Day 30
Skiing
Shutdown to hit 1-month mark
Tsalteshi hosts Besh Cup races
Nation/A5
Sports/A8
CLARION
Flurries 20/17 More weather on Page A2
P E N I N S U L A
Monday, January 21, 2019 Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
Vol. 49, Issue 95
In the news Alaska Railroad installs winter visitor shelter at Denali FAIRBANKS — Rail visitors to Denali National Park have a new venue to stay warm. The Fairbanks Daily NewsMiner reports the Alaska Railroad has built a winter shelter at the park train depot for visitors awaiting rides. Railroad spokeswoman Meghan Clemens says the shelter is low on facilities. It’s heated but there is no snack bar or other services. She says the railroad enclosed an existing waiting area. An open gap in the roof remains for safety reasons. There is no regular shuttle from the depot. Visitors must arrange rides with tour operators or accommodation hosts.
Alaska’s new system flags schools needing more support ANCHORAGE — Alaska education officials have flagged about one-fifth of the state’s public schools as requiring additional support under the new school accountability system. The Anchorage Daily News reports the state Department of Education and Early Development rolled out the first set of school ratings last year, identifying 107 schools that had low graduation rates or poor performance based on academic measures. Most schools were given an overall index value, rating each school from zero to 100 based on a set of metrics. According to the education department, the average rating was 46.20.
Alaska plans for new ferry Tazlina to begin operation in May KETCHIKAN — The Alaska Marine Highway System says the new ferry Tazlina will begin operating in waters in the southeastern Alaska in May. The Ketchikan Daily News reports the ferry system announced last week that the 280-foot Tazlina will operate in Lynn Canal, replacing the ferry Fairweather that connects Juneau, Haines and Skagway. The vessel built in Ketchikan can accommodate 300 passengers and 53 vehicles, holding more than the 235-foot Fairweather. System spokesperson Aurah Landau says the sister ship Hubbard is expected to be completed this year. The state plans for the Hubbard to begin operating in the Prince William Sound in southern Alaska in 2020, replacing the ferry Aurora. — Associated Press
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Kenai approves preliminary bluff funds By KAT SORENSEN Peninsula Clarion
Kenai City Council will approve accelerated funding for the bluff erosion project. At their meeting Wednesday night, the council approved a resolution that allows the city to pursue the funding through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The council approved funding the design phase of the project, which has been in the works for more than 30 years. “The fact is if we didn’t do this, we’d probably get another decade older waiting for the design to happen, in which case the funds we have would diminish, if we even have them any longer,” council member Henry Knackstedt said. “The cost of the project goes up. The cost of the de-
Eroding bluffs can be see on the Kenai Beach on Friday. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
sign, we’ve got a grant for that. (It) makes so much sense to move ahead.” The next step is for the city
to draft a letter to the Alaska district of the Army Corps, saying that Kenai will fully fund the design phase, followed by
a trip to Washington, D.C., in February. Once the design phase is complete, construction can begin. Ostrander estimates construction will cost anywhere from $24 to $40 million. The city will cover 35 percent of the final cost, with $6 million already secured from a $4 million state grant and $2 million in voter-approved bonds. The rest of the project would be funded by the Army Corps of Engineers. The city could apply for other grants or use more bonds to cover the other portions of their share of the bill. The funds applied to the design phase, though, can be credited towards the ultimate cost share. “So, basically, we are spendSee BLUFF, page A2
Peninsula sees growth in winter tourism By VICTORIA PETERSEN Peninsula Clarion
While the borough’s ports and highways fill up with thousands of visitors from across the world in the summertime, more and more travelers are looking to experience Alaska and the Kenai Peninsula in the fall and wintertime. Alaska has seen an increase in winter tourism, according to a new report from Anchoragebased research firm, the McDowell Group. Locally, several chambers across the borough have reported seeing small increases in winter tourism. In Seward, Cindy Clock, the executive director for the
Local breweries, including St. Elias, Kassiks, Kenai river Brewing, participate in the 25th annual Great Alaska Beer and Barelywine festival in Anchorage, on Saturday. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
Seward Chamber of Com- area. “Although we are too far merce, said in an email that there has been a slight growth south to promote consistent auin winter tourism in the Seward rora activity, Silverton Moun-
tain Guides has been offering heli-skiing for the past few years,” Clock said. “Activity, lodging and restaurant businesses have been evolving into year-round businesses as well since they too are aware of this travel trend.” Cooper Landing has also seen growth similar to Seward’s, with a handful of businesses choosing to stay open longer in the winter, President of the Cooper Landing Chamber of Commerce Stephanie Lesmeister said. “Several of our members are open this winter and seem to be staying steady,” Lesmeister said. “Local volunteers have been grooming the cross-counSee WINTER, page A3
Dunleavy announces board, commission appointments By ALEX MCCARTHY Juneau Empire
