News

4.1-magnitude earthquake strikes Nikiski

A brief earthquake rattled Nikiski on Labor Day, though not everyone felt the shaking. The U.S. Geological Survey reported an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude… Continue reading

This October 2015 photo provided by the U.S. Department of Justice shows a protest staged in front of Tobacco Distress, a Soldotna-area store then allegedly selling the synthetic cannabis drug Spice near Soldotna, Alaska. Tobacco Distress owner Phillip Kneeland was sentenced to 70 months in prison Friday for selling the drug, which caused a number of people on the Kenai Peninsula to be taken to the hospital after taking it. (Photo courtesy the U.S. Department of Justice)

Soldotna man sentenced to 70 months of prison for selling Spice

A Soldotna man has been sentenced to 70 months in prison after being convicted of charged related to selling the illegal drug Spice through his… Continue reading

This October 2015 photo provided by the U.S. Department of Justice shows a protest staged in front of Tobacco Distress, a Soldotna-area store then allegedly selling the synthetic cannabis drug Spice near Soldotna, Alaska. Tobacco Distress owner Phillip Kneeland was sentenced to 70 months in prison Friday for selling the drug, which caused a number of people on the Kenai Peninsula to be taken to the hospital after taking it. (Photo courtesy the U.S. Department of Justice)

Cannabis proposition pro- and con- take different approaches

Editor's note: This story has been changed to remove an incorrect statistic about the outcome of the 2014 statewide vote to legalize marijuana in the Kenai… Continue reading

Trio triumphs at Triumvirate

Trio triumphs at Triumvirate

Guitarist Lisa Pimentel of LA rock trio No Small Children performs on Friday, September 1, 2017 at the Triumvirate Theatre in north Kenai, Alaska. Pimentel,… Continue reading

Trio triumphs at Triumvirate

Kenai River silver salmon derby a go

The Kenai River silver salmon derby is set to go in two weeks after a long back-and-forth between the state and the two groups hosting… Continue reading

In an Aug. 9 photo, director Charles Baird, left, director of photography Michael Bergstrom, center, and sound man Andrew Wolfe film a scene from “Telltale” in Eagle River, Alaska. The film is one of two independent movies produced by Alaska filmmaker Charles Baird that were filmed in Eagle River the summer of 2017. (Kirsten Swann/Chugiak-Eagle River Star via AP)

Filmmakers bring Eagle River to the silver screen

By KIRSTEN SWANN Chugiak-Eagle River Star EAGLE RIVER (AP) — Eagle River is more than 2,000 miles away from Hollywood, but for a week or… Continue reading

  • Sep 4, 2017
In an Aug. 9 photo, director Charles Baird, left, director of photography Michael Bergstrom, center, and sound man Andrew Wolfe film a scene from “Telltale” in Eagle River, Alaska. The film is one of two independent movies produced by Alaska filmmaker Charles Baird that were filmed in Eagle River the summer of 2017. (Kirsten Swann/Chugiak-Eagle River Star via AP)
In an Aug. 4 photo, Father Ishmael Andrew, right, the new priest at St. Michael’s Orthodox Cathedral, and his family pose outside the Russian Bishop’s House in Sitka.(James Poulson/Daily Sitka Sentienl via AP)

Village priest finds a new calling in Sitka

SITKA (AP) — Father Ishmael Andrew is the new priest at St. Michael’s Cathedral in Sitka. He moved to the city earlier this month from… Continue reading

  • Sep 4, 2017
  • By Brielle Schaeffer
In an Aug. 4 photo, Father Ishmael Andrew, right, the new priest at St. Michael’s Orthodox Cathedral, and his family pose outside the Russian Bishop’s House in Sitka.(James Poulson/Daily Sitka Sentienl via AP)
Alaska Permanent Fund Corp. CEO Angela Rodell spoke with Journal staff during an hour-long interview Aug. 23 to reflect on how the state’s nest egg has grown to more than $60 billion and where it is going now that it’s nearly a foregone conclusion that the income will soon be used to fund government rather than just dividend checks. (Photo/Andrew Jensen/AJOC)

