Juneau Daily News Online

Thursday,  January 24, 2002

Olympic Flame greeted by large crowds along route in Juneau
The Olympic Flame is made its way from Juneau's airport to Centennial Hall for a torch lighting ceremony this morning and received a raucous welcoming along the route, including from the crowd on the steps of the State Capitol which had state lawmakers among its number.

The flame was carried part of the way aboard a Tlingit canoe from the Goldbelt Dock to the Intermediate vessel dock before it was picked up again on shore. It was delivered to its eventual destination by torchbearer Marian Koelsch who brought it inside Centennial Hall.

Governor Tony Knowles and First Lady Susan Knowles were in front of the Governor's Mansion to watch the torch relay. The Governor called it a great day for Alaska as the state helps the rest of the nation in opening the Winter Olympics.

Fifty - one torchbearers brought the flame from the airport to Centennial Hall beginning at 8:30 this morning. The flame reached Centennial Hall shortly before Noon.

Two of the four flames arrived in Juneau last night aboard Alaska Airlines flight 69. That was a departure from the original plan. All four flames from Greece were originally scheduled to come in at about midnight last night on a chartered Delta Skywest flight. The change was made because of the inclement weather in Juneau and the ability of the charter flight to land under such conditions. The Alaska flight was equipped with GPS navigation. As it turns out, the chartered flight was also able to land.

To assure that the Olympic Flame is not extinguished between the time it is lit on Mount Olympus in Greece and when it lights the cauldron in Salt Lake City, four separate flames are kept burning.

Its the first time the Olympic flame has traveled to Alaska.

Mayors outline local government priorities in "State of Municipalities" address
Local government leaders from around the state are in the Capital today. The Conference of Mayors' "State of the Municipalities" address was held this afternoon.

Wasilla Mayor Sarah Palin, President of the Alaska Conference of Mayors, and Ketchikan Mayor Jack Shay, the President of the Alaska Municipal League, advocated for two key issues during their presentation. Those included action on a long range fiscal plan and state bonding for infrastructure repair and improvements.

Heyworth running for Lieutenant Governor
Gas pipeline activist Scott Heyworth has announced he's running for Lieutenant Governor. Heyworth, a longshoreman by trade, led an effort to put a gas line initiative on the ballot. Now he's seeking the Democratic nomination for Lieutenant Governor.

Heyworth says he can work on issues other than the gas line, although he feels it is the most important one right now. The All-Alaska gas line initiative has not been certified yet, though Heyworth thinks it probably will. He hasn't decided whether to run both campaigns, or let someone else lead the initiative fight this fall.

The Knowles - Ulmer Administration has mostly ignored Heyworth's call for an All-Alaska gas line, favoring a route through Canada instead. Still, Heyworth says he could work with Ulmer who is seeking the Democratic nomination for Governor.

Man cited for illegal crab fishing in Hoonah area
A Tacoma, Washington, man was cited by Fish and Wildlife Troopers in Hoonah this week for negligent commercial fishing.

35 year old Brian Pukis was on board the fishing vessel Orion Tuesday when he was cited.. Its alleged he was fishing during a closed season for dungeness crab and failed to remove over 200 crab pots. The season in Freshwater Bay and Tenakee Inlet closed November 30th.

Arraignment is scheduled in Hoonah District Court February 20th.

Vote on alcohol tax delayed
The House Finance Committee has postponed action on a bill introduced last year that calls for increasing the tax on alcohol by a dime.

Committee Co-Chair Bill Williams says he delayed the bill because two committee members won't be able to attend. The bill was scheduled for committee action today.

Williams said during a press briefing yesterday that he now wants to bring the bill up for a committee vote even though he doesn't support the increased tax. The bill hasn't been rescheduled yet.

House Bill 225 is sponsored by Anchorage Representative Lisa Murkowski.

Snow piles up in Juneau
More snow was in store for Juneau today. The National Weather Service expected three more inches and possibly another inch tonight.

That's in addition to the 6 to 10 inches on the ground already in the borough. Up to 14 inches was reported at Tee Harbor and over a foot at Lena Point.

Dan Moller trail system reopened
The Juneau Ranger District has re-opened the Dan Moller Trail system to snowmobile and ATV users and cross country skiers.

The agency's Ron Marvin says they made that decision after surveying the area earlier this week. He advises trail users to be aware of storm warnings and avalanche danger along some parts of the trail system.

State airports pursuing funding for digital fingerprinting devices
Alaska's largest state-owned airports are seeking federal money to purchase digital fingerprinting machines and to perform criminal background checks on employees. The state wants more than a million dollars to pay for electronic fingerprinting equipment for 17 state-owned rural airports across the state, and for Anchorage and Fairbanks.

Professors have tentative deal with university
Adjunct professors at the University of Alaska have reached a tentative collective bargaining agreement with the school. Details of the deal will not be released until it is formally approved by union members and the U-A Board of Regents. The agreement would be effective through December 31, 2004.

Bristol Bay cannery won't open this year
Another sign of troubled times in the commercial fishing industry. Trident Seafoods says it won't be opening its plant in South Naknek this summer. The company usually employs between 150 and 200 people at that plant during the summer.

Object of new clam regulations questioned
Processors of geoduck (GOO-eeh-duck) clams say revised state regulations may NOT be helping the industry as much as expected.

The new regulations were meant to allow for more selling of live geoducks in areas of Alaska where paralytic shellfish poisoning has historically been low.

But fleet manager John Scoblic says the program was in effect for only three days this season at Norquest Seafoods in Ketchikan before it had to be shut down. He says it was shut down after a test came back positive.

The inability to sell live geoducks because of the danger of paralytic shellfish poisoning has been a problem for Alaska fishermen for several years. That's because live geoducks sell for much more than processed geoducks.

While there's been no record of illness associated with paralytic shellfish poisoning in geoducks, there is concern that it could cause problems because it has in other clam species.

Alaska has very strict laws concerning geoducks. Laws in British Columbia and Washington allow all clams to be shipped live. If a test comes back positive, the area is closed for a period of time.

Kodiak man arrested in shooting incident
A Kodiak man has been charged with first-degree attempted murder after a shot was fired in a residential portion of the city Tuesday afternoon. Kodiak police arrested 50-year-old Domi Ganotisi (gan-oh-TEE'-see). Police say they responded to a disturbance involving two men and that Ganotisi fired at the other man. The other man was not injured.

Native leaders voice concern on handling of trust accounts
Alaska Natives got a chance to express their concerns about federal management of Indian trust accounts with an Interior Department official yesterday. Neal McCaleb, the Assistant Interior Secretary for Indian Affairs met with Alaska tribal leaders in Anchorage yesterday.

                                                          ©  Alaska Juneau Communications - KINY Radio News)