Alaska News Daily Brief, Wednesday, October 21

Alaska News, Wednesday, October twenty-first. Most of what you'll hear this morning gets decided in Washington, by offices Alaskans can only write letters to. One unanimous vote in Seward is the exception. A lot of what's moving right now is federal money, and who's asking for more of it.

0:19Six of seven Alaska air service routes draw one bid each, all seeking more federal money

Six of Alaska's most remote towns put their subsidized air service out to bid this summer. Each one got exactly one offer. In every case, the only bidder was the airline already flying there. And every one of those airlines wants a bigger check from the U.S. Department of Transportation. These are roadless communities. Their flights are paid for through the federal Essential Air Service program. The biggest ask is in Southeast. Alaska Seaplanes wants eleven point nine million dollars over 4 years to keep flying to Angoon, Elfin Cove, Pelican and Tenakee Springs. That's 71 percent more than the roughly six point nine five million dollars the current contract pays. The schedule into Juneau would stay the same. The airline's chief executive, Kent Craford, points to expensive airfares. He also points to passengers taking lodge boats and seasonal catamarans instead. The company also cites an aging fleet, rising maintenance costs and trouble hiring certified mechanics. Alaska Seaplanes expects Pelican's passengers to drop from 1,025 to 711 over the contract. Pelican's letter of support says that for much of the year, the airline is the town's only access to food, medical care, mail and transportation. Grant Aviation is the only bidder for Ekwok and for King Cove. It's asking 12 percent more for Ekwok and 22 percent more for King Cove. Only Lake Minchumina drew a second airline. Its contract runs out at the end of this month. The 4 Southeast towns have until November second to comment on the Alaska Seaplanes bid. The department hasn't picked a carrier for any of the 7 towns yet.

1:59Three Alaska telecoms lay out plans for $353 million in federal broadband grants

On internet service, three Alaska telecoms laid out last week how they'll spend three hundred fifty-three million dollars in federal broadband grants. Alaska Communications, GCI and Matanuska Telecom Association won the money this spring. It comes from a federal program that pays to bring internet to places with little or none. Alaska Communications got one hundred twenty-four million dollars for about 9,100 locations, from Fort Yukon down to Akhiok on Kodiak Island. Manley Hot Springs and Minto will get the company's service for the first time. Tony Dodge runs network planning at Alaska Communications. Dodge says all of the company's grant construction will be finished in twenty thirty. The company is splitting the work about evenly. Fiber cable goes in the denser areas. Everywhere else gets fixed wireless, which reaches homes by radio signal instead of cable. Dodge says going all fiber would have taken a grant 5 times as big. Fiber takes about 2 years to switch on, and wireless takes about 6 months. GCI has one hundred twenty-one million dollars for 18 communities in western Alaska and around Anchorage. Matanuska Telecom has one hundred eight million dollars for more than 10,000 locations. That includes spread-out areas around Big Lake, Palmer and Wasilla, where building costs the most. The industry calls federal permits the bottleneck. At a Senate hearing in July, a federal witness said the Bureau of Land Management gets these permit applications in year 3 of a 4-year build. That leaves 1 year to process them.

3:53State now expects Ketchikan viaduct repairs to start in 2030, the second delay since August

In Ketchikan, the state now says repairs to the downtown viaducts won't start until twenty thirty. That's the second time the date has slipped since August. Back then, the state's project page said work could start as early as 2027. Later the page said 2028. The Water Street viaduct carries 14,000 vehicles a day through downtown. The state rates it poor, a 4 out of 9. Deputy Commissioner Katherine Keith says the viaducts date back to the 1950s. The state lists emergency repairs on them in twenty twenty-four. The planned work covers pavement and deck repairs, fixes to girders and columns, and a new Jim Creek culvert. Crews would also fill empty spaces under Water Street. None of it replaces the viaducts. The money is moving too. The current state transportation plan puts twenty-eight point five million dollars for the structural repairs in the 2027 federal budget year. The new draft slides that repair money to 2031 or later. The draft also adds ten point two five million dollars in twenty twenty-seven to design a replacement for deteriorated sections of the Water Street viaduct. That design would use a hillside retaining wall and an earth embankment. The draft hasn't been adopted. When construction does come, the state expects lane closures, detours and changes to walking routes. Comments to the state on the draft transportation plan are due October twenty-ninth. Comments on the viaduct project notice are due November nineteenth.

