Monday's snow halts Snettisham repair work
Repair crews were not able to continue their work Monday to repair the Snettisham line due to the heavy snowfall.

Scott Willis of Alaska Electric, Light and Power says low visibility caused by the storm was blamed.

With the new snow, he says avalanche danger is considerable. Crews will not be able to continue their work until avalanche control is done on the snow covered slopes.

And Willis says the avalanche control experts need a break in the weather. He says they could get that break today.

It's estimated that just three days of work remains before the line can be energized again.

Hydro power from Snettisham was choked off by an avalanche January 12th just like it was last April 16th.

It was initially stated repairs could be made within a month. That schedule was moved up to this week, but it was said then and reiterated today that it depends on weather.

Royal Caribbean shifts ship out of Alaska for 2010 season
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) -KINY- A decision by Royal Caribbean Cruises to shift a ship from Alaska to another destination for the 2010 season has state tourism officials calling for steps to stay competitive.

John Binkley, president of the Alaska Cruise Association, says the redeployment of the Serenade of the Seas will mean a $55 million loss in revenue and a reduction of 42,000 visitors.

Lorene Palmer with the Juneau Convention and Visitors Bureau says the departure of the Serenade of the Seas will mean a reduction in cruise ship passenger spending in Juneau of $8 million dollars.

David Kasser of the Anchorage Convention and Visitors Bureau says Alaska must work to provide a better environment for cruise lines.

Binkley says it would be appropriate to make adjustments to the 2006 cruise ship initiative that created a $50 per passenger head tax and wastewater dumping regulations that industry officials say are too stringent.

State will reinstate 2 Point Thomson leases
By ANNE SUTTON -Associated Press Writer
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) - The state of Alaska will allow oil giant Exxon Mobil to move forward with preparations for drilling two wells in the disputed Point Thomson oil field.

Department of Natural Resources Commissioner Tom Irwin issued an interim decision on Tuesday conditionally reinstating two of the 31 leases on the North Slope oil field.

Irwin's action authorizes state permits for the project, including construction of an ice road.

Irwin said he was basing his decision on oil companies' recent testimony regarding their commitment to drilling two wells by 2010. Production is scheduled to begin by 2014.

The state has been in a protracted dispute with Exxon Mobil and other leaseholders. The state tried to take the leases away in 2005 saying the companies were not living up to their pledge to develop the field.

Snow did not stop school's from opening in Juneau
Sorry kids!

Tuesday was a normal school day, despite the snow.

School Superintendent Peggy Cowan said schools will be operating on a regular schedule and buses on a regular schedule and routes.

City Manager Rod Swope told us they didn't receive nearly the amount of snow they anticipated this morning. He says the roads were in pretty good shape so it was  business as usual.

Monday's snow and precipitation set records for date in Juneau
The snowfall yesterday set a record for the date as Meteorologist Kimberly Vaughn in the Juneau Forecast Office explains.

She says 9 point 1 inches was reported at the airport. That exceeded the previous record of 7 point 8 inches in 1992.

Along with the snowfall record, the precipitation record for the date was tied at point 66 inches which was also previously set in 1992.

There's more snow in the forecast with 2 to 3 inches today and 1 to 2 inches tonight.

Power restored in downtown area and Thane Road
Alaska Electric, Light and Power restored power  this morning in the downtown core area and out Thane Road.  

The outage was caused by  a fault on one of the transmission lines from the  Second Street Substation.

The utility's Gayle Wood says they suspect a snow laden tree on the line is to blame.  

She says it took about an hour to restore everyone's power.

We noticed a power surge at about 4:20 this morning at our studios.

One finalist dropped from list to replace Swope, Persily added
A Juneau resident has been added to the list of four candidates to replace Rod Swope as the manager of the City and Borough of Juneau.

Larry Persily, one of the final eight candidates, was selected by the search committee today (Monday) to take the place of one of the final four candidates.

James Patrick has been removed from consideration according to the chair of the search committee Deputy Mayor Jeff Bush.

Bush says it came to their attention after a background check that Patrick "had some difficulties in at least two jobs, that if nothing else, raised questions about his ability to get along with the Assembly."

Bush says the committee figured that they "did not need to proceed with anybody they had any questions about."

Contrary to reports, Bush says, Bonnie Therrien has not dropped out as a candidate for CBJ manager.

He says Therrien, the city manager for Wethersford, Connecticut, is still one the final four candidates.

We were told by highly placed sources that she had dropped out.

We were informed she dropped out after notifying  the committee she could not attend the Assessment Center scheduled for February 10 through 12 in Juneau.  To accommodate her schedule, the center and interview process was moved to February 20 to the 23.

