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Pavilion
at Sandy Beach ready for use
There's a new facility at Savikko
Park on Douglas Island ready to go
just in time for the 4th of July
Its a performance pavilion,
according to Sandy Williams of the
Douglas 4th of July Committee who
was among the guests on Capital Chat
Friday morning.
He said that the facility is
basically completed.
A metal roof is scheduled to go on
next week.
It will be first used this weekend
for Gold Rush Days.
An official dedication is planned
for 5 p.m. on the 4th of July.
It's situated on what use to be the
second ball field there which is in
front of the Treadwell Ice Arena.
That's where the food court is
located for the Douglas 4th of July
festivities.
Williams said that was one of the
reasons they located the pavilion
where it is since they wanted to get
the music and the food court a
little closer together so people are
basically in one area.
And another facility is planned
there. Williams part of the field
next to the ice rink will be used
for an outdoor ice rink.
He says Ice Rink Manager Greg Smith
plans a rink about the size of the
indoor rink. Weather permitting,
Williams said it's his understanding
that will happen this winter.
Former Miss Alaska to head Douglas
parade
The grand marshal of this year's 4th
of July parade on Douglas this year
was revealed on Capital Chat Friday morning.
Pat Peterson of the Douglas 4th of
July Committee says it will be
Stuart Sliter. He says she was Miss
Alaska in 1958 and still an island
resident.
Romer Durr will lead the downtown
Juneau parade.
He rang the bell 50 years ago upon
Alaska's entry into the union.
That will be recreated at nine 4th
of July morning which will set back
the start of the downtown parade
until noon and the Douglas parade
until 3 p.m.
Parade entries could exceed 100,
although official tally after
deadline is 67
The deadline to sign up for the 4th
of July parade in downtown Juneau
was Thursday.
Juneau 4th of July Parade Director
Jean Sztuk says they have 67
entries. She's guessing there could
be between 30 to 35 more coming in
late.
Just because they miss the deadline,
she says it doesn't mean they can't
fill out the entry form and pay a
$10 late fee right up to the start
of the parade.
It's not clear how many will
participate in the Douglas parade
since an advance sign up is not
required there.
Gold Rush Days set for this
weekend
It's Gold Rush Days this Saturday
and Sunday.
Gold Rush Days Commission President
Jerry Harmon says they moved the
annual event to Savikko Park in
Douglas this year from Dimond Park
in the Valley.
He says mining events are set for
Saturday and the logging events will
be held on Sunday.
Docks
and Harbors Board opts for Gastineau
Channel disposal of Douglas dredging
spoils
The CBJ Docks and Harbors Board last
night made a choice on how to
dispose of mercury laden dredging
spoils from the Douglas Harbor as
part of the rebuild project there.
Port Director John Stone says the
panel selected the Gastineau Channel
disposal alternative as the
practicable one.
He says the science they have shows
that alternative is acceptable from
a health and environmental stand
point and is the one for which they
have funding.
He says the other alternatives
exceeded available funding and would
require the board consider fee
increases.
Stone says the board felt that
wasn't possible considering fee
increases in recent years and
current economic conditions.
On another matter, the board
recommended the Assembly accept a
legislative grant of $800,000 for
the Auke Bay seawalk and two and
half million dollars for cruise ship
dock improvements.
Those funds come from the state
imposed $50 head tax on cruise ship
passengers.
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The panel approved a change to the
storage fee and charge regulation.
The current charge of one dollar per
square-foot, per month is reduced to
50 cents per square-foot per month.
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The board sent proposed amendments
to fees and charges out for public
hearing over the next month.
regulations are up for action.
Stone
says they're looking at changing the
fee for using cranes at CBJ
facilities.
There
are three at the downtown Marine
Tech Center and there will be two at
the new Auke Bay loading facility.
The
board is considering repealing the
current regulation that is either an
annual fee or a fee based on time.
The
new fee would be a charge of 25
cents per minute or $15 dollars per
hour.
Stone
says it would work in conjunction
with key card access system that's
currently being installed to run the
cranes.
Final
action is scheduled at the end of
July.
Stone
says they would probably not start
the change until after this fishing
season.
Candle cause of residential fire,
owners credited with limiting damage
More details are in on that
residential fire call late Thursday
night at 4127 Dogwood Lane in the
Valley.
The alarm was sounded at about
11:25, according to Deputy Fire
Marshal Sven Pearson.
