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Keen-eye
Destiny
Clarion photogs look back on 2014
Jolie directs underrated drama
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Arts & Entertainment /B-1
CLARION
Rain and Snow 38/23 More weather on Page A-2
P E N I N S U L A
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2014 Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
Vol. 45, Issue 78
50 cents newsstands daily/$1.00 Sunday
Statute’s delayed effect
Question How long are you able to keep your New Year’s resolutions? n At least until Jan. 2; n I usually make it into February; n Through the summer; n I’ve kept a resolution until I’ve met a goal or for a whole year; n I don’t make resolutions.
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The Peninsula Clarion will not publish on Thursday so that employees may spend the New Year’s holiday with friends and family. The Clarion office will be closed Thursday, and will reopen Friday at 8 a.m. We wish you and your family a happy and prosperous New Year.
In the news
Ore. hatchery malfunctions, trout dumped in fishing spots LEABURG, Ore. (AP) — Malfunctioning gates at a dam on the McKenzie River have led state biologists to release more than 50,000 hatchery trout into Willamette Valley fishing spots at a time of year when there’s not enough food to give them a good chance to survive. The fish are from a state hatchery at the Leaburg Dam, part of small hydroelectric operations on the McKenzie. The Eugene Water & Electric Board dam dates to 1929. Two of its gates are closed and stuck that way, the Eugene Register-Guard reported Tuesday. The third gate is open, and officials of the city utility don’t want to move it up or down much for fear it also will malfunction. The river is flowing through, draining the reservoir and depleting a supply of water that would normally go into the hatchery, built in 1953.
Index Opinion.................. A-4 Nation.................... A-5 World..................... A-7 Sports.....................A-8 Arts.........................B-1 Food...................... C-1 Classifieds............ C-3 Comics.................. C-7
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Wage bill won’t change school district driver’s wages for years By KELLY SULLIVAN Peninsula Clarion
With Alaska’s minimum wage set to increase by $1 per hour Feb. 24, an 1989 state statute may eventually lead to a significant pay increase for the Home to School bus drivers working in the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District. State law requires public school bus driver wages to be at least twice the minimum wage. The Kenai district would not see any changes until 2017, said Photo by Rashah McChesney/Peninsula Clarion school district Director of PlanIn this Jan. 2 photo, Maura Johnson, 19, reads the fantasy book “Shadows” by Robin McKinley at the newly revamped ning & Operations Julie Cisco. public library in Soldotna. “The current contracts’ wages are not required to be adjusted until renewal, which in this case would be July 1, 2017,” Cisco said, which is the date that the school district’s transportation contract with First Student Inc. is complete. “The district will then have to look at By IAN FOLEY dotna City Engineer Kyle Kornelis, con- including children, teens and adults. increased transportation costs.” Peninsula Clarion struction on the library began on June 4, “We’ve got programs going on every Employers who have con2012, and was completed on November week,” Nash said. “There was one day in tracted with the Department Editor’s note: This story is part of a 11, 2013. The project renovated an exist- November that I looked at our calendar of Education and Early Deseries looking at some of the people and ing 7,438 square feet and added another and I realized we had more than 12 provelopment, a school district or 9,843 square feet. The official ribbon- grams just in one week. events in the news in 2014. regional education attendance cutting ceremony and celebration was We only have four full-time staff, plus do not have adjust wages until three part-time staff, so that’s pretty imMore than a year has passed since the Jan. 18. entering into or renewing the The increased space has allowed the pressive to have more programs than we expansion of Soldotna’s Joyce K. Carver contract following a change in Memorial Library ended, and the $4.8 library to offer the community a wide have staff.” minimum wage, according to Nash said that on one particular day, million addition has proven to be a hit range of new programs for people of all state statute. ages. The library started by increasing more than 100 people come in to parwith the community. Ballot Measure 3 will raise “It’s been going amazing,” said Sol- its core service of story times to now in- ticipate in library programs, and particiminimum wage from $7.75 per dotna librarian Rachel Nash. “We’ve had clude story time for babies, toddlers, and pation in the library’s Summer Reading hour to $8.75 per hour Feb. 24, Program was also up 365 percent. an amazing response from the commu- school-age children. 