Mat-Su Valley

Legislature seeks bids for Mat-Su office space as Wasilla lease runs out of renewals

The Legislature is taking bids for a Mat-Su office for nine local lawmakers. The Wasilla lease runs out of renewals in 2027, and there's no set budget.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min readFrom Oct 2

Wasilla airport commission backs buying at least 11 parcels for longer runway

Wasilla's airport commission backed buying at least 11 parcels for a longer runway. Planes leave heavier than they arrive, thanks partly to local shopping.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Mat-Su Assembly to revisit lake and river setback rules in a special meeting

Mat-Su Borough Assembly special meeting Oct. 20 on waterbody setbacks, the 75-foot rule for lakes and streams, after an earlier advisory board's recommendations.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Eagle River man, 72, dies after falling overboard on Talkeetna River

Charles Kolb, 72, of Eagle River died Thursday after falling overboard on the Talkeetna River despite lifesaving efforts by another boater and emergency crews.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

State takes comments through Oct. 29 on water quality review of AIDEA's West Susitna road

The state is taking comments through Oct. 29 on whether AIDEA's 78.5-mile West Susitna road meets water quality rules. The Corps' own window closes Tuesday.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Alaska Supreme Court rules early ICWA errors don't undo a later termination that followed the law

The Alaska Supreme Court held that ICWA errors in the early removal stage of a child welfare case don't undo a later termination that followed the law.

by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read

Southcentral weekend brings ski swap, winter prep and fall festivals

Southcentral Alaska hosts a ski swap, winter prep fair, half marathon, pumpkin festival and Indigenous Peoples Day celebration Saturday through Monday as cool, wet weather moves in.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Houston approves plastics recycler's permit as state reviews groundwater contamination at site

Houston approved a plastics recycler at a gravel pit where the owner's own consultant found petroleum in the groundwater. The state is still looking into it.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Houston passes two-year pause on data centers as state weighs AIDEA land transfer

Houston's City Council paused data center permits for two years while the state weighs giving 20,000 acres just north of the city to AIDEA for free.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

State puts emergency erosion work on Talkeetna's only highway out to bid

The Susitna River has been chewing at the bank near the only highway into Talkeetna. The state wants erosion protection in place there by Dec. 15.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min readFrom Oct 2

Mat-Su Assembly asks school board to start classes the day after Labor Day

Mat-Su kids would start school after Labor Day instead of mid-August if the school board agrees. It's only a request, and the vote may not even stand.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Follows: Mat-Su resolution would ask school board to start classes after Labor Day

Giessel says governor kept DNR commissioner from legislative hearing on AIDEA land transfers

Governor blocked the DNR commissioner from testifying at a legislative hearing on state land transfers to AIDEA, leaving lawmakers without answers on nearly 20,000 acres north of Houston.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read

Legislative attorneys say Houston land transfer to AIDEA may fail public-purpose test

Legislative attorneys say giving AIDEA 20,000 free acres near Houston may not pass the public-purpose test. AIDEA's director says state law already settles it.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read

Trump schedules Wasilla rally before Alaska general election

Trump is due in Wasilla on Tuesday. Ahead of it he again endorsed Sullivan and Begich and said he hopes Alaskans repeal ranked-choice voting.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Bethel council holds hearing Tuesday on leasing six city lots to Alaska Directional

Bethel City Council holds a public hearing Tuesday on leasing six city lots to a Palmer fiber contractor for $16,800 a month without taking competitive bids.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Wasilla man gets 20 years in federal prison for child sexual abuse material

Paul Greeno of Wasilla was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison Wednesday for possessing child sexual abuse material depicting infants and toddlers.

by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Alaska Supreme Court hears Valdez redistricting fee dispute

Alaska Supreme Court heard arguments Thursday on whether Valdez and a resident can recover attorney's fees from their challenge to the state's 2021 redistricting plan.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Dense fog advisories issued for Copper and Susitna valleys, with black ice risk

Fog and freezing temps raised black ice risk along the Richardson and Parks highways this week. It's Winter Weather Preparedness Week, fittingly.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Truck crash closes left outbound lane of Glenn Highway near mile 26 Thursday morning

A truck crash closed the left outbound lane of Glenn Highway near mile 26 early Thursday, Oct. 8, with closure expected to end by noon.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Wasilla man, 71, faces five counts of possessing child sexual abuse material

Task Force Dawnbreaker arrested Dale Weeg, 71, of Wasilla on Oct. 6 on five counts of possessing child sexual abuse material.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Crowley Alaska recruits mechanics and drivers Thursday at Mat-Su Job Center

Crowley is hiring mechanics and line drivers in Palmer, with $3,500 sign-on bonuses. Recruiters are at the Mat-Su Job Center Thursday afternoon.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