He says they determined the cause
was a candle that caught a wood bed
and mattress on fire.
He says the residents were home at
the time, but were unaware that a
fire had started in the neighboring
room until the smoke alarm sounded.
He says working smoke alarms and a
quick response by the homeowner to
use a fire extinguisher and
evacuate, prevented what could have
otherwise resulted in serious damage
or injury.
Damage was limited to under $1000.
Pearson says open flames such as
candles can easily ignite nearby
materials, spreading fire throughout
a home in a matter of minutes.
He says this is why every home
should have a working smoke alarm as
well as an evacuation plan.
Rescue from airport
wetlands highlight Capital City Fire
Rescue blotter
Capital City Fire Rescue mounted a rescue operation on
airport property at about 4 p.m.
Thursday.
Captain Todd Cameron says two Federal
Aviation Administration employees
were stuck in the wetlands there
after the tide came in.
A trail vehicle was used to pick
them up.
Cameron says neither person was
injured.
Fort
Richardson soldier killed in
Afghanistan
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — An
Alaska-based soldier from Washington
state has been killed in
Afghanistan.
The military reports that Army 1st
Lt. Brian N. Bradshaw of Steilacoom,
Wash, died Thursday in Kheyl,
Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when
an improvised explosive device
detonated near his vehicle.
The 24-year-old soldier was assigned
to Fort Richardson.
He was a member of the 1st
Battalion, 501st Parachute Infantry
Regiment, 4th Airborne Brigade
Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division.
Wasilla
waste handler ordered to halt
business
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A Wasilla
waste treatment business has been
ordered to stop burning or handling
hospital and infectious waste.
The permanent injunction issued
Thursday by U.S. District Court
Judge John Sedwick goes into effect
July 1 unless Safety Waste
Incineration demonstrates compliance
with the federal Clean Air Act.
The order stems from a civil
complaint brought by the Department
of Justice on behalf of the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency.
The EPA says business owners Nancy
and James Oliver have been violating
federal waste rules since October
2002.
Sedwick ruled the couple in
noncompliance last year and in a
March bench trial determined the
actions including a $75,000 penalty.
Anchorage attorney Ted Stepovich,
who represents the Olivers, says the
couple believes they are exempt from
some regulations and likely will
appeal.
Arson suspected in Shungnak School
storage building fire
A case of suspected arson in a northwest Alaska village is under
investigation by State Troopers.
Troopers received a report Thursday
of a fire at the Shungnak School
storage building.
Villagers tried to extinguish the
fire, but were unsuccessful, according
to a Trooper dispatch,
which says the building and its
contents were lost.
Preliminary findings by Trooper
investigators reveal the fire was
intentionally set.
Troopers are trying to locate and
identify two men wearing hooded
sweatshirts who were seen leaving
the area with a gas can moments
before the fire was discovered.
3 detained in Selawik burglary
SELAWIK, Alaska (AP) — A
19-year-old man has been charged
with burglary at the Selawik school.
Alaska State Troopers in Kotzebue
say a resident at 4 a.m. Friday
spotted two backpacks outside the
school that contained stolen items.
A village police officer responded
and confronted Jody S. Sheldon and
two juvenile boys preparing to leave
with three more backpacks containing
concession goods.
The mother of one of the juveniles
is employed at the school. Troopers
say the three used her keys to get
in without her knowledge.
The value of the stolen items is
about $350.
The juveniles were released to their
guardians and troopers said charges
will be forwarded to the Department
of Juvenile Justice.
Selawik is a city of 846 about 90
miles east of Kotzebue.
Palin
visits troops in Kosovo
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Gov.
Sarah Palin is visiting U.S. troops
in Kosovo.
Palin's office had said the governor
traveled Wednesday to see Alaska
National Guard troops at an
undisclosed overseas location.
On Thursday, her office said she was
visiting about 140 aviators with the
Guard in Kosovo.
Her spokeswoman, Sharon Leighow,
says that for security purposes, the
governor's office could not release
Palin's destination until it was
cleared by the Department of
Defense.
Leighow says Palin traveled with
Craig Campbell, commander of the
Alaska National Guard, and Alaska
Command Sgt. Maj. Gordon Choat.
Leighow says Palin will be on the
trip through the weekend.
Assembly
asking environmental groups to not
delay Kensington Mine opening
Add the Juneau Assembly to the list
of elected officials asking that
environmental groups to not delay
the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling
allowing the developer of the
Kensington Mine to dump tailings
into Lower Slate Lake.