The other two candidates are David Johnston from Rantoul, Illinois, and Dick Kline, the former city administrator for the city of Vernonia, Oregon.

The candidates will be given the opportunity participate in a three day assessment and interview process in Juneau, February 23-25.
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James Patrick was fired by the Kalispell, Montana, City Council last Fall.

The reason for the termination was not clear.

Patrick was also fired as the city manager of Lebanon, Ohio, in 2001, after he was indicted on four felony charges. He was accused of complicity of theft in office and complicity to unlawful interest in a public contract.
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Larry Persily has served as Deputy Commissioner for the Department of Revenue and has held numerous positions in journalism including working for newspapers in Anchorage and Juneau.

Recently, Persily worked for one year as an Associate Director in Governor Palin's Washington, D. C. office. He's returned to Juneau and currently works for Legislative Finance during this session.

Murkowski named ranking member on Energy panel, McKie Campbell named staff director
Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski has been named the ranking Republican member on the Senate Energy Committee.

Former state Fish and Game Commissioner and Juneau resident McKie Campbell was appointed her staff director to that committee.

Chuck Kleeschulte, who has worked as an aide for the Alaska congressional delegation for 18 years will also be assigned to work on Energy Committee issues

Transit Center design evolving
The Assembly has given the go ahead for several design revisions to the downtown Transit Center.

At night's (Monday) work session the panel told the CBJ Engineering Department to proceed with an elevator and to connect Dixon Street to the top of the garage. The road and top deck are the same elevation.

Deputy Mayor Jeff Bush notes the current design plan is still shifting slowly and is available on the CBJ website.

Click on the CBJ Engineering Department at www.juneau.org 

Planning Commission recommends zone change
The Juneau Planning Commission approved a motion recommending approval of a rezone of a portion of a property at it's meeting  Tuesday evening.

The property is located at 4670 Glacier Highway.

The zone change would be from D-5 to D-15.

The area is adjacent to Mountainside Estates and generally across the road from the Pioneer Home.

Federal grants will help local fire department's volunteer recruitment
Three federal grants are flowing to Capital City Fire Rescue in Juneau.

Fire Chief Eric Mohrman says one is for the recruitment and retention of volunteers.

Another part of it allows the department to pay college tuition for twelve students and will be coupled with the department's live-in program.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency grant amounts to $366,000

The chief says no local match is required.

The cost of purchasing a new tanker to replace the department's current 1979 tanker is the focus of a  grant totaling $225,000.

Another  grant for $143,000 allows for the training of all fire department members up to a fire fighter two certification. 

Another part of the grant allows the department to finish its exhaust system for department vehicles inside the fire stations so tail pipe smoke is exhausted outside buildings.

Those grants require a ten percent match which the chief says is already covered in the budget.

In all cases, he says the Assembly must take an appropriation action accepting the grants.

Lawmakers working on Alaska portion of Obama's stimulus plan
The Finance Committee in the State Senate discussed a resolution this morning (Tuesday) that would tie Alaska into the federal government's plan to stimulate the economy.

Bethel Senator Lyman Hoffman, the committee's co-chair, told reporters during a press availability with the Senate Majority that the most important part they heard during the hearing was that Alaskans want to get what they feel is a fair share of the stimulus package. That is pegged at between $1.2 to $1.3 Billion.

The stimulus plan is expected to be one topic of conversation when legislative leaders meet with Governor Palin Wednesday.

The state's input is due to President Obama by February 16th.

Juneau's Wayne Stevens among those appointed by Palin to health panel
A Juneau resident is among members appointed  to the Alaska Health Care Commission by Governor Palin.

Wayne Stevens has been president and chief executive officer of the Alaska State Chamber of Commerce since 2004.

Two other members of the ten member commission are state lawmakers. 

They are Wasilla Representative Wes Keller, who co-chairs the House Health, Education and Social Services Committee, and Nome Senator Donny Olson, who is a medical doctor.

The panel is charged with making recommendations for a statewide plan to address the quality, accessibility, and availability of health care for all Alaskans.

Its recommendations are due by January 15, 2010.

State lawmakers working to pay Native Militia members in view of Army decision
The State Legislature is formulating a plan to mitigate to the U. S. Army's decision to terminate retirement credit for time served in a largely Native militia formed to guard the territory of Alaska from the threat of Japanese attack during World War II.

As a result, 27 surviving members of the Alaska Territorial Guard, most in their 80s and long retired, will lose as much as $557 in monthly retirement pay.

The pay claims of 37 others have been suspended.

Wasilla Senator Charlie Huggins told reporters today (Tuesday) that the plan calls for the state to pick up the tab if it's not reinstated by the federal government.

