alaska 2.0

  20-05-2016 23:00
  
  Heather Kelly, born and raised in Bird Creek, founded Heather’s Choice, a company that provides food for adventurers. This is one of the five companies chosen for the Launch : Alaska accelerator this summer. (Photo courtesy of Heather’s Choice)We know Alaska will diversify over time, and entrepreneurs are stepping up now to get that ball rolling.
  Launch : Alaska is an Alaska non-profit business accelerator for start-ups. It got going last September with a board of local and regional
  
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• New tribal court programs aim to reduce recidivism

  20-05-2016 22:47
  
  Two new tribal court programs are getting off the ground at Central Council Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska. They’re focused on reducing recidivism.
  The Andrew Hope Building is the new location of Central Council’s tribal court, which is located on the third floor. Elizabeth Peratrovich Hall is on the first floor. (Photo by Elizabeth Jenkins,KTOO – Juneau)At the Elizabeth Peratrovich Hall — the new location of Central Council’s tribal court &mdas
  
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• AK: Palmer, where the bison roam

  20-05-2016 22:28
  
  Earlier this month, President Obama signed into law the National Bison Legacy Act, making the American bison the nation’s official mammal. The unusual legislation has no other purpose than to make bison.. more commonly referred to as buffalo.. another national symbol. Surprisingly, Alaska has four small but thriving bison herds of its own, established years ago for now obscure reasons. Although the president’s endorsement does little more than highlight an American icon, it sparks ne
  
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• The Permanent Fund and the budget

  20-05-2016 22:00
  
  “There is no perfect plan, other than the plan that gets done,” Walker said. “The worst plan [is] the plan of doing nothing, and continuing on the course that we are on.” Photo: Rachel Waldholz/APRNLawmakers couldn’t pass a budget plan during 121 days of regular session and will now try to break the gridlock in a special session. All current proposals include using permanent fund earnings to fill the deficit. But the idea of the permanent fund is that it will be&hel
  
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• Coupleship – Keeping Love Alive

  20-05-2016 21:00
  
  Image Courtesy: Clipart PandaA healthy marriage is good for a couples’ mental and physical health and helps to protect children from developing emotional and behavioral problems. Yet with almost 50% of new marriages ending in divorce, it is clear that marriage is not always easy. Please join host Prentiss Pemberton and his guests from the Couples Center of Alaska as they discuss the challenges of sustaining long term relationships and explore the habits and pr
  
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• Happy Cannabis moves forward with retail store construction.

  20-05-2016 20:14
  
  The owner of Diamond C Café and Happy Cannabis is moving forward with construction of a proposed marijuana business in Wrangell’s commercial district. Owner Kelsey Martinsen hopes he will receive conditional use permits for cultivating and manufacturing marijuana marijuana, as well as a retail store.
  “We are right now constructing the retail because we’re pretty sure we have that. There hasn’t been a fight over that,” Martinsen said.
  Martinsen’s op
  
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• Falling Oil Prices: What Norway Is Doing and Recommendations for Alaskans and Other Arctic Countries

  20-05-2016 20:00
  
  Norwegian Ambassador Kare Aas spoke to the Anchorage Chamber of Commerce on May 16, 2016. Photo: Rachel Waldholz/APRN
  Norwegian Ambassador to the United States, Kåre R. Aas,  visited Alaska and spoke on what the Norway oil and gas community is doing, insight into how they combat falling oil prices and recommendations for Alaskans and other Arctic countries.Included here is the slide presentation that the Ambassador refers to during his speech:
  2016-05-16 Aas at Anchora
  
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• 49 Voices: Greg Martinez of Anchorage

  20-05-2016 20:00
  
  This week we’re hearing from Greg Martinez in Anchorage. Martinez is a UPS worker who moved to Anchorage from New York 12 years ago.
  Greg Martinez of Anchorage (Photo by Wesley Early, Alaska Public Media – Anchorage)MARTINEZ: I’m a married man, you know. I’ve got my daughter. She’s nine, and my son is four. They get to enjoy the woods, the lakes and the snow, mountains the animals. You’ll see them driving around, seeing a moose or an eagle anywhere. I think th
  
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• Alaska News Nightly: May 19, 2016

  20-05-2016 03:38
  
  
  Stories are posted on the APRN news page. You can subscribe to APRN’s newsfeeds via email, podcast and RSS. Follow us on Facebook at alaskapublic.org and on Twitter @aprn
  Download Audio
  Numerous bills remain up in the air as legislators prepare for special session
  Andrew Kitchenman, KTOO – Juneau
  Governor Bill Walker called the Legislature into a special session that begins Monday to finish the work lawmakers failed to complete d
  
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• Do Arctic villages need oil? Point Lay leaders say no

  20-05-2016 03:08
  
  
  BOEM director Abigail Ross Hopper and Wainwright Mayor John Hopson prepare to testify before the Senate Energy Committee. Photo: Liz Ruskin/APRN.If oil companies are ever going to return to drill for oil in federal waters of the Arctic, they will need leases. Sen. Lisa Murkowski complained at a hearing in Washington this afternoon that the leasing plan the feds are considering is too limited. She bolstered her position by calling on an Arctic Slope mayor, who testified that he and his neighbors
  
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• Numerous bills remain up in the air as legislators prepare for special session

