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City gets new buses
Easier access for disabled
Juneau's Capital Transit now has four new buses. Transit Manager John Kern says they're the first new buses in the local fleet since 1992. He says they represent some significant advances in technology and design, including a "low floor" design. That means the doors are only 12 inches above the road surface and can be lowered to within 7 inches of the front door. Kern says that will make the buses more accessible to passengers, including those restricted to wheelchairs. There are also electronic signs on the front and side making it easier for passengers to identify their bus. He says they hope to have the new buses in service by Monday, February 12th. The old buses will remain in service since half hour service is scheduled to start in May in time for the summer tourism season. The new buses were manufactured for $245,000 each by New Flyer Industries. They were funded with a federal grant provided by the State of Alaska.
A man threatening suicide was successfully taken into custody by Juneau Police this afternoon. Juneau Police received a call from Gastineau Human Services at about 12:23 concerning a 43 year-old man making statements about suicide. The man was in a room on the second floor of the Alaskan Hotel. Police secured the second floor. Negotiators established telephone contact with the man and talked him into walking out of the room. Earlier the man indicated that he had a handgun, but no weapons were found when the incident ended. The man, who's name has not been released, was taken into custody without incident at 1:40 and officers transported him to Bartlett Regional Hospital.
The Assembly Planning and Policy Committee received the final draft report from the noise consultant hired by the city to study noise levels and possible mitigation measures. The study found that, for helicopter flightseeing operations, the flight path over Douglas Island resulted in lower noise levels overall versus the path down the center of Gastineau Channel. Similarly the flight path up the ridge, south of Mendenhall Valley, also reduced the overall noise levels. The highest float plane noise resulted from departures from the downtown dock and then overflying the south Douglas area. The study concludes that when float planes fly in the center of Gastineau Channel at lower altitudes, noise levels are significantly lower. The study states that improved weather information along all flight paths wouldallow pilots to choose the best path to fly. The study also says that propeller pitch settings can have a significant impact on magnitude and character of noise. Consultant Paul Dunholter (right) told the committee that it's important to continue working with the Forest Service on the number of landings on the ice field and with noise monitoring and associated voluntary or required noise level compliance. He suggested developing a "noise budget" which would cap the total noise generated by the tour companies. The cap could be fixed or reduced over future years. The committee will be taking public testimony on the study the end of February. The BridgeNet International study has been posted on the CBJ website here.
The suspect in a theft from the Juneau K-Mart store, reported yesterday, skipped town, but is now in custody. Police say it's alleged that a 17 year old boy took the cash and left town. He was picked up in Anchorage late last night and will be transported back to Juneau to be arraigned when he'll be formally charged with theft in the second degree. The amount of cash taken was not disclosed. The crime was reported early yesterday morning. The suspect's name was not released since he is a minor.
Anchorage police say a robbery suspect is hospitalized with gunshot wounds this morning after an early morning attempted armed robbery at a motel. Investigators say the 19-year-old man rushed into the office of the Spenard Motel at about 3:30am, pointed a gun at the clerk and demanded money. The clerk told police the man looked agitated when he saw the small amount of money in the cash register. The clerk says he feared for his life and pulled a revolver from his vest pocket, shooting the suspect five times. The suspect suffered gunshot wounds to the abdomen, arm, leg and face. Police say the name of the suspect will be released after he's charged. They are not releasing the name of the clerk, for fear of retaliation.
The one year anniversary of the the crash of Alaska Airlines Flight 261 off the coast of Southern California is tomorrow. Five Alaskans were among the 88 people who perished in the mishap. Alaska official Jack Walsh says in memory of crewmembers and the co-workers and passengers who died in the crash, employees will wear a white rose to work. At 4:22pm Pacific Standard Time, the time of the crash, a moment of silence will be observed. Native leader Morris Thompson, his wife and daughter were among the Alaskans killed in the crash. Also killed were Malcolm Branson, the son of former state lawmaker Margaret Branson, and his girl friend. A memorial service for the victims is planned at Holy Family Cathedral in Anchorage over the noon hour tomorrow. The National Transportation Safety Board has not determined the cause of the crash. Before the plane crashed, the pilot and co-pilot reported a problem with the plane's jackscrew, a mechanism which helps stabilize the plane.
Alaska Airlines says it does not plan to join other air carriers in raising the fees it charges to change a ticket. Delta Air Lines yesterday began charging $100 to change a ticket. Continental Airlines initiated its fee increase on January 19th. Alaska Airlines spokesman Jack Walsh said Alaska doesn't plan to raise its $50 fee. Delta spokesman Russ Williams says the fees are being raised because, each time a reservation is changed, the ability to sell a passenger seat is diminished.
State Troopers are searching for two men missing near Sleetmute who may have gone through the ice on the Kuskokwim River. Troopers say two men from Crooked Creek -- 37-year-old Allen Fredericks and 38-year-old Nickoli Peters -- had set out on a snowmachine early Monday morning headed toward Sleetmute. When the men failed to return home by later in the day, a family member followed the snowmachine tracks which led to open water on the river. No footprints were seen in the area. Residents of Sleetmute and Crooked Creek searched for the two men and troopers were called in. Troopers plan to search the river today.