Anchorage Senator Bill Wielechowski says he's confident the decision will be reversed, but it may be necessary for the stat to fill in the gap for about three months before its changed.

Palin political action committee formed
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - A political action committee has been formed in the name of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, another sign the former Republican vice presidential candidate may be positioning herself for higher office.

The Web site  www.sarahpac.com  says it will support local and national candidates "who share Gov. Palin's ideas and goals for our country. "

The Web site says the political action committee "believes the Republican Party is at the threshold of an historic renaissance that will build a better future for all."

It lists health care, education, and government reform as its key goals.

The Web site is not clear on what individual or group is behind the effort. A call left on a phone number listed on the Web site was not immediately returned.

Complaints filed against Palin aides
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - An outspoken critic of Gov. Sarah Palin has filed ethics complaints against two of the governor's top aides, saying they misused their official positions for Palin's personal and political gain.

Anchorage resident Andree McLeod filed the complaints Monday with Alaska Attorney General Talis Colberg.

Named are Bill McAllister, Palin's press secretary, and Kris Perry, the governor's top aide in Anchorage. McLeod maintains the two worked on state time to benefit Palin's interests during and after her vice presidential quest.

McLeod wants the state personnel board to investigate her allegations.

McAllister says McLeod has cost the state $100,000 in public records requests that have uncovered no wrongdoing. He says "at this point all we have is another complaint by a person with an obvious vendetta."

McLeod says she's not the issue.

Instead, McLeod says, "The actions of McAllister and Perry while on the clock and state dime are the issues to be addressed."

Palin's church to reopen Sunday
A church attended by Governor Palin is recovering from last month's fire.

Wasilla Bible Church will be ready to reopen next Sunday.

The church, which is one of the largest in the Mat Su Borough was damaged by a fire on December 12th.

Authorities believe arson was the cause.

Investigators determined that someone poured gasoline on the outside of the building.

Five people were inside when the fire started, but were able to escape safely.

The fire did about a million dollars in damage.

Senior Pastor Larry Kroon says insurance will pay for repairs.

The church's sanctuary has been scrubbed clean, while repairs continue to offices, classrooms, and the main entry.

The church has received about 100-thousand dollars in donations.

Kroon says those will go toward expenses such as installing a new security system.

Investigators say they have no evidence that governor Palin's membership at the church was a motive for the fire.
(KENI- Anchorage)

Begich sponsoring measure calling for U. S. Senate seats to be filled via election
Alaska voters decided four years ago that vacancies in the U. S. Senate should be filled by special election.

Now, Alaska Senator Mark Begich is co-sponsoring a constitutional amendment to make that the rule in every state.

Wisconsin Senator Russ Feingold introduced the measure to require special elections.

Currently, the 17th amendment lets state legislatures to decide how to fill U S. Senate vacancies.

Usually, governors are allowed to make appointments.

Alaska voters approved an initiative in 2004 to require special elections to fill Senate vacancies, and other states have enacted similar measures.

Vacancies in the U .S. House are always filled by special election

Wrangell processor files for bankruptcy protection
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - A seafood processor based in Wrangell has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

In its filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Anchorage, Wrangell Seafoods acknowledged millions of dollars in debts.

The City of Wrangell is among the creditors, and city manager Bob Prunella says at least part of the problem was that area fishermen anticipated harvesting a substantial amount of chum salmon over the past two fishing seasons, but that didn't happen.

He says pink salmon harvests also have been poor for two years.

The court is expected to schedule hearings after all required paperwork is filed, before the end of January.

The processor was a major employer in Wrangell, employing up to 130 people at the peak of the season and buying from 200 fishing vessels.
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Information from: Alaska Journal of Commerce

Company: Alaska pipeline advancing despite economy
By ANNE SUTTON -Associated Press Writer
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) - Lawmakers worried about sinking natural gas prices were told to take the long view when considering the economics of a pipeline tapping North Slope gas reserves.

TransCanada Corp. Vice President Tony Palmer said Monday that the project is moving forward as planned despite the economic downturn. Palmer is leading the company's effort to build a multibillion dollar pipeline that will transport Alaska natural gas to markets in the Lower 48.

Palmer said the project's success will depend on controlling costs and keeping to the schedule.

He says producers and the state will do well if the cost of shipping gas to market stays at the projected amount, and oil prices remain in the $40 to $60 a barrel range.

Mount Redoubt could erupt
Geologists say an eruption at Alaska's Mount Redoubt may be imminent.

Recent seismic events may be a prelude to the first eruption in nearly 20 years.

Crews from the Alaska Volcano Observatory will be monitoring the volcano and satellite images round the clock