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Homer Electric design fee for new hookups doubles to $1,000 Tuesday
Want power at your new place on the Kenai? Homer Electric's design fee doubles to $1,000 Tuesday, and three-phase hookups lose $3,000 in help.

Copper River commercial salmon season closes Oct. 13 after weak sockeye and strong coho runs
Copper River's commercial salmon season ends Oct. 13. Sockeye came in at a third of forecast, kings hit an eight-year low, and coho decided to make up for it.

FCC weighs new ways to set prices for rural Alaska clinics' internet and phone service
A federal telecom subsidy that's about 97% Alaska is up for a rewrite. The FCC wants comments by Wednesday on how rural clinic internet prices get set.

Summit on Aging attendees can book one-on-one time with state health leaders
Going to next month's Summit on Aging? You can book 15 minutes with state health leaders. Alaskans 65 and older get in free, but everyone has to register.

Alaska Municipal League sets Oct. 23 deadline for 2027 resolutions
Got a gripe with Juneau or Washington? If you're a city council or borough assembly, the Alaska Municipal League wants it in writing by Oct. 23.

State extends Unit 9B resident moose season to Sept. 30 after bad weather limited hunting
Wind, rain and high water kept Iliamna-area moose hunters off the water. The state is adding five days, so the Unit 9B hunt now runs through Sept. 30.

Kodiak school board meets in closed session Monday on a personnel matter for the fifth time since August
Kodiak's school board meets behind closed doors again Monday on a personnel matter. Its online minutes page hasn't caught up with anything since July.

Warrant rule for sharing police camera data splits Anchorage Assembly surveillance drafts
Anchorage Assembly debates whether outside agencies need a warrant before police share Real Time Crime Center data, with one version requiring warrants for inter-agency sharing and the other allowing broader data sharing for law enforcement purposes.

10-year-old boy reported missing in Big Lake is found safe, troopers say
A 10-year-old boy reported missing in the Big Lake area Friday has been found safe, Alaska State Troopers said, thanking the public for its help.

NOAA weighs 77 Gulf of Alaska sites for future kelp and shellfish farms
Seventy-seven spots along the Gulf of Alaska coast could someday grow kelp and oysters. NOAA is still studying them, and no farm is approved yet.

None of Anchorage's district projects got state money this year, city tells Assembly committee
Anchorage asked the state for neighborhood projects and got none. The port got $15 million. Now the city starts its 2027 wish list, due by Dec. 10.

Anchorage police officers now must intervene when a colleague uses improper force
Anchorage police say they've acted on 48 of 52 outside recommendations on use of force, but allow one pursuit tactic at higher speeds than reviewers advised.

Anchorage work session leaves Chugach park access costs unresolved
Anchorage Bowl taxpayers chip in for Hillside park roads. Whether Hillside chips in for Bowl roads is a question the Assembly's slides raised and left hanging.

Anchorage commission backs code change so Centennial campground and Russian Jack greenhouse fit park zoning
Anchorage's own campground and greenhouse don't fit its new park zoning. A commission voted to change the code so the parks can be zoned as parks.

Hope's second Fox Fest brings three bands to Creekbend Cafe on Saturday
Hope's Creekbend Cafe hosts its second Fox Fest on Saturday, Sept. 26, with three live bands performing from 3 to 10 p.m. for $35 adults, free for kids 15 and under.

Harvest Moon festival brings Alaska-grown food, pie contest to Soldotna
Soldotna Creek Park hosts the Harvest Moon Local Food Festival on Sept. 26 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., featuring Alaska-grown food vendors, live music, and a homemade pie contest capped at 30 pies that requires preregistration and a $5 entry fee.

Wind advisories cover the Parks and Richardson highways through early Sunday, with gusts up to 70 mph
The Alaska Range is doing its wind thing this weekend. Richardson gusts could top out near 70 mph Saturday; the Parks near Healy gets 60. Tall rigs, beware.

Where to celebrate Oktoberfest in Southcentral this weekend and next
Free Oktoberfest celebrations hit Girdwood, Anchorage and Valdez this weekend, Sept. 25-26. Ticketed adult events follow Oct. 3 in Palmer and Eagle River.

Kenai River Marathon marks 20th year with Sunday races
The Kenai River Marathon runs Sunday with full marathon, half marathon, relay, and 5K options starting from the visitor center on the Kenai Spur Highway.

