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Palin
requesting
disaster funds for Juneau businesses
Governor Sarah Palin is requesting that
the Small Business Administration
declare an economic injury disaster for
Juneau businesses affected by the huge
hike in the cost of electricity.
According to a press release issued this
afternoon, (Friday) Palin is following
the recommendations of Disaster Policy
Cabinet to seek any and all existing
federal help for those affected by the
increased electricity prices due to
purchasing diesel fuel to supply power
to Juneau.
Major General Craig E. Campbell,
commissioner of the Department of
Military and Veterans Affairs says the
Small Business Administration has
provided economic assistance in similar
circumstances in Alaska's history.
The Department of Commerce, Community
and Economic Development has certified
that Juneau meets the criteria of having
at least five small businesses that are
suffering substantial economic injury
and are in need of federal assistance.
The SBA will review the request and may
offer low-interest loans to provide help
for those qualified businesses.
Governor Palin also said a statewide,
short-term energy relief plan will be
announced next week.
The plan will provide assistance to
Alaskans struggling with the current
high cost of energy.
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On
April 16th, two avalanches knocked down
two transmission towers and damaged three
others blocking electricity flowing to
Juneau generated from the Snettisham
hydroelectric dam.
Judge
rules in favor of CBJ concerning project
labor agreements
Juneau Superior Court Judge Philip
Pallenberg today (Friday) ruled in favor
of the City and Borough of Juneau on a suit brought
by a building contractors' association
over the way the city awards
construction contracts.
The
Associated Builders and Contractors of
Alaska contends the city's method is
unfair.
The
issue centers on the city's project
labor agreement for an estimated $14
million in renovations planned for
Harborview Elementary School.
The
project labor agreement requires that
contractors agree to hire only union
tradesmen.
CBJ Manager Rod Swope says the judge's
decision clears the way for the
Harborview renovation bid opening
scheduled for next Tuesday.
In a memo to the CBJ manager and the CBJ
attorney, CBJ Engineering Director Roger
Healy said project labor agreements are
necessary because of the large number of
projects coming up over the next year.
He said the PLA's will help to assure a
steady supply of competent labor for all
projects.
Those projects include the Dimond Park
swimming pool, downtown parking garage,
and airport renovation work.
In March, the Assembly approved a
resolution supporting project labor
agreements on city construction
projects.
Forest
Service to prepare environmental
assessment of Kensington's modified
tailings plan
The Forest Service says it will prepare
an environmental assessment of Coeur
Alaska's modified plan of operations for
the Kensington Gold Mine.
The
Forest Service had tentatively
recommended to permit the mine's
modified plan of operations with a
supplemental information report.
District Ranger Pete Griffin says after
made it's decision after taking a close
look at public comments after the agency
circulated a draft supplemental
information report earlier this year.
He says the environmental assessment
will take more time to complete than the
supplemental report.
Griffin says they will be able to wrap
in some of the other state and federal
agencies permitting requirements into
the environmental assessment.
He says water quality is the big issue
they will be studying.
Griffin anticipates that the
environmental assessment should be
completed by late summer early fall.
Coeur Alaska's modified plan calls for
storing tailings utilizing
"paste" technology rather than
dry stacking the tailings.
Coeur
Alaska has proposed use of a terrace
site near Comet Beach on the Kensington
side of the mine area for paste tailings
storage.
The Kensington gold mine is located near
Berners Bay about 45 miles northwest of
downtown Juneau.
Ground breaking set for new Salvation
Army Thrift Store
Friday, May 23rd is the date of the
official ground breaking ceremony for
the new Salvation Army Thrift Store on Willoughby
Avenue.
That word from Captain Jack Smith, the
local commander, who says it's been six
years in the making
Construction was initially depending on
fundraising, but he says they had to
switch gears and secure a loan.
Otherwise, he says the project would
have taken forever just relying on
fundraising, although donations are
still wanted..
The store will be 6,000 square feet
which is four times larger than the
present facility.
Captain Jack was asked when they hope to
have it open..
The cost is pegged at $1 point 6 Million
and includes the lot and construction
costs.
He says they'll be able to do more in
the expanded space
The contractor, North Pacific Erectors,
says it will be finished by December 1.
The captain says they plan to be
conducting business there during the
Christmas season.
Captain Smith says donations designated
for the Thrift Store project are
welcomed.
Henry James longest serving Salvation
Army employee in state marks two decades
on job
Salvation Army Thrift Store manager
Henry James has reached a milestone.
Captain Jack Smith explains that
Saturday is his twentieth year on the
job there.
He says they've determined that he's the
longest serving employee in the State of
Alaska.
"He's a man you can always rely on
to do what needs to be done," he says. Next
Friday is ground breaking for new
Salvation Army store.
Juneau
Unplugged prepares application for
assistant with electric bills
The United Way has contracted with
Catholic Community Services to implement
the program to help the most vulnerable
Juneau residents pay their higher
electric bills.
One million dollars was initially
appropriated by the Assembly. Another
one point five million is potentially
available depending on how many apply.