5:25Chugach, the Alaska Chamber's business of the year, has bought five Alaska firms since 2024

Quickly, around the state. Chugach won the Alaska Chamber's business of the year award for big businesses. The company has bought 5 Alaska firms since twenty twenty-four, including Cordova's Copper River Fleece this summer.

5:42Non-aviation rent at Kodiak Airport starts at twice recent aviation rates

At Kodiak Airport, the state is taking bids on a lot for a business that has nothing to do with flying. Bids start at 37.5 cents a square foot. That's roughly twice what aviation tenants there have been charged lately.

5:56Federal regulators renew railroad hours exemption through 2030, listing Alaska Railroad

Federal regulators have renewed a rule break through twenty thirty for drivers at 231 railroads, including the Alaska Railroad. These aren't train crews. They're people driving commercial vehicles to a derailment, storm damage or a track emergency. Federal rules normally bar driving after 14 hours on duty. The rule break lets these drivers keep going until the 17th hour. Drivers in Alaska already work under different federal limits. And the notice doesn't say whether the Alaska Railroad has used the rule break.

6:33Alaska DMV pauses licenses tied to TPS for Ukraine, Sudan and El Salvador

Alaska's Division of Motor Vehicles has hit a hold on some licenses for people with temporary protected status. That's a federal humanitarian status for people from countries where armed conflict, disasters or other extraordinary conditions make it unsafe to return. Right now, the DMV can't renew driver's licenses or REAL ID cards based on that status for people from Ukraine, Sudan and El Salvador. The hold lasts until the federal government decides whether that status continues.

7:03USDA asks fishermen for fuel cost data for $8 billion relief program, sets no payment

The U.S. Department of Agriculture wants fishermen to send in their fuel costs for a new eight billion dollars relief program. Senator Dan Sullivan says Alaska fishermen are eligible. Nobody has said how much any one fisherman would get.

7:20Seward planning commission backs letting 3- to 5-unit housing skip conditional use permits

Seward's planning commission voted 5 to 0 to make small apartment buildings easier to build. Buildings with 3 to 5 units could skip the permit hearing they now need. Instead, builders would have to meet set standards written into city code. The City Council still has to approve the change.

7:38Seward and its chamber weigh a study of how much tourism money stays in town

Seward and its chamber of commerce are weighing a study of how much tourism money actually stays in town. At a work session, locals raised the wages paid to J-1 visa workers. They also raised rentals owned by outsiders, and how empty town gets in winter.

7:57Homer Electric's cost-of-power charge rises, adding $7.92 to an average monthly bill

Homer Electric's power cost charge went up October first. It's now 11.76 cents a kilowatt-hour. That adds seven dollars and ninety-two cents to the average monthly bill.

8:09Sitka delays Lake Street reopening and Monastery Street 'Do Not Enter' signs

Sitka has delayed reopening Lake Street. That also pushes back new Do Not Enter signs at two Monastery Street entrances. The city says the road could reopen as soon as next week if the weather cooperates.

8:24Mat-Su counts at least 763 buildings likely too close to lakes as Assembly weighs a fix

The Mat-Su Borough counts at least 763 buildings that are likely too close to lakes. The planning director says the real number is probably at least double that. A one-page plan before the Assembly would give owners a year to get legal.

8:39Mat-Su manager tallies $386 million in outside grants, led by $249 million rail award

Mat-Su's borough manager has tallied three hundred eighty-six million dollars in outside grants for projects in the borough. The biggest is up to two hundred forty-nine million dollars to finish the Port MacKenzie rail extension. That grant goes to the Alaska Railroad, not the borough, but the total counts it.

8:59Cordova closes Railroad Avenue between Industry Way and Breakwater Avenue over debris

In Cordova, Railroad Avenue is closed between Industry Way and Breakwater Avenue because of debris in the road. The city hasn't given a reopening date. 6 towns, one bidder each, and no carrier picked yet. In Angoon, Elfin Cove, Pelican or Tenakee Springs? Your comments on the Seaplanes bid are due November second. In Ketchikan, the draft transportation plan closes October twenty-ninth. Also today: a waterspout over Turnagain Arm, and a Friday storm pushing high surf into eastern Norton Sound. That's all for this edition of the Alaska News daily brief. The full stories are at Alaska News dot com. And that's the way it is, Wednesday, October twenty-first, twenty twenty-six.