Economy & Business

Pier One Theatre seeks one more Homer Spit lease, and port staff want it to be the last

Pier One Theatre wants five more years in its $1-a-year city warehouse on the Homer Spit. Port staff say fine, but make it the last lease. The theater agrees.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Fairbanks Assembly picks developers' riverbank overlay at planned Chena RV park

Fairbanks rezoned a Chena riverbank strip at a planned RV park, picking the developers' looser overlay over the stricter one its own riverfront panel wanted.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3w ago3 min read

Juneau Assembly to consider $10 million loan for Glacier Highway water main

Juneau's Assembly will weigh a $10 million state loan to replace a leaky 45-year-old water main, ideally before the state repaves the highway on top of it.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Juneau would borrow up to $24.7 million for the Seawalk and let cruise fees repay it

Juneau wants to borrow up to $24.7 million to stretch its Seawalk to the far cruise dock. Cruise passengers' $3 fee would pay it back, not local taxes.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

State ends Hilcorp's idle Cook Inlet unit but gives it three years to decide on a restart

The state agreed Wednesday to end the unit around two long-idle Cook Inlet platforms, but gave Hilcorp three more years to decide whether to fire one back up.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago3 min read

AIDEA commits $25 million to nuclear startup NuCube as it seeks to go public

AIDEA is putting $25 million into NuCube, a 10-person, pre-revenue nuclear startup, buying discounted shares as the company tries to go public.

by Melinda Communities.News3w ago3 min read

State proposes giving the North Slope Borough 583 acres in the Kuparuk oil field

The state would hand the North Slope Borough 583 acres inside the Kuparuk oil field, but keep 185 acres with roads, pipelines and part of the operations center.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Feds seek bids for subsidized jet service to Cordova, Gustavus, 3 other towns

Feds opened bidding for subsidized jet service to Cordova, Gustavus, Petersburg, Wrangell and Yakutat. Alaska Airlines holds the current deal at about $17.8 million a year.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago3 min read

Kenai asks to join the federal review of a proposed undersea data center in Cook Inlet

Kenai wants a seat at the table as a Massachusetts company seeks to study putting 330-plus tidal turbines and 66 computer pods in Cook Inlet.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min readFrom Oct 7

Sitka Planning Commission approves merging three Halibut Point Road lots into one

Sitka merged three Halibut Point Road lots into one for a single new house. Its own planning director said that runs against the push for denser housing.

by Alaska News3w ago2 min readFrom Oct 7

Assembly hearing on Girdwood street crews' storage yard moves to Nov. 17

The Assembly hearing on giving Girdwood's street crews the storage yard they've used since 2009 moved to Nov. 17. The sewer utility wants the lot too.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago1 min read

AVEC says it must raise revenue 10% as delivered fuel costs climb 35% to 40%

AVEC says it needs 10% more revenue after diesel for its 58 villages arrived 35% to 40% pricier. In fly-in villages, fuel alone tops $1 a kilowatt-hour.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Kivalina, Wales and Eek lead off $100 million push to replace village fuel tanks

AVEC says contractors headed to Kivalina, Wales and Eek this summer to start new fuel tank farms, first of 10 villages in a $100 million grant ending July 2028.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3w ago4 min read

Truck crash blocks Glenn Highway in both directions east of Eureka Summit

A truck crash blocked the Glenn Highway in both directions near the Little Nelchina River Thursday morning. The state's traffic system says crews are on scene.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago1 min read

Alaska expands child care aid to more working families and raises provider rates Dec. 1

Starting Dec. 1, a family of four earning up to $11,257 a month can get Alaska child care help, and providers get paid more. Ketchikan parents feel shorted.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Alaska, last in medical residency slots, plans $6.4 million for doctor training

Alaska ranks last among states in slots for training new doctors. The state is steering about $6.4 million in federal rural health money to residencies.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

AIDEA board approves $75 million fiber company, bars partners on restricted lists

AIDEA's board created a $75 million company to buy into undersea fiber, hoping Alaska can stop being what the resolution calls a "data cul-de-sac."