Rodell reflects on Fund at $60B milestone

The Permanent Fund is many things to many Alaskans. It’s the State of Alaska’s way of transforming finite resources into potentially perpetual wealth. It’s the… Continue reading

  • Sep 4, 2017
  • By ELWOOD BREHMER
Alaska Permanent Fund Corp. CEO Angela Rodell spoke with Journal staff during an hour-long interview Aug. 23 to reflect on how the state’s nest egg has grown to more than $60 billion and where it is going now that it’s nearly a foregone conclusion that the income will soon be used to fund government rather than just dividend checks. (Photo/Andrew Jensen/AJOC)

Alaska’s students failing, state tests show

More than half of Alaska’s schoolchildren are not proficient in math, science and English, according to the results of the state’s new standardized tests. According… Continue reading

This Aug. 31, 2017 photograph shows the reception area in the Care Transitions medical detox facility, operated by Central Peninsula Hospital in Soldotna, Alaska. The hospital obtained a state grant to purchase and renovate the facility, which provides medically supported withdrawal services for people detoxing from addictive substances including alcohol, opiates and heroin. (Photo courtesy Shari Conner/Central Peninsula Hospital Behavioral Health)

Hospital’s substance abuse detox center opens

There is a new bridge in Soldotna between the emergency room and residential rehab for those seeking to kick their substance addictions. One of the… Continue reading

This Aug. 31, 2017 photograph shows the reception area in the Care Transitions medical detox facility, operated by Central Peninsula Hospital in Soldotna, Alaska. The hospital obtained a state grant to purchase and renovate the facility, which provides medically supported withdrawal services for people detoxing from addictive substances including alcohol, opiates and heroin. (Photo courtesy Shari Conner/Central Peninsula Hospital Behavioral Health)

State allows marijuana businesses to apply for ‘Made in Alaska’ logos

The state-run “Made in Alaska” program is accepting applications from marijuana businesses. According to records obtained by the Empire via a state information act request,… Continue reading

Assembly candidates discuss Soldotna annexation

Two Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly candidates — incumbent Brett Hibbert and challenger Dan Castimore, both running to represent District 1, the Kalifornsky Beach area —… Continue reading

Leading a group of berry seekers, Janice Chumley of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service contrasts the tasty lingonberry (also known as lowbush cranberries) with the “edible but insipid” specimen of bunchberry dogwood in her right hand during an instructional walk on Monday, August 28, 2017 at Tsalteshi Trails near Soldotna, Alaska. The event was part of the fifth annual Harvest Moon Local Food Festival, which concluded Monday.

A tasty walk in the woods

Leading a group of berry seekers, Janice Chumley of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service contrasts the tasty lingonberry (also known as lowbush… Continue reading

Leading a group of berry seekers, Janice Chumley of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service contrasts the tasty lingonberry (also known as lowbush cranberries) with the “edible but insipid” specimen of bunchberry dogwood in her right hand during an instructional walk on Monday, August 28, 2017 at Tsalteshi Trails near Soldotna, Alaska. The event was part of the fifth annual Harvest Moon Local Food Festival, which concluded Monday.

Walker to call fourth special session

The Alaska Legislature will try to find a new hope in the fourth special session of the year. On Thursday morning, lawmakers were informed by… Continue reading

Trustee recommends Chapter 7 liquidation after Dispatch sale

A new filing in the Alaska Dispatch News bankruptcy case is an Aug. 30 request to liquidate Alice Rogoff’s corporate holdings after the purchase agreement… Continue reading

(From left) Lisa Pimentel, Joanie Pimentel and Nicola Berlinsky, the three members of Los Angeles-based rock outfit No Small Children, pose for a photo near the Burger Bus restaurant on Thursday, Aug. 31, 2017 in Kenai, Alaska. The three will perform at an assembly at Nikiski Middle-High School on Friday afternoon, followd by a show at 7 p.m. at the Triumvirate Theatre in North Kenai and another show at Alice’s Champagne Palace in Homer on Saturday. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

LA band No Small Children to peform 3 peninsula shows

Although the band playing Triumvirate Theatre on Friday night is called No Small Children, the members want to be very clear that children are allowed.… Continue reading

