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Monday, Aug 3
Anchorage weighs $1 million for nonprofits feeding and sheltering vulnerable residents
Anchorage votes Tuesday on just over $1 million for nonprofits providing food, emergency shelter and other essential services to the city's most vulnerable residents.

Riding a defense boom, Kodiak looks to send a member to D.C. for funds
Amid a defense boom — icebreakers, a Coast Guard base and missile-defense launches — Kodiak is moving to send a member to D.C. for infrastructure money.

Audit of $11.8M in off-the-books Anchorage spending heads to the Assembly
An audit of at least $11.8 million in Anchorage spending that skipped purchase orders — and the city's public transparency tracker — goes to the Assembly Tuesday.

Troopers arrest three Fairbanks-area drivers on DUI charges
Fairbanks troopers arrested three impaired drivers over the weekend, all well over the limit — including one who blew 0.248 with cocaine allegedly in his truck.

Anchorage moves to sell an old Government Hill fire station to Chugach Electric
Anchorage would sell the old Government Hill fire station to Chugach Electric for $470,000, no bidding, since Chugach already leases it for a communications tower.

Most of the deer Alaska moved to the Kenai died over winter. The state is trying again.
Most of the 19 deer Alaska moved to the southern Kenai last fall died over a brutal winter, but the state is releasing 15 to 20 more this fall to try to build a future huntable herd.

Strong winds hit the Anchorage Hillside and Turnagain Arm, with outages possible
Strong winds are hitting the Anchorage Hillside and Turnagain Arm, gusting up to 60 mph through Tuesday morning. Secure loose items — power outages are possible.

Wasilla man cited for motorized vehicle use in Palmer Hay Flats refuge
A Wasilla man was cited for driving a motorized vehicle in Palmer Hay Flats State Game Refuge, where off-road use is restricted to permitted activities in specific seasons and terrain.

More from Southcentral
Anchorage is considering expanding its surveillance network. The privacy rules are still a draft.
Anchorage votes Tuesday on $1.4M for police, including a surveillance center that logs cars, faces and movement — paid for with seized cash and federal money that never reaches the public budget, in the rare state whose constitution promises a right to privacy.

Kenai school board weighs AI classroom rules ahead of the school year
Kenai's school board is trying to write AI classroom rules firm enough to matter but loose enough to last, the same bind every district is in. They want them set by fall.

The jet bridges at the Anchorage airport are wearing out
Those clunky old jet bridges at the Anchorage airport are wearing out, and the state is replacing them gate by gate through 2028. Two more are up for bid now.

An Eagle River man is accused of feeding bears, which can get them killed
Hey! No feeding the bears....allegedly.

Sunday, Aug 2
Anchorage would sell rights over its City Hall lot below appraisal
Anchorage would sell two private firms the right to keep part of the City Hall lot building-free — $80K under appraisal, for a downtown project not yet filed.

Kenai weighs federal housing funds for Sixth Street water and sewer work
Kenai weighs using federal housing grant money to help fund water, sewer and street work on Sixth Street, with a public hearing and vote Wednesday.

Anchorage Assembly recognizes four Eklutna youth interns for Elders meal program
Anchorage Assembly recognized four Eklutna youth interns who spent the summer harvesting salmon and moose for an Elders Freezer Meal program, then delivered meals to tribal Elders' homes.

Neighbors got the tower dropped from a south Anchorage substation rebuild
After a two-year fight, neighbors got Chugach to drop a 65-foot tower from a south Anchorage substation rebuild. A smaller fence-and-noise dispute is left.

About Southcentral
Southcentral Alaska is the region of the state centered on Anchorage, its population center and transportation hub. It spans the Kenai Peninsula, the Matanuska-Susitna Valley, Prince William Sound and Cook Inlet, and reaches communities such as Kenai, Soldotna, Homer, Seward, Cordova, Palmer, Wasilla and Eagle River.
Much of the region's civic life runs through the Anchorage Assembly, the Kenai Peninsula and Matanuska-Susitna borough assemblies, and city councils. Questions of housing and zoning come up often, along with who pays to extend water and sewer lines to building sites. School budgets, road safety on its highways and oil and gas operations in Cook Inlet also return.
The Kenai River and Cook Inlet tie the region to fishing, and the Parks Highway and Seward Highway link its communities. Windstorms that cut power and trooper reports from the Matanuska-Susitna area are common subjects as well.
More from Southcentral
ENSTAR says Cook Inlet output has fallen to a fifth of its 1990s peak, with its firm contract ending in 2033
Cook Inlet is apparently in trouble, well, unless you think rolling backouts are a good deal. And I'm sure somebody in the world does, somewhere

Micciche sets break-even floor on Kenai Peninsula tax break for Alaska LNG
Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor Peter Micciche set a floor on Alaska LNG tax breaks at 75% off, saying the borough will not accept less than break-even on a $23.6 billion to $28.4 billion facility.