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago3 min read

Follows: AIDEA board to vote on a $75 million company to invest in undersea internet cables

Juneau committee to discuss capping garages and sheds at the size of the main home

Juneau may tell your shop it can't outgrow your house. A land-use code committee talks size caps on garages and sheds, plus RV living, Wednesday.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Ermine Skate opens Midtown Anchorage storefront as founder receives legislative citation

Paxson Woelber opened Ermine Skate's new Anchorage shop, got a surprise legislative citation and cut the ribbon with a skate that isn't for sale yet.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago4 min read

Company behind the North Slope's winter village trail names two Deadhorse managers

The company that builds the snow road to the North Slope's roadless villages named two Deadhorse shop managers. One has hauled freight down that trail.

by Alaska News3w ago1 min read

Proposed Ahtna land swap would put Cantwell's shooting range on borough land

Denali Borough may swap land with Ahtna to own the ground under Cantwell's shooting range. Healy still can't find a range spot nobody would hear.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

USGS estimates North Slope holds 96 trillion cubic feet of gas yet to be found

USGS says the North Slope may hold 96 trillion cubic feet of gas nobody has found yet, about three years of U.S. use. Getting it out is still the hard part.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Cordova asks residents to push state to fully fund two road projects in 2027

Cordova's public works director wants residents to give the state "that little extra nudge" to fully fund two shovel-ready road projects. Comments end Oct. 29.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Federal regulators give Seward cruise dock contractor another year to finish pile driving

Feds gave Seward's cruise dock contractor another year to finish its last 12 days of pile driving. The lone commenter wanted sound checks. The budget said no.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Nearly all of the $1.84 billion in new federal awards to Alaska is health money

Three weeks into the federal fiscal year, $1.84 billion in awards to Alaska are on the books. Nearly all of it is health money, led by tribal health compacts.

by Alaska News3w ago1 min read

Alaska Air Group Now Expects 2026 Loss as Fuel Runs $1.8 Billion Over Plan

Alaska Air Group now expects a 2026 loss after jet fuel costs ran $1.8 billion over plan. The Alaska Airlines parent also serves 17 small Alaska communities with its cargo fleet, set to grow in 2027.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Permanent Fund ends its first quarter nearly flat after a $937 million September loss

The Permanent Fund made $61 million in three months on a $92 billion fund, after a $937 million September loss wiped out July and August's gains.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min readFrom Oct 15

Willow Commons stays full in its first six months, health department says

Willow Commons' 32 units have stayed full since March, and 27 of 58 residents finished treatment. The city's startup money for the operator ran out in July.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago3 min read

East 56 shelter will reach 200 beds by Nov. 30, a month earlier than last year

Anchorage will add East 56 shelter beds every other week to hit 450 citywide by Nov. 30, about a month before it reached 200 at East 56 last winter.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Egan Drive near Fred Meyer drops to 45 mph again Nov. 1 as Juneau waits for a signal

Egan Drive near Fred Meyer drops to 45 mph again Nov. 1 through January, peak crash season. The fix, a traffic signal, is set to start construction in 2027.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Alaska opens Arctic oil lease bidding after its best sale in a decade

Alaska opened bidding on nearly 8 million acres of North Slope and Beaufort Sea oil leases, a year after the same sales had their best showing in a decade.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

tate restarts historic review of Cowles Street rebuild after adding buried power lines

Fairbanks' Cowles Street rebuild got bigger, so the state is redoing its historic homework on a corridor with 31 cataloged sites and four Register listings.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Kodiak baby-gear company wins eighth design patent, this time for a bottle warmer

A Kodiak baby-gear company patented the look of its bottle warmer Tuesday. That's eight design patents, after five teethers, a noise machine and a milk warmer.

by Alaska News3w ago2 min read

Alaska's private sector added 2,200 jobs in a year as federal jobs fell nearly 9%

Alaska's private employers added 2,200 jobs over the year, and government shed 1,900, mostly federal. Net gain for the state by September: a modest 300.

by Bill AlaskaNews3w ago1 min read

Alaska Railroad among 231 railroads granted longer driving hours for track emergencies

Railroad drivers rushing to a derailment or washout can again drive into their 17th hour on duty. In Alaska, separate federal rules already allow the 20th.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Homer Electric bills rise about $8 a month as power cost charge climbs

Homer Electric raised its power cost charge Oct. 1, adding about $8 to an average monthly bill. It expects 117 days off the larger grid in the coming year.

by Melinda Communities.News3w ago2 min read

Ketchikan viaduct repairs slip to 2030, the second delay since August

Ketchikan viaduct repairs slid from 2027 to 2028 and now 2030, and a draft state plan would spend $10.25 million designing a partial Water Street replacement.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Anchorage's water utility could own the rights to most of the city's tap water in 2055

Most of Anchorage's tap water comes from a lake whose water rights belong to the hydro owners. A deal OK'd 12-0 lets the city's water utility own them in 2055.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Follows: Anchorage weighs Eklutna water deals after utilities decline to back its bid for a vote

Juneau task force nears a whale-watch cap and a new helicopter noise study

Juneau's tourism task force, declaring 'the status quo is not sustainable,' is close to urging a whale-watch cap and a redo of 2001 helicopter noise work.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Follows: Juneau task force to review draft rules that could license and cap whale-watching boats

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