Anchorage School Board keeps control of closed-school planning after lawyer advises against Assembly task force
A school board member wanted the Assembly in on what happens to empty schools. The district's lawyer said no, so Assembly members get seats but no votes.

Alaska must appoint lawyers for people jailed on other states' warrants, appeals court rules
People jailed in Alaska on another state's warrant have a right to a free lawyer, an appeals court ruled. The case began with requests filed on the wrong form.

Kodiak Island Borough Assembly cancels work session for lack of a quorum
Kodiak's Assembly couldn't gather enough members Thursday to talk about when it will meet next year. The 2027 meeting calendar will have to wait its turn.

Mat-Su Ballot Ties Home Tax Break to New 1% Sales Tax
Mat-Su voters get one box to check on a homeowner tax break and the borough's first areawide sales tax. It's a package deal, like cable used to be.

Houston commission recommends giving Holding District H landowners until March for fee-free zone changes
Houston landowners in the zoning holding district may get until the end of March to pick a new zone for free. The City Council still has to sign off.

Big Lake's trail groomers are asking the state for a snowmachine
The volunteers who groom 40 miles of Big Lake trail want a new snowmachine. Last time they asked the state for $35,000 and got about a third.

Police are searching for two missing teenagers in Anchorage and Wasilla
Anchorage police are searching for two missing teenagers: Sparrow Kowatch, 16, missing since Sept. 19, and Jay Moriwaki, 13, last seen Wednesday night.

State's draft road plan puts about $551 million into Kenai Peninsula projects; comments due Oct. 29
The state's draft road plan pours over half a billion dollars into Kenai Peninsula roads, mostly the Sterling Highway. Speak now: comments close Oct. 29.

State boundary commission revisits a rule that could stop Eaglexit before a full review
A state commission will revisit a rule that could stop Eaglexit early. One commissioner can't take part, and two would sit out the petition itself.

Comments due Oct. 23 on Alaska's 2027 Cook Inlet and Alaska Peninsula oil and gas lease sales
Want the right to challenge the state's next Cook Inlet and Alaska Peninsula oil and gas lease sales? Comment by Oct. 23, or forever hold your appeal.

MEA lays out how rolling outages would work if Southcentral runs short of gas this winter
MEA's plan if the gas runs short: nine groups, 30 to 45 minutes dark apiece, turns every few hours. Step six of six, and the co-op hopes to never get there.

Alaska asks court to approve its share of $2.3 million Labcorp data breach settlement
Labcorp will pay 44 attorneys general $2.3 million over its debt collector's 2019 data breach. Alaska's lawyers asked a judge to sign off on the state's cut.

The Kenai's coho limit stays at two through November
The Kenai's coho limit stays at two instead of stepping up to three. The state is being careful, though the river is still producing limits.

Prince William Sound faces a winter without ferry service as the Aurora is overhauled
Prince William Sound faces a winter with little or no ferry service while the 1977-built Aurora is overhauled. New docks are the fix, and they're years away.

Lawmakers press state on Safer Seward Highway project's size and funding as DOT reopens comment
Lawmakers pressed DOT on the Safer Seward Highway's size and funding. DOT pointed to open houses, new data online and 30 more days of public comment.

Bering River moose hunt closes after hunters reach 15-bull cap
The Bering River moose hunt closes Friday at its 15-bull cap. The herd behind it is estimated at 213 animals, against an objective of 300 to 350.

Kenai Peninsula voters decide on school board term limits
Kenai Peninsula voters decide on school board term limits that would not keep anyone off a ballot until 2032. The assembly sent it to them 9-0.

Alaska released 310 acres near Slana to the university over its own agencies' objections
The state released 310 acres near Slana for the university over objections from DOT, two of its own land sections and every commenter. DNR's reply: thanks.

Labor-funded committee backs Republican Ruby Jones and opposes both her rivals in Eagle River House race
A labor-funded group picked a Republican in Eagle River's House race and is buying ads against the other two candidates, one Republican and one Democrat.

Kenai voters decide Nov. 3 whether to ratify a $75,000 home tax exemption
Kenai voters will decide Nov. 3 whether to exempt the first $75,000 of home value from city property taxes, saving qualifying homeowners up to $326 a year.

Anchorage proposes trading the Tozier Track to the state housing agency for downtown parking lots, with housing required
Anchorage wants to trade the old dog track where the first Iditarod started for downtown parking lots. No bidding needed, and a neighbor objects.