(From left) Lisa Pimentel, Joanie Pimentel and Nicola Berlinsky, the three members of Los Angeles-based rock outfit No Small Children, pose for a photo near the Burger Bus restaurant on Thursday, Aug. 31, 2017 in Kenai, Alaska. The three will perform at an assembly at Nikiski Middle-High School on Friday afternoon, followd by a show at 7 p.m. at the Triumvirate Theatre in North Kenai and another show at Alice’s Champagne Palace in Homer on Saturday. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)
In this September 2016 photo, mountains loom over Skilak Lake and its surrounding hills near Cooper Landing, Alaska. The U.S. Forest Service noted a sharp increase in spruce bark beetle activity in summer 2017 around Southcentral Alaska, including on the Kenai Peninsula, which lost millions of trees to an outbreak of the beetle infestations in the 1990s. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Spruce bark beetle activity spikes in Southcentral

Spruce bark beetle activity in Southcentral Alaska has jumped this summer, though it’s not as widespread as it was in the 1990s. The U.S. Forest… Continue reading

In this September 2016 photo, mountains loom over Skilak Lake and its surrounding hills near Cooper Landing, Alaska. The U.S. Forest Service noted a sharp increase in spruce bark beetle activity in summer 2017 around Southcentral Alaska, including on the Kenai Peninsula, which lost millions of trees to an outbreak of the beetle infestations in the 1990s. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)
Putting technology to work Mariana Livingston (standing) of Assistive Technology of Alaska guides Brad Rooker through demonstrations of a hearing device and software that enlarges and enhances the contrast of digital text for the visually impaired on Wednesday at the Kenai Senior Center. Livingston’s Anchorage-based group was one of four at the senior center to hold a health fair and one-on-one clinics for those interested in aid devices for vision, hearing, and mobility. Others included the Independent Living Center, the Alaska Center for the Blind, and the Kenai Centenial Savvy Lions Club, which offered free vision exams. Independent Living Center office manager Melissa Kline said the groups hope to hold the event annually in Kenai in the fall and at the Soldotna Senior Center in the spring. (Ben Boettger/Peninsula Clarion)

Seniors get demo of hearing and vision aids

Mariana Livingston (standing) of Assistive Technology of Alaska guides Brad Rooker through demonstrations of a hearing device and software that enlarges and enhances the contrast… Continue reading

Putting technology to work Mariana Livingston (standing) of Assistive Technology of Alaska guides Brad Rooker through demonstrations of a hearing device and software that enlarges and enhances the contrast of digital text for the visually impaired on Wednesday at the Kenai Senior Center. Livingston’s Anchorage-based group was one of four at the senior center to hold a health fair and one-on-one clinics for those interested in aid devices for vision, hearing, and mobility. Others included the Independent Living Center, the Alaska Center for the Blind, and the Kenai Centenial Savvy Lions Club, which offered free vision exams. Independent Living Center office manager Melissa Kline said the groups hope to hold the event annually in Kenai in the fall and at the Soldotna Senior Center in the spring. (Ben Boettger/Peninsula Clarion)
Two anglers work together to land a silver salmon from the steps on the fishing platform near the Soldotna Visitors Center on Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2017 in Soldotna, Alaska. The silver salmon fishing has been reportedly good throughout the Kenai River since early August, and silver salmon continue to enter the river throughout the fall. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Fishing report: Silver fishing keeps up quality on Kenai River

A draft morning schedule for a silver salmon angler: 4 a.m.: Alarm goes off. Pat self on back for packing tackle the evening before. 4:30… Continue reading

Two anglers work together to land a silver salmon from the steps on the fishing platform near the Soldotna Visitors Center on Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2017 in Soldotna, Alaska. The silver salmon fishing has been reportedly good throughout the Kenai River since early August, and silver salmon continue to enter the river throughout the fall. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Mayor advocates for ballot props to increase revenue

Kenai Peninsula voters will get to reconsider a tax measure that failed at the ballot box last year in the upcoming Oct. 3 election. The… Continue reading