Economy & Business
RSSAlaska News covers state economic issues including cannabis banking, state dividends, and business development opportunities.
A hydro plant sat on state land five years after its easement expired
A hydro plant east of Palmer has sat on state land for five years with no authorization to be there. The state now proposes to lease it the ground.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 2d ago2 min readAI
An Anchorage firm will run Job Corps in the South Bronx and Brooklyn
The Labor Department tried to shut down Job Corps last year and lost in court. Now it's signing new contracts, and an Anchorage firm got two in New York City.
by Melinda Communities.News4d ago2 min readAI
Bethel council to vote Sept. 22 on paying utilities for Atsaq Place supportive housing
Bethel City Council votes Sept. 22 on paying water, sewer and waste utilities for Atsaq Place supportive housing, a 24-unit shelter for people experiencing homelessness.
by Walter AlaskaNews3d ago2 min readAI
A fishing advocate warns Kenai over an undersea Cook Inlet data center
A fishing advocate told the Kenai council the federal application for an undersea data center off Nikiski has no thermal modeling, in endangered beluga habitat.
by Walter AlaskaNews3d ago2 min readAI
Cordova's winter ferry hope hinges on a Whittier dock question
Cordova Mayor Kristin Smith plans to meet with Alaska's transportation commissioner Tuesday to discuss winter ferry service and road safety issues.
by Walter AlaskaNews3d ago2 min readAI
Mat-Su picks a pricier road route over its advisors and landowners
Mat-Su picked a $21–31 million road route over a $9–10 million one, against every advisory body and landowners who won't sell, on a vote that first failed.
by Walter AlaskaNews3d ago1 min readAI
Alaska towns can build housing with this grant now, up to a point
Alaska communities can finally use block grant money to build housing. The most any one of them could put toward construction is about $170,000.
by Walter AlaskaNews3d ago1 min readAI
ConocoPhillips' Disclosed Alaska Royalties Fell 58% in Two Years
ConocoPhillips paid $37.97 million in royalties on its federal Alaska leases last year, down 58 percent from 2023, partly on lower oil prices.
by Walter AlaskaNews4d ago2 min readAI
Anchorage police launch phased pre-arrest deflection pilot Sept. 23
Anchorage's deflection pilot begins Sept. 23. Police make the referral, True North handles navigation and community providers deliver treatment.
by Walter AlaskaNews4d ago2 min readAI
Two men die in a plane crash near Aniak, Troopers say
Two men were killed when a small plane crashed after taking off from a moose camp near Aniak, Alaska State Troopers said.
by Walter AlaskaNews3d ago1 min readAI
Childcare center at downtown Anchorage church set to open Oct. 1 with municipal funding
Alaska's first worker-run childcare center opens in downtown Anchorage next month, with room for 82 kids and $200,000 in marijuana tax money behind it.
by Walter AlaskaNews4d ago1 min readAI
BBNC seeks permanent Bristol Bay protections as Alaska challenges EPA's Pebble restrictions
BBNC wants Congress to protect Bristol Bay permanently as Alaska challenges the EPA's narrower Pebble restrictions in a consolidated federal case.
by Bill AlaskaNews4d ago2 min readAI
A House committee cited Alaska while advancing a drilling bill for elsewhere
A House committee voted to drop federal drilling permits on 4 million acres. None are in Alaska, but the chairman held up Alaska as the model.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 3d ago2 min readAI
Two Anchorage men patented a plier jaw built to stop slipping
Two Anchorage men just patented a plier jaw with V-shaped teeth meant to stop tools slipping off rounded hardware. No company, no product, just the patent.
by Melinda Communities.News4d ago2 min readAI
A hiring fair comes to the Fairbanks Job Center on Thursday
Job seekers can meet retail, grocery, restaurant and banking employers at a hiring fair Thursday at the Fairbanks Job Center, 11 am to 3 pm.
by Walter AlaskaNews4d ago1 min readAI
Air taxi operators said they overpaid. Juneau is redoing its fees.
Juneau's airport would cut fuel fees by two-thirds and raise landing fees, after air taxi operators said a 2019 error had them overpaying for years.
by Walter AlaskaNews4d ago2 min readAI
Van Horn Road is closed at University Avenue with no detour posted
an Horn Road is closed at University Avenue in Fairbanks for paving, with no detour and no reopening time. The state's alert can't decide which road is shut.
by Walter AlaskaNews4d ago1 min readAI
Housing on the Tozier Tract would likely close off a planned road
Opening a Tudor Road parcel to housing would probably kill a road connection the city has planned for years. The state planner said so and did not object.
by Walter AlaskaNews4d ago2 min readAI
Anchorage's own campground isn't allowed under its park zoning
Anchorage's 84-site Centennial campground isn't permitted under the city's own park zoning. A proposed fix would legalize what's already there.
by Walter AlaskaNews4d ago2 min readAI
Three outhouses east of Cordova, and a $1 million to $5 million estimate
The Forest Service wants three outhouses replaced near Cordova, plus picnic shelters and camping pads. It estimates the job at $1 million to $5 million.