In a press release issued Thursday,
the Assembly congratulates Coeur
Alaska on its successful appeal and
the Supreme Court Decision to uphold
the permits for the Kensington Gold
Mine and the Goldbelt Cascade Point
Marine Terminal.
The Assembly is encouraging
environmental groups to not seek
reconsideration, legislation, or
other actions that could further
delay the project.
This Assembly's release states that
the mine will help to secure the
economic and employment future for
the people of Juneau and Southeast
Alaska and also help to reverse the
population decline of nearby rural
villages by providing about 200
jobs.
The Kensington gold mine 45 miles
north of Juneau
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On Wednesday, Juneau's legislative
delegation urged environmental
groups to not attempt to delay the
mine's opening by requesting the
court to reconsider its ruling.
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Environmentalists fear that the 6 to
3 ruling handed down Monday could
set a precedent for how mining waste
is disposed in American lakes,
streams and rivers.
POW timber sale gets final
approval
A record of decision and final
environmental impact statement for
timber sales on the Thorne Bay
Ranger District of Prince of Wales
Island in Southeast Alaska have been
signed.
Tongass National Forest Supervisor
Forrest Cole inking those documents
Thursday, according to the agency's
Phil Sammon.
He says the Logjam Timber sale area
is located about 20 miles west of
Coffman Cove on the northcentral
part of Prince of Wales.
It is designed to produce about 73
million board feet of sawlog and
utility timber volume. The entire
project area covers a little more
than 56,000 acres, but Sammon says
they're only going to harvest about
34-hundred acres.
Alternatives
under the draft EIS ranged from
cutting no action to cutting 75
million board feet.
The
Southeast Alaska Conservation
Council and several other
conservation groups offered an
alternative plan.
SEACC's
Mark Gnadt says after working with
the Forest Service, the Department
of Fish and Game, Tongass communities
and researchers they came up with a
proposal of just under 40 million
board feet of timber.
He
says the conservation groups believe that no
timber should be taken out of the Tongass,
but they recognize the need of the
local timber industry to survive.
Gnadt
says they went from zero to 40
million board feet of timber while
the Forest Service went from 75
million to 72 million board feet.
He
says that "doesn't show much of
a willingness to be much of a team
player."
Cole's decision is subject to
appeal.
Sammon says members of the public
who submitted comments or expressed
an interest during the draft phase
have 45 days to appeal the final
decision.
Gnadt
says SEACC and the other groups have
not decided yet if they will appeal
the decision.
Sammon says timber sale contracts
can be awarded 15 days after appeals
are resolved.
Committee
votes to delay bridge project
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A joint
state-city committee has voted
unanimously to delay the Knik Arm
bridge project by a few years.
The Anchorage Daily News says the
committee, which makes decisions on
major transportation and highway
projects in Anchorage, voted on the
bridge project Thursday afternoon.
The committee adopted a compromise
recommended by a technical committee
of planners and engineers.
It opted against an earlier proposal
to delete the bridge project
completely from Anchorage's
long-range transportation plan
entirely.
The compromise will allow the Knik
Arm Bridge and Toll Authority to
continue its efforts to plan for and
design the bridge, and to try to
find ways to finance the project,
most recently estimated at about
$680 million.
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Information from: Anchorage Daily
News
Suspect questioned in Anchorage
homicide
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Anchorage
police have arrested a man sought
for questioning in a midtown
Anchorage murder.
Forty-five-year-old Kenneth Arnold
Wahl was charged Thursday with a
probation violation at a bar a block
from the murder scene.
Wahl had done yard work last week
for 47-year old Elisa Orcutt, who
was found dead in her home Tuesday.
Police say a bartender at the Flight
Deck spotted Wahl and called 911.
Wahl was convicted of a stabbing
murder in 1983 and was recently
paroled from prison.
Wahl had been staying in a camper on
property across the street from
Orcutt's home. Neighbors say he had
been doing work in the area the last
few weeks.
(KTUU-TV - Anchorage)
Anchorage
man, city battle over property
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A piece
of land overlooking the ocean in
Anchorage is the subject of an
ownership dispute between the city
and a resident.
The city maintains it bought the
property, while Matt Fink says the
transaction was a bad deal from the
start.
Fink says he wants to build a home
with an ocean view.
The disputed land is located just
below Lyn Ary Park in the Turnagain
area.