  20-05-2016 02:56
  
  Governor Bill Walker called the Legislature into a special session that begins Monday to finish the work lawmakers failed to complete during the 121-day session that ended Wednesday.
  Governor Walker has requested a complete overhaul of the state’s oil and gas tax credit program (Photo by Skip Gray, 360 North)But big differences remain over the how to pay for the state’s budget. And it’s not clear how lawmakers will overcome challenges in the 30-day special session that the
  
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• Alaska lawmakers staring down government shutdown after session ends in disarray and defeat - Alaska Dispatch News

  20-05-2016 02:50
  SitNews
  Alaska lawmakers staring down government shutdown after session ends in disarray and defeat
  Alaska Dispatch News
  JUNEAU — With a state government shutdown six weeks away, Alaska lawmakers will now have a special session for their second try at passing a budget and deficit-reduction legislation after the four-month regular session ended in disarray and defeat ...
  GOVERNOR CALLS FOURTH SPECIAL SESSION OF THE 29th ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURESitNews
  Alaska News Nightly: Wednesday, M
  
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• Cruise ship towns concerned for financial future due to state budget proposals

  20-05-2016 02:36
  
  The Alaska Legislature failed to pass a budget Wednesday and will reconvene in special session next week. One proposal that was recently passed in conference committee and could come back in the special session has leaders in cruise ship port communities concerned.  The measure would leave those towns without millions of dollars they normally receive from state head-tax revenues.
  Cruise ships loom over Skagway’s Broadway Street. (Photo courtesy of Skagway CVB)Scott Hahn is borough man
  
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• Federal grant helps Newtok village relocate due to erosion of Ningliq River

  20-05-2016 02:04
  
  Relocation efforts continue for what many consider America’s first climate refugees. Newtok, a community of over 300 people in Southwest Alaska, has been eroding into the Ningliq River for decades. This week the village received an almost million-dollar federal grant to help with its move.
  The new site won’t have a power grid, water treatment plant, or sewage lagoon for years. So buildings moved or constructed there must function independently.
  The grant from the U.S. Department of H
  
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• Yukon king salmon run predicted to be weaker than average this year

  20-05-2016 01:54
  
  State and federal fishery managers have released the 2016 outlook for salmon runs in the Yukon River drainage.
  “Chinook salmon, Yukon Delta NWR.” Photo: Craig Springer, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Via Flickr Creative Commons.The Yukon king run is again expected to come back weaker than average this year, with a similar array of fishing restrictions as years past. No commercial fishing opportunities are planned, and subsistence fishing will be significantly r
  
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• Two schoolgirls win contest to name two new ferries

  20-05-2016 01:39
  
  The winners of Alaska’s “Name The New Ferry” contest didn’t know about it until they got a call from Gov. Bill Walker and Lt. Gov. Byron Mallott.
  Governor Walker and Lt. Governor Mallot congratulate ferry-naming winners via Skype (Photo courtesy of the Alaska Department of Transportation)Tuesday’s announcement revealed that one would be the Tazlina and the other the Hubbard.
  Most classrooms don’t get this kind of call:
  “I’m Gov. Bill Walk
  
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• All caskets verified after confusion at Nome city morgue

  20-05-2016 01:29
  
  Confusion at the city morgue caused a back-and-forth Tuesday between the Nome Police Department and the City of Nome.
  The Nome Cemetery. (Photo by Laura Kraegel, KNOM -Nome)Tuesday night, Nome Police posted a message on Nome Announce, the community email thread, asking the public for assistance in identifying persons at the city morgue. Police Chief John Papasodora said the message was sent after police responded to a death investigation Tuesday afternoon.
  “When we transport
  
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• Water main break on Tudor and Old Seward diverts traffic

  20-05-2016 01:16
  
  A water main break at a busy midtown Anchorage intersection has stalled traffic, and fouled city streets. Anchorage police are warning drivers to avoid the Tudor Road and Old Seward highway area until further notice, and the traffic snarl my continue into commute hours.
  According to the Anchorage Water and Wastewater Utility (AWWU), an Anchorage contractor bored through a water main at Old Seward Highway and Tudor Road. The AWWU maintenance officials have responded and are working on isolating t
  
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• Legislation in motion to grant tribal entities health care facilities

  20-05-2016 00:50
  
  A U.S. House committee held a hearing Wednesday on legislation that would transfer federal lands in Tanana and Dillingham to tribal entities for health care facilities. HR 4289 would convey 11 acres in Tanana to the Tanana Tribal Council. Council Secretary Dorothy Jordan testified before the House Indian, Insular and Alaska Native Affairs subcommittee in support of transfer of the former Indian Health Service hospital site.
  ”The land transfer is essential to facilitating the future constru
  
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• Legislature passes bills for Alaska military projects

  20-05-2016 00:27
  
  The U.S. House and Senate have passed appropriations bills that include numerous Alaska military construction projects. A release from Representative Don Young’s office lists projects slated for 5 sites, including over $213 million at Eielson Air Force Base related to the planned basing of F-35 fighter jets. The F-35 projects include aircraft hangars, as well as field training, munitions storage, and missile maintenance facilities.
  An F-35 flies over Florida (U.S. Air Force photo)Alaska gr
  
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• Congress passes bills for Alaska military projects

  20-05-2016 00:27
  
  
  The U.S. House and Senate have passed appropriations bills that include numerous Alaska military construction projects. A release from Representative Don Young’s office lists projects slated for 5 sites, including over $213 million at Eielson Air Force Base related to the planned basing of F-35 fighter jets. The F-35 projects include aircraft hangars, as well as field training, munitions storage, and missile maintenance facilities.
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  An F-35 flies over Florida (U.S. Air Force
  
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