News

Homer council takes steps to help homeless

Planning and zoning issues dominated discussion Monday night at the Homer City Council’s regular meeting. With temperatures falling earlier this month below zero, one proposed… Continue reading

Musher Wade Marrs reached out for a high five from a spectator as he and his team take off from the starting line of the Tustumena 200 Sled Dog Race on Saturday, Jan. 28, 2017 in Kasilof, Alaska. Marrs and 22 other teams will travel through the Caribou Hills down to Homer and back in the 200-mile race. (Megan Pacer/Peninsula Clarion)

Off and running: Tustumena 200 back on the trails

Editor's note: This story has been updated to correct the number of years the Tustumena 200 race was canceled. Twenty-three mushers and their canine teams… Continue reading

Musher Wade Marrs reached out for a high five from a spectator as he and his team take off from the starting line of the Tustumena 200 Sled Dog Race on Saturday, Jan. 28, 2017 in Kasilof, Alaska. Marrs and 22 other teams will travel through the Caribou Hills down to Homer and back in the 200-mile race. (Megan Pacer/Peninsula Clarion)

Central Peninsula Hospital receives detox center grant

The central Kenai Peninsula will get its first detox center with a kickstart from a state grant. Central Peninsula Hospital in Soldotna will get $500,000… Continue reading

Setnetters make their way back to the beach near a site on July 11, 2016 near Kenai, Alaska. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file)

Setnetters seek looser restrictions from fish board

Editor's note: This article has been corrected to show that setnetter Gary Hollier is an advocate of cutting net depth. Some east side Cook Inlet… Continue reading

Setnetters make their way back to the beach near a site on July 11, 2016 near Kenai, Alaska. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file)
Rep. Matt Claman, D-Anchorage, Chair of the House Judiciary Committee presents a question to Rep. Jason Grenn, I-Anchorage, during his introduction of HB 44 in the at the Capitol on Friday. HB 44 would require a legislator to abstain from taking or withholding official action or exerting official influence that could benefit or harm an immediate family member or certain employers. Rep. Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins, D-Sitka, is seen in the background. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

New lawmaker squarely targets Legislature’s conflicts of interest

Ray Metcalfe sat at a desk next to a wallet full of million-dollar bills and asked Alaska lawmakers to curtail corruption. On Friday, members of… Continue reading

Rep. Matt Claman, D-Anchorage, Chair of the House Judiciary Committee presents a question to Rep. Jason Grenn, I-Anchorage, during his introduction of HB 44 in the at the Capitol on Friday. HB 44 would require a legislator to abstain from taking or withholding official action or exerting official influence that could benefit or harm an immediate family member or certain employers. Rep. Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins, D-Sitka, is seen in the background. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

AOGCC offers alternate proposal for fracking permit comments

After hearing a request to make hydraulic fracturing permits subject to public hearings and comment, the state oil and gas regulatory oversight group Alaska Oil… Continue reading

Walker’s office tweaks hiring restriction policy

By BECKY BOHRER Associated Press JUNEAU — Gov. Bill Walker’s office has tweaked its policy on state agency hiring restrictions, shifting decision-making authority from Walker’s… Continue reading

  • Jan 26, 2017

Alaska Natives to protect land for California carbon program

By RACHEL D’ORO Associated Press ANCHORAGE — An undeveloped Alaska coal field, California’s offsets for carbon pollution and thousands of acres of forest are the… Continue reading

  • Jan 26, 2017

It’s happening: Tustumena 200 gets to 30th anniversary after 4 tries

The 30th anniversary of the Tustumena 200 Sled Dog Race has been a long time coming — in fact it’s four years overdue. Where race… Continue reading

AOGCC to hold hearing on fracking notice proposal

Alaska’s oil and gas regulatory oversight body, the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, is required to make public the locations, depth and operating data… Continue reading

Victim of Sunday night shooting identified

Alaska State Troopers have identified the victim of a shooting during a home invasion near Soldotna on Sunday night. Soldotna resident Daniel Arthur Galloway, 49,… Continue reading

A volunteer Alaska Moose Federation driver removes a dead moose from the Kenai Spur Highway on Dec. 13, 2013 in Kenai, Alaska. (Rashah McChesney/Peninsula Clarion/File)

Moose-vehicle collisions on track with average for peninsula

One of the Kenai Peninsula’s most iconic animals for hunting and viewing is also the one of the most accident prone. About 250 moose are… Continue reading

A volunteer Alaska Moose Federation driver removes a dead moose from the Kenai Spur Highway on Dec. 13, 2013 in Kenai, Alaska. (Rashah McChesney/Peninsula Clarion/File)
Debara and Frank Kassik inspect their new awards from the 2017 Great Alaska Beer and Barley Wine Festival alongside their award from the same festival last year Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2017 at Kassik’s Brewery in North Kenai, Alaska. The couple won 1st place this year for their Buffalo Head Barley Wine, and 1st place in the winter seasonal category for their Barrel Aged Statny Statny. (Megan Pacer/Peninsula Clarion)

Kassik’s takes top prizes at beer, barley wine fest

When Debara and Frank Kassik opened a brewery in North Kenai in 2006, they said some were not shy about sharing their doubts. Frank Kassik,… Continue reading