2015 and to $9.75 per hour Jan. Nash said that a teen program is held “The community is definitely shownity.” 1, 2016. The renovation saw the addition of a once a week, and the library is also try- ing us their support,” she said. “We really The school district’s contract community room, conference room, fire- ing to increase the number of programs appreciate that and all of our wonderful was with Laidlaw International place and an expansion of the children’s for adults. Her goal is to have at least one volunteers, too.” Inc., prior to signing a five-year See PUBLIC, page A-10 room. According to an e-mail from Sol- program each week for every age group, contract with First Student in 2012, said Assistant Superintendent Dave Jones. First Student purchased and took over bussing in the district mid-contract, Jones said. First Student was chosen because it was the only company that bid FAIRBANKS (AP) — A four-time to want to be a part of that.” on the contract when the district champion of the Yukon Quest sled dog race Mackey won his first Yukon Quest in issued the Request for Proposis getting back into the competition. 2005. Three more titles followed along als, he said. Lance Mackey on Monday signed up for with four championships in the Iditarod For the 2015 fiscal year, the 1,000-mile race between Whitehorse, Trail Sled Dog race. the school district budgeted Yukon Territory, and Fairbanks. An aging kennel contributed to recent $7,793,211 for its contract with Mackey, 44, is a cancer survivor and decisions to stay on the sidelines. His last First Student, Jones said. For has continued to battle health problems, appearance in the Yukon Quest was in in the 2014 fiscal year the school the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner report- 2013, when his depleted team reached district paid First Student ed. He didn’t race in the Yukon Quest last Dawson City 36 hours behind the leaders. $7,140,308, he said. year and was going to let rookie Jimmy Mackey scratched at the halfway point and Those numbers do not in Lebling use a team from his Comeback called it one of the most embarrassing moAP Photo/Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, Eric Engman clude the small number of partKennels in 2015. A promising young ments of his career. team helped persuade him to race him“I can’t go out on that note,” he said. Lance Mackey talks about his entry into time employees used for activself. “I don’t know what my future holds, but I this year’s Yukon Quest International Sled ity trips, Jones said. Dog Race at the Quest Visitor Center However, drivers directly “This is my backyard,” he said, gestur- ain’t going out like that.” Fairbanks Monday. See BUS, page A-10 ing toward the Chena River. “It’s hard not See RACE, page A-10
Expansion engages community Library renovation proves fruitful for public participation
Lance Mackey enters 2015 Yukon Quest
Legislature website updated on Wisconsin man time for beginning of session missing since August By IAN FOLEY Peninsula Clarion
The Alaska Legislature’s website has received a makeover, just in time for the start of the new legislative session on January 20. The new userfriendly site, which has been redesigned for the first time in seven years, allows information to be accessed more easily and on a variety of platforms. After being in the works for six months, the website went online for the first time on Dec.
26. Sue Cotter, Manager of Information and Teleconferencing for the Alaska Legislature’s Information Office in Juneau, said that the goal of redesigning the website was to make it more accessible. “We’re always striving to make it easier for the public and state employees to use,” Cotter said. One of the biggest changes is the construction of a new version of the Bill Action Status Inquiry System. BASIS allows people to fol-
low the status of a bill, as well as search for bills by sponsor, topic and number. BASIS also gives users access to audio and minutes of legislative sessions. Cotter said the previous version of BASIS will also be available until next summer in order to ensure that if there are glitches, people can still make searches, and, at the same time, allow people to adjust to the new version. For people wishing to access the site using a tablet See SITE, page A-10 C
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ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Alaska State Troopers are seeking the public’s help in a search for a 72-yearold Wisconsin man who disappeared in August. Troopers say Roger Yaeger of Eagle River, Wisconsin, traveled to Alaska over the summer to view wildlife. Family members last heard from Yaeger Aug. 8 when he visited a relative in Wasilla. Troopers traced Yaeger’s subsequent travel to Fair-
banks, where he turned in his rental car a day or two after his Wasilla visit. Troopers were contacted a few weeks ago by relatives who said Yaeger didn’t return emails for an extended period of time. According to troopers, Yaeger had told relatives he was going to travel around Alaska and would update them around Christmas. Troopers say there is no record of Yaeger flying in Alaska or leaving the state.