North Pole

North Pole raises resident ambulance discount to 25% for calls inside city limits

North Pole raised its resident ambulance discount to 25% so city residents won't feel last month's fee hike. The sponsor: Council member Santa Claus.

by Walter AlaskaNews1w ago2 min read

North Pole mayor's 2027 budget would hold tax rates and add $801,685 in spending

North Pole Mayor Larry Terch III's 2027 budget keeps tax rates flat but adds $801,685 in spending, mostly for police. Council introduces it Monday, but a gap still looms in the sewer fund.

by Walter AlaskaNews1w ago2 min read

North Pole needs $3.5 million to move its sewage outfall before daily fines start

After 13 or 14 years of back-and-forth with the state, North Pole must find $3.5 million to move its sewage outfall in about 3.5 years or face daily fines.

by Maggie AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read

North Pole police and fire chiefs propose 2027 budgets about $640,000 higher

North Pole's police and fire chiefs want about $640,000 more for 2027, mostly for wages. Worn-out patrol cars and a full fire station come next.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago3 min read

North Pole council splits over adding a $110,000 chief of staff with director job vacant

North Pole's mayor budgeted $110,000 for help in his office. Some council members would rather fill the vacant director job, which Santa Claus says is required.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago3 min read

Fairbanks-area draft transportation plan and its air pollution test are open for comment

FAST Planning wants comment by Oct. 30 on its $1.6 billion draft Fairbanks transportation plan and air pollution test.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

North Pole adopts 5% local bidder preference despite city attorney's constitutional warning

North Pole's council gave local businesses a 5% edge on city bids. The city attorney told them first it's likely unconstitutional. It passed 5-1.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

North Pole council delays vote on on-call compensation for city utility workers

North Pole council delayed a final vote on paying utility workers for on-call duty after a late rewrite. It will revisit the measure Nov. 2.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Follows: North Pole council advances comp time for on-call utility workers

Fairbanks-area draft 20-year transportation plan totals more than $1.6 billion

Fairbanks' draft 20-year transportation plan runs $1.6 billion. Airport Way topped the survey's ugliest-road picks; FAST says 2018 fixes haven't advanced.

by Alaska News4w ago2 min read

Both dirt bikes stolen in North Pole on Sunday recovered, troopers say

Two dirt bikes were stolen in North Pole early Sunday. Both are back, one found on the same street and one recovered by city police after a traffic stop.

by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Vehicle strikes and kills moose on Richardson Highway in North Pole

A moose lost its fight with a vehicle on the Richardson Highway in North Pole. The driver's fine, the car isn't, and troopers called a charity for the meat.

by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

North Pole council adopts 3% raise with 30-step pay scale

North Pole City Council voted 7-0 to give employees a 3 percent raise and expand the pay scale to 30 steps so senior workers advance instead of dropping back, taking effect Jan. 1, 2027.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Follows: North Pole council advances 3% pay raise for city employees

North Pole council advances comp time for on-call utility workers

North Pole may give on-call utility workers an hour of comp time per day. Santa Claus co-sponsored it. Mayor Larry Terch cast the only no vote.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Fairbanks voters decide tax cap, election date and hand-count initiatives Tuesday

Fairbanks votes Tuesday on locking in its tax cap, moving elections to November and counting every ballot by hand. Six local seats are up, too.

by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read

Fairbanks-area plan projects draw $13 million in federal highway obligations

Fairbanks and North Pole projects drew about $13 million in federal highway obligations in six weeks. When any of it gets built is a separate question.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Much of the Beaufort Sea's ice melted out in August after a cold, late start

A cold, cloudy spring slowed the melt off Alaska's north coast. Then August opened a hole north of Utqiaġvik, and much of the Beaufort's ice was gone.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Pilots will drop pumpkins on a target near North Pole on Saturday

Pilots will drop pumpkins from 200 feet onto a target circle at Bradley Sky Ranch near North Pole on Saturday, Sept. 26, competing for prizes in a free public fly-in event.

by Alaska News1mo ago2 min read

North Pole's bed tax collections are up 137% and headed for a record year

North Pole's bed tax collections more than doubled this year, likely because short-term rentals are finally paying up. A magazine also called it charming.

by Alaska News1mo ago2 min read

North Pole wants its next mayor to work part time, for $2,000 a month

North Pole's council voted to cut the next mayor's pay from about $80,000 a year plus benefits to $2,000 a month, flat. It is not final quite yet.

by Alaska News1mo ago2 min read

Troopers arrest driver on DUI charge after 105 mph stop near Fairbanks

Alaska State Troopers arrested a driver on a DUI charge after stopping them for driving 105 mph with signs of impairment on the Richardson Highway near Fairbanks on September 20th.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Troopers arrest North Pole man found inside vacant Fairbanks apartment