State takes comment on expanding Western Cook Inlet geophysical survey near Beluga

A survey crew wants 9.7 more miles of lines near Beluga, with dynamite charges set in hand-drilled holes. The state is taking comments until Oct. 21.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Anchorage Assembly members draft an ordinance to restrict concentrated kratom products

Three Assembly members want concentrated kratom off Anchorage shelves and the tea left alone. Nothing's introduced yet, and the city has no local data.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

DNR proposes requiring permits for most shooting in the Matanuska Valley Moose Range

DNR wants a permit for most gunfire near Slipper Lake and across the Moose Range, and for burning cars. Hunters are exempt. Comments due Nov. 9.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read

Mat-Su Assembly writes scenic trail opposition into Rasmuson grant resolution

Mat-Su Assembly added opposition to National Scenic Trail status for the Alaska Long Trail to a $300,000 grant resolution, citing use restrictions and loss of local control.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Mat-Su Assembly pulls Engstrom road reconsideration without debate

Mat-Su Assembly dropped a reconsideration of the Engstrom Road connector, leaving a September vote in place for the $21.6 million northern route over a $9.1 million southern option.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Alaska rent growth slows overall, but Mat-Su and Kenai post record jumps

Rents in surveyed Alaska areas rose 2.6%, the smallest increase in five years. But Mat-Su and the Kenai Peninsula saw record jumps of 12.8% and 11%.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Air Guard helicopter rescues pilot after crash 35 miles north of JBER

A pilot had minor injuries after his single-engine plane crashed north of JBER on Oct. 1. A Guard helicopter crew flew him to an Anchorage hospital.

by Alaska News1mo ago1 min read

Live Alaska local results: Fairbanks, Kodiak and Wasilla report first totals

Fairbanks Assembly Seat D is separated by 123 votes, Ketchikan Gateway Borough Assembly by 16 and Kodiak Island Borough Assembly by six.

by Alaska News1mo ago11 min readFrom Oct 7, 2025

Mat-Su Planning Commission backs Oil Well Road community council district

Mat-Su Planning Commission recommended the Assembly create a community council district for Oil Well Road property owners, which would let them seek state grants if incorporated.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Ship Creek moose permits available online only starting Tuesday

Fish and Game opens 100 Ship Creek moose permits online Tuesday at 8 am. Last year the hunt closed after 12 days; in 2015, after four. Bring your legs.

by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Troopers arrest Anchorage man after 100 mph pursuit in Wasilla

Alaska State Troopers arrested Anchorage man Xavier Cropley after he drove over 100 mph and fled on foot in Wasilla, facing a felony charge of failure to stop for an officer.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Alaska Jewish Campus registers lobbyist to seek state grant for indoor play center

Alaska Jewish Campus hired a lobbyist to seek a state capital budget grant for an indoor play center for children with disabilities, which has raised $1.83 million toward its $4.2 million cost.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min readFrom Oct 1

Wasilla man, 29, arrested on DUI charge; troopers also found suspected LSD

Alaska State Troopers arrested a Wasilla man, 29, on a DUI charge early Saturday near Knik-Goose Bay Road and reported finding suspected LSD tabs and empty bottles in his vehicle.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Palmer forestry base holds memorial for helicopter pilot Greg King

The Alaska Division of Forestry held a memorial at its Palmer aviation base for helicopter pilot Greg King, who died Sept. 20 in a crash on the Dome Fire in Yosemite National Park.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

State cites Mat-Su marijuana grow for 1,840 tracking violations after finding hundreds of untagged plants

Investigators found hundreds of untagged pot plants at a Mat-Su grow and counted 1,840 violations. Its latest tag order bounced for insufficient funds.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Kenai parks commission puts tennis and pickleball courts ahead of shop design

Kenai's parks commission wants to shift $150,000 from a parks shop design to fixing tennis and pickleball courts. The pickleball crowd wants concrete.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Dense fog advisory for Lower Matanuska and Southern Susitna valleys ended early Thursday

Dense fog that cut visibility to a quarter mile in the Matanuska and Susitna valleys Wednesday night cleared by early Thursday, ending the National Weather Service advisory ahead of schedule.

by Alaska News1mo ago1 min read

Palmer man, 54, dies after 15-foot fall from scaffolding

A 54-year-old Palmer man died Wednesday after falling about 15 feet from shifting scaffolding at a home off Buffalo Mine Road, troopers said.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Mat-Su platting board approves five-tract Knik-Fairview subdivision after neighbor raises pond concerns

Sandhill cranes, moose and a pond that may or may not have tripled in size: Mat-Su's platting board OK'd a five-tract, 72-acre split in Knik-Fairview.

by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read