As the first week of Legislative session drew to a close, Gov. Mike Dunleavy announced numerous appointments to the state’s boards and commissions. Edie Grunwald of Palmer was designated as the chair of the State Board of Parole, and will serve in that role from March 1, 2019 to March 1, 2024. Grunwald ran in the Republican primary for lieutenant governor last year, but lost to Kevin Meyer. Grunwald is the mother of David Grunwald, a 16-year-old who was shot and killed in 2016. His death and the subsequent trials made statewide headlines. Dunleavy appointed Ketchikan’s Sally Stockhausen and Anchorage’s Bob Griffin to the state Board of Education and Early Development. Tiffany Scott of Kotzebue was reappointed to the board. To the Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority Board of Trustees, the governor appointed Joe Riggs of Anchorage, Ken McCarty of Eagle River and John Sturgeon of Anchorage. Anchorage’s Albert Fogle, Wasilla’s Bill Kending and Anchorage’s Julie Sande were named to the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA) and Alaska Energy Authority (AEA) boards. Their terms run until June 30, 2020. Allen Hippler and Lorne Bretz of Anchorage were named to the
See GOV, page A2
Oil exploration predicted to increase on North Slope By ALEX MCCARTHY Juneau Empire
State officials on Thursday said that 2019 is expected to have the most oil exploration and production rig activity in 20 years, but it will take a while for the state to cash in on that increased investment. In August 2018, research firm IHS Markit labeled Alaska’s North Slope as a “super basin,” and estimated that crude oil output could increase by as much as 40 percent in the next eight years. Even before that, bullish ConocoPhillips officials were declaring an “exploration renaissance” for North Slope oil. Department of Natural Resources officials spoke to the Alaska Senate Finance Committee on Thursday, explaining their excitement about the future of oil in Alaska. DNR Deputy Commissioner Sara Longan was one of them. “The classification of the North Slope as a super basin is a pretty big darn deal,” Longan
Corri Feige, Commissioner of the Department of Natural Resources, right, listens to Chantal Walsh, director of the Division of Oil and Gas, left, as along with Sara Longan, Deputy Commissioner of DNR, center, give a status of North Slope production during a Senate Finance Committee meeting on Thursday. (Michael Penn/Juneau Empire)
said in an interview after the to keep looking at Alaska to inmeeting, “and there’s so much vest money.” undiscovered potential in Cook Graham Smith, the permitInlet also, that industry’s going ting section manager for the
Division of Oil and Gas, said in a phone interview Friday that the DNR presenters were actually fairly conservative during
their Thursday presentation. They said there could be more than 15 oil rigs operating in the North Slope and Cook Inlet in 2019, but Smith said there could be up to 20 operating. At the highest production time in 2018, Smith said, 11 rigs were running. “That would be a high, certainly for the last 20 years, probably much longer than that,” Smith said. While senators were pleased to hear the news, they were hesitant to get overly enthusiastic. Sen. Natasha Von Imhof, RAnchorage, said in an interview that state officials should “manage their expectations” when it comes to oil. During her portion of the presentation, Division of Oil and Gas Director Chantal Walsh acknowledged that just because there’s exploration doesn’t mean money is about to come streaming in. “Exploration, though, doesn’t immediately lead to production,” Walsh said. “In See OIL, page A3
Judge declines to jail Fairbanks Four defendant in new case FAIRBANKS (AP) — A man who was one of the defendants known as the Fairbanks Four will not be returned to jail immediately on new charges. Kevin Pease, 40, will face a curfew and wear an ankle monitor as he awaits the outcome of charges in an assault case, the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reported. Pease is one of four Fairbanks men convicted of fatally beating teenager John Hartman to death
on a Fairbanks street corner in 1997. The four spent nearly two decades in prison but asserted their innocence and worked with supporters, including the Alaska Innocence Project, to challenge the convictions. A monthlong hearing in October 2015 re-examined facts of the case. Pease was released under terms of a settlement in December 2015. The murder convictions were vacated and prosecutors dismissed charges against all
four men, who agreed not to sue the state or the Fairbanks police department. The four later sued and said that part of the agreement was not enforceable. Pease in December was charged with felony assault and criminal mischief. Prosecutors say he swung a bat and smashed car windows as his brother’s exgirlfriend tried to drive off. Warrants for his arrest for failure to appear for court hearings
were quashed Wednesday. Pease pleaded not guilty to all charges at the hearing. Superior Court Judge Michael McConahy issued an order requiring that Pease put up $2,000 in bail, wear the electronic ankle monitor and maintain a curfew in his home between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m. The woman in the assault case participated by telephone. She said she wanted Pease to pay to repair broken windows on her car but did not want him to go to
jail. She said she did not believe Pease was a threat. Assistant Attorney General David Buettner asked for stricter bail conditions. He noted Pease’s record of only two misdemeanors from 1996 and 1997. “He was in prison for 18 years. That’s why there is no history from 1998 and 2016 because he was incarcerated,” Buettner said. Pease’s attorney, Steven Hansen, said he strongly objected to See CASE, page A2