Seven face sex trafficking charges tied to seven Alaska spa businesses
Seven people face felony sex trafficking charges after a year-long investigation of massage businesses in Wasilla and Anchorage that identified 11 victims.

Kenai dipnet season closes after another strong sockeye run
The Kenai River personal use dipnet fishery closed for 2026 after a late-run sockeye return near 3 million, again clearing Fish and Game's escapement goals. Kasilof stays open through Aug. 7.

A visiting angler was found dead in the Kenai River near Sterling
A 71-year-old Georgia man who came to fish the Kenai River was found dead near a Sterling boat ramp Friday. Troopers say nothing suspicious has been found.

Alaska Zoo moves injured rescued bear, closes exhibit after threats
A rescued brown bear was moved from the Alaska Zoo after a fight left her hurt, and the backlash brought threats against the other bears, closing the exhibit.

Juneau's casino opened on shifting ground and now faces suits on two fronts
Juneau's tribal casino opened through a federal opening since rescinded, and now faces the state, a family lawsuit and doubt about whether it's even legal.

The state is being asked to bank on a gas line price it may never fully see
Alaska is weighing tax breaks and $800 million for a gas pipeline whose developer says the true cost may never be public. Its disclosed estimate already jumped $10 billion.

Seward faces heavy rain and flood risk again, weeks after July storm
Seward faces 2 to 4 inches of rain Monday through Thursday, with flood and landslide risk — the second such threat weeks after a July flood warning.

A year in, Anchorage's camping ordinance mostly moves people along, not into services
A year of Anchorage's camping ordinance: 89% of contacts end without arrest, but 890 of 962 people who complied left with no referral to services. The Assembly reviews it Tuesday.

Kodiak woman, 71, arrested for DUI after crash into parked wildlife trooper vehicle
Uh-oh. I think there's a modest mouse song about this...'Float on' maybe?

Free daily meals and pantries available across Anchorage in August
A free hot meal is available somewhere in Anchorage every day this month, plus two dozen food pantries citywide. Call 211 or check anchoragefood.org for the schedule.

Kasilof man, 87, dies after Sterling Highway collision near Cohoe Loop
An 87-year-old Kasilof man has died after a two-vehicle crash on the Sterling Highway, days after he turned into the path of an oncoming minivan.

A neighbor found the missing Butte woman walking near his home
A missing elderly Butte woman was found safe nine hours after she wandered off, spotted by a neighbor walking near his own property late Friday night.

Saturday, Aug 1
A Muldoon pot shop clears the park buffer, by measuring to the playground
A Muldoon Road pot shop clears the park buffer because the city measures to the playground, not the park line, 734 feet. Neighbors object; the Assembly votes Tuesday.

Helicopter lifts stuck hiker off peak five miles southeast of Alyeska
A helicopter rescued a stranded hiker off a peak five miles southeast of Alyeska early July 28 after a nearly four-hour operation, with EMS treating him for minor injuries at Girdwood Airport.

Two charged with burglary after troopers find them back at a Clam Gulch cabin, hauling out an appliance
Two people were charged after troopers found them back at a Clam Gulch cabin they'd allegedly burglarized more than once, hauling out a large appliance. Most of the stolen goods were recovered nearby.

Heavy rain now expected in the Mat-Su, with rivers set to crest Wednesday
Heavy rain is now expected in the Mat-Su, 3 to 5 inches, with rivers cresting Wednesday. The Yentna and Talkeetna corridors hit weeks ago are most exposed again.

Court upholds detention for teen who killed another boy, even at low risk
An Alaska court says a judge can detain a teen for a serious crime even when a psychologist calls him low risk. The case: a boy who killed another teen.

Students get to fire the HAARP transmitter at UAF's summer school
An NSF grant funds UAF's HAARP summer school, where students actually get to run experiments on the Gakona array most people only know from conspiracy theories.

As melting ice opens the Arctic to more ships, a UAA scientist studies how a spill would behave
As melting ice brings more ships to the Arctic, a UAA scientist won a $364,999 grant to study how sunlight breaks down the toxic residue an oil spill would leave in cold, salty northern waters.

The military is adding a thousand people to a base that's already full
The military plans to add about 1,050 people to Alaska bases while JBER housing sits at 98% full. Anchorage's Assembly is bracing for the overflow to hit the city's market.

Anchorage police oversight proposal dies without a second
Anchorage's police oversight proposal, already stripped of any power to investigate, died Tuesday for lack of a second, leaving the city with no oversight body since 2024.

Anchorage historic panel objects to Seward Highway safety review it says skipped the city
Anchorage's historic commission objects to the Safer Seward Highway review, saying the state cut the city out and that a wider, faster road threatens historic sites like Beluga Point.