The applications were finished Thursday and will be available at
Saturday's Reenergizing Juneau Forum at
the Mendenhall Mall.
Former City Manager Kevin Ritchie is
heading up the Juneau Unplugged program.
He says applications will be accepted
after May 16. In the meantime, its an
opportunity for eligible households to
review it and get the income
verification ready to submit along with
their electric bill and the application.
The guideline for eligibility is 200
percent of the federal poverty guideline
adjusted for Alaska. That means a single
person household could up to $26,000 per
year and a family of four could earn up
to $54,000.
There are three ways to verify
eligibility.
If applicants are already on public
assistance, Ritchie says the public
assistance program will provide them a
letter indicating they're already
qualified by income. He says those
agencies are sending their clients a
letter which he thinks will be out next
week. That letter should be attached to
the application and a copy of the
electric bill.
For those not receiving public
assistance, but within 200 percent of
the poverty line, Ritchie says they
should provide a copy of the first page
of their 2007 income tax return which shows
their income level and number of people
in the household. That should be
submitted with the application and a
copy of their electric bill.
There's also what Ritchie describes as a
special needs category involving people
who are above the 200 percent poverty
line, but who may have lost their job or
are struggling financially due to a
heath concern or other unusual expense.
He says a committee will be charged with
pouring over those applications.
Ritchie says plans call for covering 70
percent of the increase in the cost of
electricity.
Juneau Unplugged can be contacted by
calling 463-6130, but Ritchie says they
hope to make the application available
on the city and borough and A-E-L and P web
sites as well as at libraries.
Public assistance agencies have also
agreed to send the application to their
clients.
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The
Regulatory Commission of Alaska this
week approved Alaska Electric, Light and
Power's amended filing to postpone
implementation of the increased tariff
to cover the cost of diesel fuel
effective April 16th.
The
higher rates will be reflected in bills
that go out May 16th.
The
rate before the April 16th avalanches
was about 11 cents per kilowatt hour.
The current rate is about 52.5 cents per
kilowatt hour.
The
emergency cost of power adjustment rate
will be the same as previously approved,
only the implementation date will
change.
Avalanches
knocked down two transmission towers and
damaged several others April 16th
interrupting the flow of power from the
Snettisham hydroelectric dam.
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The electric rates will the subject of a
protest on the steps of the State
Capital beginning at three this
afternoon.
Commissioner
of health and social services resigns
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) - The head of the
Department of Health and Social Services
has resigned.
Commissioner Karleen Jackson gave the
department's 3,500 employees one day's
notice of her departure.
Jackson wrote in an e-mail to staff that
her resignation is effective Friday.
She
told The Associated Press she differs
with the governor over the future of the
department, but declined to elaborate.
She said Bill Hogan, Deputy Commissioner
for Family, Community and Integrated
Services, will serve as acting
commissioner.
Jackson was first appointed to the post
in 2006 by former Gov. Frank Murkowski.
She was one of only two of his cabinet
appointees to keep their jobs under Gov.
Sarah Palin.
More recently Jackson has come under
fire from Republican legislators over
spending within the department.
Two
state Senators call for Department of
Corrections review
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) - Two Anchorage
lawmakers say the Legislature needs to
audit the state's Department of
Corrections.
Democratic Sens. Bill Wielechowski and
Hollis French have asked the state's
Legislative Budget and Audit Committee
to authorize the audit.
The two lawmakers say allegations of
unhealthy and unsafe conditions for
inmates and corrections officers drove
their concern.
This development was first reported by
KTVA -- CBS 11.
The Legislature's budget and audit
committee meets next Wednesday to vote
on the audit request.
The request comes a few weeks after a
vote by the corrections officers union
in which a majority registered
disapproval of Commissioner Joe
Schmidt's leadership.
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Information from: KTVA-TV
Anchorage
port workers start national security
enrollment
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - The Homeland
Security department says maritime
workers at the Port of Anchorage have
started signing up for an ID program
geared toward tightening up security
there.
Officials say the program is supposed to
ensure that anyone with unescorted
access to secure areas of port
facilities and vessels has received a
thorough background check.
Nationwide, more than 1.2 million
workers are slated to apply to the
program.
The Port of Anchorage is the 104th port
to begin enrollment.
Ranger
to consider new information on Juneau
Icefield helicopter landings
Juneau Ranger Pete Griffin is now
weighing the information provided by a
consultant at Thursday evening's public
meeting on ice field helicopter
landings.
Tetra Tech Corporation has been looking
at several pieces of new information
over the last couple of months since he
made the helicopter landings decision in
2002.
Griffin says he'll consider how that
information should be taken into
consideration if he were to remake that
decision. He'll decide if its enough to
spur him to change that decision.
Griffin figures that process will take
him two to three weeks.
There were about 17,000 landings on the
ice field last year which is well below
the 22,000 approved in Griffin's 2002
decision.
If he decides the decision needs to be
revised, Griffin says he will open the
environmental analysis process to
determine just how the decision should
change in light of the new information.