Debara and Frank Kassik inspect their new awards from the 2017 Great Alaska Beer and Barley Wine Festival alongside their award from the same festival last year Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2017 at Kassik’s Brewery in North Kenai, Alaska. The couple won 1st place this year for their Buffalo Head Barley Wine, and 1st place in the winter seasonal category for their Barrel Aged Statny Statny. (Megan Pacer/Peninsula Clarion)

New plaintiff to join lawsuit against borough

The lawsuit against the Kenai Peninsula Borough over its assembly invocation policy is on its way back to state court, with a new plaintiff. The… Continue reading

Sandra Groller gets a massage from Caitlin Sparks, the owner of Kenai Peninsula Massage Therapy, at the Project Homeless Connect event at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex on Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2017 in Soldotna, Alaska. Sparks, who shared a booth with Heather Rasch of Mountain Magic Massage, was one of 34 providing services to those experiencing homelessness or near homelessness at the event, now in its 6th year. By noon, vendors said things had started off a little slow but were beginning to pick up, and some who had been there multiple years said they were seeing some new faces. Services included haircuts, massages, blood pressure checks, job searches and hot meals, among others, all for free. Attendees could get taxi rides to the event, pick up free coats, boots, hats and food to take home. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Making connections

Sandra Groller gets a massage from Caitlin Sparks, the owner of Kenai Peninsula Massage Therapy, at the Project Homeless Connect event at the Soldotna Regional… Continue reading

Sandra Groller gets a massage from Caitlin Sparks, the owner of Kenai Peninsula Massage Therapy, at the Project Homeless Connect event at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex on Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2017 in Soldotna, Alaska. Sparks, who shared a booth with Heather Rasch of Mountain Magic Massage, was one of 34 providing services to those experiencing homelessness or near homelessness at the event, now in its 6th year. By noon, vendors said things had started off a little slow but were beginning to pick up, and some who had been there multiple years said they were seeing some new faces. Services included haircuts, massages, blood pressure checks, job searches and hot meals, among others, all for free. Attendees could get taxi rides to the event, pick up free coats, boots, hats and food to take home. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

University of Alaska weighs options for academic programs

FAIRBANKS (AP) — The University of Alaska has released dozens of options for restructuring academic and administrative programs as part of its ongoing budget review… Continue reading

Alaska state Rep. Geran Tarr speaks to reporters during the House majority’s weekly news conference on Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2017, in Juneau, Alaska. Tarr has introduced legislation that seeks to temporarily bar access to guns by people deemed by a judge to be a danger to themselves or others. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)

Lawmaker proposes gun bill after airport shooting

JUNEAU — A deadly airport shooting in Florida has helped spur a bill in Alaska that would allow authorities to temporarily take away guns from… Continue reading

Alaska state Rep. Geran Tarr speaks to reporters during the House majority’s weekly news conference on Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2017, in Juneau, Alaska. Tarr has introduced legislation that seeks to temporarily bar access to guns by people deemed by a judge to be a danger to themselves or others. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)
FILE 0 This Feb. 9, 2016, file photo, shows a million-pound drilling rig looming in the distance at the CD5 drilling site on Alaska’s North Slope in Nuiqsut, Alaska. Six of the country’s major energy-producing states have slipped into recession after a sharp decline in production and exploration over the last 18 months caused their tax revenue to plummet, according to a financial analysis released Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2017. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen, File)

S&P: Downturn in energy production hits budgets in 6 states

Six of the country’s major energy-producing states have slipped into recession after a sharp decline in production and exploration over the last 18 months caused… Continue reading

  • Jan 24, 2017
  • By CHRISTINA A. CASSIDY
FILE 0 This Feb. 9, 2016, file photo, shows a million-pound drilling rig looming in the distance at the CD5 drilling site on Alaska’s North Slope in Nuiqsut, Alaska. Six of the country’s major energy-producing states have slipped into recession after a sharp decline in production and exploration over the last 18 months caused their tax revenue to plummet, according to a financial analysis released Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2017. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen, File)
Oil and gas subsidy debate, which sank budget deal last year, is poised to return

Oil and gas subsidy debate, which sank budget deal last year, is poised to return

An issue that sank plans for a budget fix in 2016 will soon resurface in the Alaska Legislature. A bill addressing North Slope oil and… Continue reading

Oil and gas subsidy debate, which sank budget deal last year, is poised to return
This Oct. 17, 2016 photo shows exposed cottonwood tree roots after European nightcrawler earthworms and two other earthworm species ate through the upper soil layers near Stormy Lake in Nikiski, Alaska. (Photo courtesy Matt Bowser/Kenai National Wildlife Refuge)

Coho salmon adapt to chow down on earthworms

Baby coho salmon have to last all winter in Kenai Peninsula streams without much to eat, but in recent years, they’ve been getting a new… Continue reading

This Oct. 17, 2016 photo shows exposed cottonwood tree roots after European nightcrawler earthworms and two other earthworm species ate through the upper soil layers near Stormy Lake in Nikiski, Alaska. (Photo courtesy Matt Bowser/Kenai National Wildlife Refuge)