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P E N I N S U L A
Wednesday, August 22, 2018 Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
Vol. 48, Issue 278
In the news
$1 newsstands daily/$1.50 Sunday
Dunleavy takes lead for GOP governor’s race
Fish heads dumped near Anchorage school attract bear, police
Gillham, Carpenter, Vance leading as Republican nominees, absentees yet to be counted
ANCHORAGE (AP) — Anchorage police are looking for a man who dumped fish heads in woods near an elementary school. The perpetrator won’t have to clean up. A grizzly bear took care of that. The fish dumper, however, faces a $300 fine for discarding garbage that attracts animals. Alaska families regularly catch dozens of salmon and are urged to properly dispose of fish parts in fast-moving rivers, ocean waters or regular garbage disposal. The incident occurred July 31 at Ravenwood Elementary School. A summer school host spotted a man and boy on an all-terrain vehicle with coolers. The host found the fish heads behind the school but they were gone a day later. The host said a bear seen earlier likely cleaned up the fish. A school security camera captured the suspect’s image.
Editor’s note: This article will be updated online with the final election results when they are available. Only 60.4 percent of precincts had reported results as of press time Tuesday night. Primary election results Tuesday night preliminarily showed Republican gubernatorial candidate Mike Dunleavy in the lead.
By Clarion staff Peninsula Clarion
Dunleavy, of Wasilla, was leading the race with 60.8 percent of the vote by press time Tuesday night with 60.4 percent of precincts reporting and absentees yet to be counted. He is leading five other Republican hopefuls for the nomination. Republican Mead Treadwell has the next highest number of votes, with 32.8 percent. Democrat Mark Begich See VOTE, page A10
Election leaders (Tuesday, 10:30 p.m.) Governor Republican nominee: Mike Dunleavy Democratic nominee: Mark Begich Lieutenant governor Republican nominee: Kevin Meyer Democratic nominee: Debra Call U.S. House of Representatives Republican nominee: Don Young Democratic nominee: Alyse Galvin
House District 29 Republican nominee: Ben Carpenter Democratic nominee: Shawn Butler House District 30 Republican nominee: Gary Knopp House District 31 Republican nominee: Sarah Vance Democratic nominee: Paul Seaton Senate District O Republican nominee: Ron Gillham
Red return Kenai River to reopen to sockeye salmon fishing By ELIZABETH EARL Peninsula Clarion
Sockeye anglers can again hit the Kenai River this week. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game issued an emergency order Tuesday reopening the Kenai River to sockeye salmon fishing effective Thursday at 12:01 a.m. The river has been completely closed to sockeye angling since Aug. 4, when Fish and Game closed the river to help the run meet the optimum escapement and inriver escapement goals. Since then, returns have improved, meeting the inriver escapement goal of 900,000–1.1 million fish on Monday with 926,917 fish past the sonar. On Thursday, the river reopens with a bag limit of three fish per day with six in possession, according to a news release issued Tuesday. “Sockeye salmon harvest that occurred prior to the closure August 1 and any additional harvest that may occur for the remainder of the season are not expected to result in escapement below the SEG,” the release states. The announcement doesn’t apply to the Upper Kenai River and the Russian River, which closed to sockeye salmon retention Monday for the season. Sockeye salmon runs across the Gulf of Alaska have come back weaker than managers forecast, leading to closures in personal use, sport, subsistence and commercial fisheries from Yakutat to Chignik. Reach Elizabeth Earl at eearl@peninsulaclarion.com.
Fish counts Estimated late run kings in the Kenai River: n Monday: 285 n So far: 16,957 Estimated Kenai River reds: n Monday: 27,787 n So far: 926,917 Russian River reds weir count: n Monday: 1,213 n So far: 52,612
Information provided by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Sonar estimates can be obtained by calling 262-9097.
Correction In the story “Voters take to ballot boxes Tuesday” that ran Aug. 21, it was incorrectly stated that voters had to be registered Republicans to vote in the primary. Both Republicans and nonpartisan and unaffiliated voters can vote in the Republican primary. The Clarion regrets the error.
Bubbles, buses and backpacks Kenai Peninsula students return to school for another year TOP: Friends unite on the first day of school, Tuesday, Aug. 21, at Mountain View Elementary in Kenai. (Photos by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion) RIGHT: Students settle into their classrooms on the first day of school, Tuesday, Aug. 21 at Mountain View Elementary in Kenai.
Index Opinion................... A4 Nation..................... A5 World...................... A6 Sports......................A7 Food....................... B1 Classifieds.............. B2 Comics.................... B5
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New memorial goes up where teen overdose victim was found By MATT TUNSETH Chugiak-Eagle River Star
ANCHORAGE (AP) — What was once the scene of heartbreak is being transformed into a place for healing. A new memorial bench is being built on the St. John Orthodox Cathedral property near South Birchwood Loop where the body of a 19-year-old overdose victim was dumped in 2017. “I think it’s pretty cool a place that was once known as somewhere kids used to drive down and get high is now go-
ing to be a spot of reflection and hope,” said Alaina Thiessen, whose son, Zac Schneider, was found lying dead on the ground on May 16, 2017. The site alongside the road has been used as an informal memorial for Schneider since his death, but the land is owned by the church. Father Marc Dunaway said the church decided it would be good to create a simple bench and pavilion on the site where people could go for reflection. “The parish council began to think if we build a bench this summer, maybe we should
build it there,” as a memorial to Schneider, he said. The church reached out to Thiessen to see if she’d be interested in a church-sponsored memorial. “She was very receptive to the idea,” Dunaway said. He said the project is part of an ongoing effort by the church to make the gravel roadside pullout less attractive to people who are up to no good. In addition to the memorial, the church has also installed a new gate that blocks off a short dead-end road that was blocked from view from the main road.
“It goes kind of far back and people have been pulling in there and doing things they shouldn’t be doing,” Dunaway said. The new memorial — which includes a concrete pad, a simple iron bench and a small wooden pavilion — was built by the church’s youth corps, a group of about a half-dozen teens who do maintenance and odd jobs around the church during the summer. Youth corps leader Stephen Peyton said the program is a great way for young people to learn job skills while also helping out the
church. “It’s just a really good first job opportunity for these guys, they learn about work ethic and about working as a team,” said Peyton, a 2017 Eagle River High grad and current engineering student at the Colorado School of Mines. “And the church gets a lot of grunt work done.” A ceremony to dedicate the new bench will be held later this year. The memorial will be combined with a small plaque, and Thiessen said she’d like to include information about how See HEAL, page A10