Troopers arrested a North Pole man found hiding in the bathroom of a vacant Fairbanks rental, where they also found a makeshift sleeping area.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Chena River flood advisory extended through Sunday as crest forecast rises

NWS extended the Chena River flood advisory through 10 pm Sunday and raised the Moose Creek Dam crest forecast to 25.1 feet.

by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Follows: NWS forecasts up to 1.5 inches of rain in the Chena River basin

Fairbanks votes Oct. 6 on capping taxes, moving elections and hand counts

Fairbanks voters decide Oct. 6 whether to cap borough taxes, move elections to November and count ballots by hand. Any of it locks for two years.

by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Flood watch warns Chena and Little Chena could top minor flood stage Wednesday

Half an inch to an inch of rain is landing on ground that is already soaked. The Little Chena is the river for Fairbanks to keep an eye on now.

by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Fairbanks dense fog advisory expired at noon after visibility fell to 100 yards

Fog in Fairbanks got thick enough Monday that you could see about a hundred yards, and it did that an hour after the advisory was supposed to end.

by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

North Pole council advances 3% pay raise for city employees

North Pole advanced a 3 percent raise for city employees Tuesday after rejecting a push to delay it and hearing that employee trust in the council is low.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min readFrom Sep 8

Troopers say stolen truck hit dump truck head-on in North Pole

A truck troopers say was stolen hit a dump truck head-on in North Pole. The driver was arrested on theft and DUI charges, which are not findings of guilt.

by Maggie AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read

Fairbanks ordinance would shift board appointments from Assembly to borough mayor

Mayor Hopkins would gain power to appoint most borough board members now split between the Assembly and Fairbanks and North Pole, under an ordinance the Assembly takes up Wednesday.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read

No license covers driving a concrete mixer, so this Alaska company teaches it

No license covers driving a concrete mixer, so a North Pole company supplying Fairbanks concrete since the 1950s teaches the whole craft in-house.

by Melinda Communities.News2mo ago2 min readFrom Jun 1

Fairbanks' utility is writing down when it would start turning off your power

Fairbanks' electric co-op is writing rules for when it would start rotating outages. It has run short on reserve power 236 of the last 250 days.

by Melinda Communities.News2mo ago2 min read

GVEA's fuel charge drops 12.6%, reversing about a third of June's increase

GVEA's fuel charge dropped 12.6 percent Tuesday, cutting about $15 from monthly bills for Interior members, though the rate remains far above pre-summer levels after diesel prices spiked.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read

Therapy dogs at the North Pole library Sept. 19, first of five Saturdays

North Pole library hosts therapy dogs for children's reading sessions on Sept. 19 and Oct. 17, drop-in from 1 to 3 p.m., no registration needed.

by Maggie AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read

Fairbanks's chum salmon fishery reopens on the Tanana on Friday

Fairbanks-area households can fish for chum salmon on the Tanana again starting Friday, after a strong Yukon run — but coho must be released and limits apply.

by Bill AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read

Two arrested in North Pole burglary involving stolen firearms

Alaska State Troopers arrested William Clatterbuck and Briana Perry on Wednesday for a North Pole burglary in which firearms, a snow machine, and a generator were stolen.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read

Golden Valley was short on reserves 94 percent of the last 250 days

Golden Valley was short on generation reserves 94% of the last 250 days, and its mix models 17 shortfalls a year against a benchmark of one per decade.

by Alaska News2mo ago2 min read

North Pole's library rolls out a fall lineup of programs for kids

North Pole's library rolls out a fall lineup for kids: baby playtime, storytimes, movie afternoons and reading aloud to therapy dogs, Sept. 1 through October.

by Maggie AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read

Troopers: Fairbanks man, 79, injured in Old Nenana Highway motorcycle crash

A 79-year-old Fairbanks man was injured Wednesday in a motorcycle crash on Old Nenana Highway and taken to Fairbanks Memorial Hospital.

by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read

Two men barricade themselves in a car after fleeing Fairbanks police

Two men barricaded themselves in a car after fleeing Fairbanks police early Sunday, and face charges including DUI, weapons and drug misconduct after the standoff ended.

by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min read

North Pole man charged with felony assault for throwing rocks at cars

A North Pole man, Jonathan Moreland, 23, was arrested after troopers say he threw rocks at passing cars near Badger Road — then at the patrol cars that showed up. He faces felony assault charges.

by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min read

A North Pole dirt bike crash follows a fatal Fairbanks motorcycle wreck

A North Pole dirt bike rider walked away with minor injuries — the interior's second two-wheeled crash this month, after a Fairbanks motorcyclist was killed.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read