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CLARION
Snow, rain 39/30 More weather on Page A-2
P E N I N S U L A
Friday-Saturday, November 7-8 Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
Vol. 45, Issue 33
Question Where do you get your health insurance coverage? n I’ve signed up through the exchange n I have coverage from my employer n I’m covered under another program n I don’t have health insurance To place your vote and comment, visit our Web site at www. peninsulaclarion. com. Results and selected comments will be posted each Tuesday in the Clarion, and a new question will be asked. Suggested questions may be submitted online or emailed to news@peninsulaclarion.com.
In the news Boys, girls teams to get equal time at Sitka field SITKA, Alaska (AP) — The Sitka School District has reached a settlement that will give the high school baseball and softball teams equitable time to practice and play at the city-owned field. Superintendent Mary Wegner told the school board this week that an agreement had been signed with the person who filed the complaint under a federal anti-discrimination law. The agreement was “very realistic, and something that will help us move our initiative forward in sharing Moller Field,” Wegner said. The city-owned field opened in 2012 following renovations. Baseball, which historically played there, claimed the new field, though accommodations were provided for softball games. The equitable time agreement will help the district avoid further investigation by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights, KCAW reported. District officials had worried that such an investigation would put some programs at risk.
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Metal found in teen’s Halloween candy By DAN BALMER Peninsula Clarion
Soldotna police are warning parents to pay close attention to their kid’s Halloween candy after a Soldotna teen found a razor blade and small screw in a box of candy last Friday. A parent met with Soldotna police Wednesday after their 13-year-old found a three quarter inch by one quarter inch razor blade and a small screw inside a package of Nerds candy the teen obtained sometime after 7 p.m. Halloween night in Soldotna, according to a Soldotna Police press release. The razor blade and screw inside the box were found before the candy was con-
sumed and the parents reported the incident to police. Soldotna Police Chief Peter Mlynarik said it is unknown exactly where the candy was received but it is believed to be in the area near the 200 and 300 blocks between Central Peninsula Hospital and Soldotna High School. Mlynarik said this is the first case his department has received. The case is under investigation. One of the questions is if the box was sealed or tampered with. The chance of the metal pieces ending up in the candy box as part of a manufacturer error is remote, he said. “A screw and razor did not get in the box accidently,” he said. “We don’t want to see any children get injured. It’s important to check their candy for the rare oc-
currence and be aware if a package looks suspicious.” Police in other parts of the country have received similar reports of razor blades found in Halloween candy. A razor blade was found in a Tootsie Roll package in Vineland New Jersey, according to philly.com. Two razor blades were found in a candy bar package in Umatilla, Florida, according to the Orlando Sentinel. A razor blade was also found in a Twix candy bar in Maiden, North Carolina, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Kenai Police Chief Gus Sandahl said they have not received any reports of metal found in Halloween candy. Reach Dan Balmer at daniel.balmer@ peninsulaclarion.com
Photo courtesy Soldotna Police Department
Kenai man guilty in fatal crash By MICHAEL ARMSTRONG STAFF WRITER
HOMER — More than four years after a 2010 Memorial Day weekend car crash killed a Washington, D.C., woman, a Kenai man last week pleaded guilty to manslaughter for recklessly causing the death of Kathleen Benz, then 25. At a hearing Oct. 30 at Kenai Superior Court, Alfred Jones, 51, entered guilty pleas for one count of manslaughter and one consolidated count of third-degree assault for placing
Photo by Rashah McChesney/Peninsula Clarion
Ground game Members of the Mountain View Elementary Boys and Girls Club basketball league learn to dribble on Thursday at the Kenai Recreation Center in Kenai.
See CRASH, page A-2
Kenai adds fine Company seeks private for Nikiski water test to clear streets wells Surveyors to generate a model By DAN BALMER Peninsula Clarion
Since the beginning of October Kenai police have left warnings to residents who park on the street overnight to make way for plow vehicles. While the snow hasn’t stuck around yet, a Kenai Municipal Code prohibits people from leaving any vehicles unattended on city streets between the hours of 4 a.m. and 8 a.m. from October to May. During this period, nightshift police officers have attempted to clear the streets to allow room for crews that plow in the early morning, said Kenai Police Chief Gus Sandahl. The Kenai City Council Wednesday passed an amendment to that ordinance adding a $50 fine, plus a $10 surcharge to residents who have ignored repeated warnings. Sandahl said by establishing a set fine for violators, officers now have “improved options available.” According to a memo from Sandahl to Kenai City Manager Rick Koch, officers currently utilize three options to clear the streets. The first is to place a warning tag on the vehicle. If people don’t respond to the warnings after several notices,
of groundwater movement near contaminated Arness Septage site By RASHAH MCCHESNEY Peninsula Clarion
Darcy McCaughey and her family live in the middle of an area in Nikiski that will soon be the subject of a groundwater modeling study. So, when the company that will undertake the study gave a presentation at a recent community council meetings, McCaughey was one of the first to volunteer her drinking water well for testing. At least four other private landowners in the area have
See STREETS, page A-10
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given hydrologists and geologists with DOWL HKM, the company contracted by the Kenai Peninsula Borough to track groundwater movement in the area. Their data will be added to a model that, thus far, has about 140 other sources of data, according to project geologists. Eventually, the mode should show groundwater flow, depth and direction in an area of Nikiski that has long been speculated to contain several sources of groundwater contamination. “There’s a lot of uproar over water,” McCaughey said. “OfSee WATER, page A-10
Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation file photo
An ADEC staff member unearthed a 40-foot pipe at the Arness Septage Site. In the 1980s, DEC excavated more than 4,200 gallons of oily waste at the site. Now, researchers are examining groundwater movement in the area.