School principal in Anchorage draws
fine for leaving garbage out for bears
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - An Anchorage
principal has been cited for improperly
storing garbage that attracted at least
one bear.
Dan Gallego is principal of Bartlett
High School.
He is facing a $310 fine for the exposed
trash that attracted the bear on
Tuesday.
Gallego also is the first person to
receive stiffer fines that went into
effect this week.
Community poised to clean up the town
The annual Litter Free Spring Cleanup is
Saturday in Juneau.
Laurie Sica, president of the local
organization, and board member John
Logan were guests on Capital Chat this
morning (Friday).
The bag sites open at 9 a.m.
The bag sites are at the Douglas Fire
Hall, A&P in the Foodland Shopping
Mall, Western Auto, Lyles Home
Furnishings, Super Bear, Duck Creek
Market and the UAS Student Bookstore in
Auke Bay.
Choose any public area that needs
cleaning and go for it, Logan says.
Place bags, full and tied, at a
prominent place on a main roadway by 2
p.m.
Sica says they gathered about 62 tons of
trash which was higher than recent years
which generally amounts to 30 tons. But
they have done up to 200 tons in the
past.
School kids got a jump on the community
and started today (Friday). Logan says
almost all of the schools have students
out cleaning up.
Free tram passes and sandwich coupons
will be handed out to those who sign up
at the bag sites.
The Juneau Watershed Partnership is
hosting a picnic for participants at
Noon at the Duck Creek Market.
Letter
carriers ask for food donations
The 16th annual Stamp Out Hunger food
drive is Saturday.
The event is organized by United States
Postal Service letter carriers.
To donate non-perishable food items just
leave them next to your mail box and
your letter carriers will pick them up.
Letter carrier Mark Piotrowski says the
food stays in Juneau.
Darren Adams runs the Southeast Alaska
Food Bank. Piotrowski says Adams has been getting a
lot of phone calls recently due the
increases in the cost of living like
gas, food and the looming electrical
bills.
Local letter carriers deliver mail to
over 16,000 addresses and mail boxes in
the Juneau Douglas area.
Piotrowski is encouraging people to
donate what non perishable food items
they can this Saturday. Just leave them
next to your mail box.
Last year, three tons of food was
collected and donated to the local food
bank.
Many
Bike Week events planned in Juneau
Bike Week starts in Juneau Saturday.
The
highlight will be Bike to Work and
School Day next Thursday, May 16th.
Barb Kelly of the Juneau Freewheeler's
Cycling Club says to spur people to act
they have what they're calling the
10,000 Mile Capital Challenge.
That involves tracking the miles Juneau
citizens ride during Bike Week. She says
the goal is 10,000 miles.
Kelly believes it's a reachable goal.
She says that would be one percent of
Juneau's population riding just over 4
point 6 miles per day for the seven
days.
And if people would rather walk or take
the bus, she says they're count those
miles.
She says people can log their miles on a
web site at www.vlog.com
There's a link to that site at www.juneaufreewheelers.com
A bicycle film festival is planned
at the Silverbow Monday through
Wednesday. A new film entitled
"Seasons" will be premiered
Wednesday.
March
of Dimes prepared to walk in Juneau
The March of Dimes is holding it's
annual walk this Saturday.
Over 75 people have been gathering
sponsors and have signed up to
participate in what's called the
"March for Babies".
Alaska March of Dimes Director Janie
Odgers says 75 percent of the money
raised nationally goes to
research.
She says premature births is the focus
of their campaign right now.
Odgers says many of the current tests
provided for babies are the results of
research that the March of Dimes funded.
Saturday's march will begin at the
Alaskan & Proud Supermarket parking
lot on West Willoughby Avenue
at 10:00 a.m.
The group, staying on the sidewalk, will
walk along Glacier Highway to 10th
Street.
From 10th Street, the group will walk
across the Juneau-Douglas Bridge, then
on to Douglas Highway.
They will walk along Douglas Highway
until reaching the scenic point
turn-around across from David Street,
where they will turn around and walk
back across the bridge taking the same
route back to A&P on the return
trip.
If you would like to sponsor a walker or
participate in the march call
800-478-5245 or you can register
Saturday morning at the A&P parking
lot.
Annual
plant sale happens Saturday
The Juneau Garden Club's "Super
Plant Sale" is coming up Saturday.
The club's Nancy Davis says it begins at
9 a.m. at the Carrs/Safeway parking lot
in the Valley.
Master Gardener Ed Buyarski says
residents will be able to receive expert
advice.
The club will also have copies of their
"Gardening in Southeast
Alaska" book for sale.
Liquor store undercover operation
underway
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - An undercover
operation is under way in Anchorage and
across the state.
Police are targeting liquor store
patrons who buy booze for minors.
The operation is employing young people
to hang out outside liquor stores and
ask patrons to buy them alcohol.
In Anchorage, the operation got under
way last month.
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(Copyright ©2008
Alaska Juneau
Communications - KINY Radio)
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