Fink says he wants his backyard
back.
The city's position is that it
bought the land in 1996 and it's now
park land. City attorney Bob Owens
says the municipality intends to
keep it.
The dispute is now in court and a
trial is scheduled for November.
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Information from: KTUU-TV
Former foster parent sentenced to
jail in sexual abuse case
FAIRBANKS, Alaska (AP) — A former
foster father was sentenced Thursday
to six years in prison for sexually
abusing girls in his care.
Forty-two-year-old Jose Morales of
Anchorage pleaded guilty in March to
two felony counts of sexual abuse of
a minor.
Prosecutor Trina Sears says Morales'
position of trust made the case
especially serious.
Prosecutors
file more charges in mine pot bust
FAIRBANKS, Alaska (AP) — State
prosecutors say an elaborate
marijuana growing operation at a
gold mine near Manley may have been
around for more than 20 years.
Investigators this week seized 636
mature marijuana plants and 50
pounds of processed marijuana at the
site off the Elliott Highway.
Prosecutors filed additional charges
Thursday against the suspected
operator, 49-year-old John T. Larson
of Fairbanks.
Prosecutors say the operation was
worth $2 million per year.
Prosecutors say Larson went to
elaborate lengths to hide the
marijuana grow, with hidden rooms
and a filtering system that removed
the odor of marijuana but kept the
heat of the grow lights from melting
snow outside.
Prosecutors say a tip led them to
begin an investigation.
(Fairbanks Daily News-Miner)
State
reopens trail closed for bear
concerns
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — The state
has reopened a stretch of a popular
trail closed earlier this month
because of concerns over grizzly
bears roaming the area.
Chugach State Park officials say the
portion of the Indian to Girdwood
bike trail, which parallels the
Seward Highway south of Anchorage,
is open again because there have
been no observed or reported
aggressive brown bear behavior.
The section closed was a one-mile
stretch, from Mile Post 96 to 97,
near Bird Point.
State officials say people in the
area should remain vigilant when
traveling in bear habitat.
Institute
provides Haida curriculum for
schools
Sealaska Heritage Institute has
produced a collection of Haida
curriculum for distribution to
schools with Haida language
programs.
Institute President Rosita Worl says
the goal is weave more Native
lessons into the public school
system.
She says the curriculum is unique
because it's the first Haida
language and culture curriculum done
on a broad scale that meets state
academic and cultural standards.
Worl says the project is part of the
institute's goal to perpetuate and
preserve the languages and cultures
of Southeast Alaska Natives.
The institute distributed a similar
curriculum in 2007 for the Tlingit
language.
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The Haida nation may have numbered
well over 10,000 at the time of
first European contact in 1774.
Today, of a total Haida population
of about 2,200 in Canada and Alaska,
perhaps 40 fluent speakers of the
language are still living.
Rural Alaska schools face closure
FAIRBANKS, Alaska (AP) — The
superintendents of two interior
Alaska school districts say six
rural schools are in danger of
closing next year because of low
enrollment.
The schools under scrutiny are in
Central, Stevens Village, Takotna,
Beaver, Anvik and Shageluk.
Districts see major state funding
cuts when enrollment falls below 10
students at a school.
Joe Banghart of the Iditarod School
district says Shageluk, Takotna and
Anvik project 12 to 14 students but
could drop below that.
Yukon Flats district superintendent
Woody Woodford says schools at
Stevens Village, Beaver and Central
have been on the borderline. Their
student count will not be known
until the last week in September.
Both superintendents say long-range
planning is difficult when districts
are worried about enrollment.
(Fairbanks Daily News-Miner)
Juneau
Marching Band tunes up for parades
with concerts
The Juneau Volunteer Marching Band
is tuning up for its big day during
the 4th of July parades.
But two concerts are also planned
prior to then, according to band
member Larry Stevens.
The first is Sunday at 3 p.m. The
second is Wednesday at Noon.
Both concerts will be held at Marine
Park.
A special event is part of Sunday's
event which includes a steamboat
ride on the Laurie Ellen for the
first 15 people who make
reservations.
After concluding a 30 minute tour of
the harbor, the band will welcome
them back as though they were
arriving in Alaska as the way people
use to on a steam boat.
The welcoming will include balloons
and clowns and a birthday cake.
The number to call for reservations
is 463-2667.
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(Copyright ©2009 Alaska
Juneau Communications -
KINY Radio)
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