by Maggie AlaskaNews4d ago2 min readAI
Cordova's only ATV trail gets fixed, once the ground freezes
Cordova's only managed ATV trail is eroding into the river, and the repair cannot start until the ground freezes solid for five straight days.
by Maggie AlaskaNews4d ago2 min readAI
Rezanof Drive closes nightly in downtown Kodiak through September
Rezanof Drive closes nightly through the end of September in downtown Kodiak, and the state hasn't said what construction the closure is for.
by Walter AlaskaNews4d ago1 min readAI
State-backed Alyeschem plant reaches construction milestone
Alyeschem has finished driving foundation piles for its Prudhoe Bay chemical plant. Alaska's backing is a repayable loan, not a $70 million grant.
by Melinda Communities.News4d ago2 min readAI
Four miles of Skagway's only road out have no money in the state's plan
Four miles of Skagway's only road out carry no money in Alaska's draft transportation plan. The stages on either side of them carry $78 million.
by Walter AlaskaNews4d ago2 min readAI
Alpine pipeline seeks nearly double metering capacity for Willow-era output
A North Slope pipeline wants to nearly double how much oil it can meter as Willow nears production. The filing changes measurement capacity, not Willow's approval.
by Walter AlaskaNews4d ago2 min readAI
Alaska is taking bids to make its own Made in Alaska merchandise
Alaska is taking bids to make its own Made in Alaska merchandise. The cap is $15,000, and the permit is only required by the time bids close.
by Melinda Communities.News4d ago1 min readAI
The program mapping Alaska's subsurface runs out at the end of the year
The federal program that nearly doubled Alaska's public geologic data expires this year. The bill to extend it is one of 25 in a committee with no vote set.
by Walter AlaskaNews5d ago1 min readAI
Senate panel will take up Native housing bill co-sponsored by both Alaska senators
The law that funds housing in Alaska Native villages is up for renewal. Overcrowding there runs about double the rate on tribal lands nationally.
by Walter AlaskaNews5d ago2 min readAI
Juneau commission to weigh second tenant on Clinton Drive Domino's lot with no added parking
A second business wants into the Domino's building on Clinton Drive with no new parking, and the neighbors who fought the 2024 permit are back.
by Walter AlaskaNews5d ago2 min readAI
Anchorage planners ask commission to triple setback threshold director can approve alone
Anchorage wants to triple what its planning director can approve alone, letting more setback encroachments skip the public hearing that now takes months.
by Walter AlaskaNews5d ago2 min readAI
Sitka's sales tax drops a point Oct. 1, the one that funds schools
Sitka's sales tax drops from 6 percent to 5 on Oct. 1 through March. The summer point that comes off is the one dedicated to funding school buildings.
by Walter AlaskaNews5d ago1 min readAI
The federal stake in Trilogy Metals closes, terms made public
The federal government now owns about a tenth of Trilogy Metals, developer of Alaska's Ambler district, and the terms of the $35.6 million deal are now public.
by Walter AlaskaNews5d ago2 min readAI
Native corporations keep 8(a) status as individuals face a new test
Alaska Native corporations keep their place in the federal 8(a) contracting program under a new rule, but individual Native applicants now face a tougher test.
by Walter AlaskaNews5d ago3 min readAI
AIDEA will discuss the Ambler road in Kotzebue, with the public out
AIDEA's board will talk about the Ambler road in Kotzebue next week, behind closed doors. The public portion covers meeting dates and a conference.
by Melinda Communities.Newsadded 4d ago1 min readAI
A Wasilla workshop will walk job seekers through federal applications
State staff will help job seekers with federal applications Thursday in Wasilla — as Alaska's federal job market shrinks and resumes get capped at two pages.
by Walter AlaskaNews5d ago1 min readAI
Judge upholds federal permit for mining access inside Lake Clark National Park
A judge upheld the permit for a road, airstrip and tunnel inside Lake Clark park. The test was whether the Corps was arbitrary, not whether it was right.
by Maggie AlaskaNews5d ago2 min readAI
Fairbanks companies seek a year-round water right for the pool at Circle Hot Springs
Two Fairbanks companies want a year-round water right at Circle Hot Springs — about 8.6 million gallons a day, on an application pending since 2020.
by Walter AlaskaNews5d ago2 min readAI
Denali opens 30 miles of road to private vehicles starting Friday
Starting Friday you can drive 30 miles into Denali, twice the summer limit — though snow and ice can shrink that stretch without much notice.
by Maggie AlaskaNews5d ago2 min readAI
Anchorage approves a bigger paved lot at the Basher Trailhead
Anchorage approved replacing the Basher Trailhead's 16-space gravel lot with a paved 52-space one, ending a year-long fight over its size.
by Walter AlaskaNews5d ago2 min readAI
Anchorage weighs making its 49 neighborhood plans advisory only
Anchorage's 49 neighborhood plans carry the force of law today. The Assembly wants to know if they should just be advice — 70% have never been updated.
by Walter AlaskaNews5d ago2 min readAI