The state will file its lawsuit in federal district court by tomorrow seeking to overturn the federal government's directive prohibiting road construction in inventoried roadless areas. That's according to Assistant Attorney General Johann Grace who testified before the Senate Resources Committeeyesterday. For the Tongass National Forest in Southeast, the roadless directive means that 90 percent of the forest is closed to road construction or reconstruction, and timber harvests. In the Chugach in the Southcentral part of the state, 98.9 percent is closed under the directive. Grace says the state will claim in its lawsuit that the roadless directive permanently eliminates processes that Congress has required under federal law. Grace says the state's lawsuit will show that the roadless directive is so extensive, it eliminates almost all uses of the Tongass and Chugach National Forests.
The House Oil and Gas Committee approved one measure today aimed at stimulating oil and gas development in Alaska, but held on to two other bills. House Joint Resolution 7 encourages the sale of oil leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. That was reported out quickly and moved to the House Resources Committee over the objections of Kotzebue Representative Reggie Joule. He wanted to tack on an amendment adding language stating that the aboriginal people in that area support the development. But Committee Chair Scott Ogan said he didn't want to hold it up. He said he thought it was a timely day to move the bill along in light of the confirmation vote in the US on Gale Norton to become Secretary of the Interior. Ogan thought it would send a good message to expedite the measure. But Ogan did decide to hold House Bill 83. That measure is aimed at prompting the construction of a gas pipeline from the North Slope to markets in the Lower 48 with capacity to provide gas for Alaska markets as well. He said it's important to keep all of the state's options open. The committee also held House Bill 9 for additional work. That bill would delete a portion of existing law that favored a gas development project aimed at producing liquefied natural gas for export to foreign markets.
The Senate Rules Committee voted today to spend as much as $187,000 on two outside experts. The contracts are for Patrick Coughlin and Emil Notti. Coughlin -- a lawyer and oil and gas expert -- will be paid $20,000 a month to advise the Legislature as it pushes for development of a natural gas pipeline linking the North Slope and Lower 48 markets. He'll report to Senate Resources Committee Chair John Torgerson. Torgerson says it's necessary to have someone in-house who's intimately experienced with oil and gas legislation. Notti is a former commissioner of the Department of Community and Regional Affairs. He'll advise both the House and Senate on statewide issues -- especially those affecting both urban residents and Alaska natives. He'll be paid $50 an hour and report to Ted Popely -- the Republican majority's legal counsel. Senate President Rick Halford says Notti brings a wealth of profession experience both as a leader in the Alaska Native Community and from his work in both the private and public sectors.
The Senate wants the Air Force to send its newest fighter planes to ElmendorfAir Force Base. The Air Force is developing the F-22 Raptor (left) to replace many of its aging F-15 fighters. A resolution sponsored by Anchorage Republican Loren Leman encourages the Air Force to select Elmendorf Air Force Base for deployment of the new plane. But even though the measure passed 18-to-0 today, it doesn't compel anyone to do anything. Non-binding resolutions simply signal the Legislature's intent.
A 17-year-old girl was charged yesterday in connection with a hit and run accident in which an elderly man was killed. Anchorage police say the girl was charged as a juvenile with criminally negligent homicide, driving with a suspended license and leaving the scene of an accident. She is being held at the McLaughlin Youth Center. Police contacted the girl's mother who agreed to bring her daughter in for questioning .
The Bartlett Regional Hospital Board of Directors meets this evening. Hospital Administrator Bob Valliant says he'll tell the board that the waiting list for mammography and MRI exams have been reduced to a day or less. There will also be an update on the renovation of the hospital's Dietary Department which Valliant says is well underway. But he says it has created some problem with parking. The project required the elimination of some parking slots in order to accommodate construction. Valliant says parking at the hospital will be very tight over the next few months. The meeting begins at 5:15pm in the hospital administration boardroom.
Governor Tony Knowles introduced legislation today to provide World War Two veterans a high school diploma. The Governor said the measure is aimed at the veterans who left high school to join the armed services and never went back to school. Know nationally as Operation Recognition, Alaska would join other states with similar programs. (In photo, left to right, Pat Carothers, Department of Military and Veterans Affairs Adjutant General Phil Oates, Governor Knowles, Joe Sadlier)
The state of Alaska is asking the Federal Communications Commission to waive a section of it's rules to help bridge the digital divide in remote rural Alaskan communities. Lieutenant Governor Fran Ulmer, a member of the FCC's Local and State Government Advisory Committee, says the waiver is a unique opportunity to help rural residents get on the information highway. Community members would have access to the Internet only during hours when schools and libraries do not use the service. If the proposal is approved, it would apply only in communities where there is no dial-up Internet access. The FCC will be seeking public comment before it takes action
It's an oil spill not in Prince William Sound, but from the Prince William Sound. About 100 gallons of oily water spilled in Port Angeles, Washington yesterday from a tanker called the Prince William Sound. The Coast Guard says the oil came from a piping system used to collect deck residues. The tanker came from Valdez and is loaded with Alaska North Slope crude.
The executive director of the Anchorage Fur Rendezvous issued an invitation to Juneau residents on KINY's Capital Chat today to attend the annual event aimed at fending off cabin fever. Mary Pignalberi (left) says Rondy runs from February 9th to the 18th. She says several hotels are offering special $60 rates, and Alaska Airlines is offering a special Rondy fare. But a lack of snow may cancel some events including the dog mushing race. She says mushers have set February 6th as the drop dead date on deciding whether to proceed. They may also have to cancel the snow sculpture competition, she says. A full schedule of events is listed on the web here.
Maserculiq Fish Processors of Marshall -- a small Native seafood processing company -- was the big winner of this year's Symphony of Seafood contest. The company won the Grand Prize and first place in the smoked products category for its salmon strips made with Yukon Kings.(Captions for our photographs can be viewed by hovering over them with your mouse pointer)
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