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An aerial shows the footprint of the test well drilled in the mid-1980s on land owned by the Kaktovik Native village corporation within the 1002 area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The well is 14 miles east of Kaktovik and the melting the Beaufort Sea is at the top of the picture. One of the bidders in an oil and gas lease sale for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge last year has canceled the lease it bought, the U.S. Interior Department said. (Michael Penn / Juneau Empire File)

Interior cancels remaining leases in Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

The U.S. Interior Department on Wednesday canceled seven oil and gas leases in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge that were part of a sale held… Continue reading

An aerial shows the footprint of the test well drilled in the mid-1980s on land owned by the Kaktovik Native village corporation within the 1002 area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The well is 14 miles east of Kaktovik and the melting the Beaufort Sea is at the top of the picture. One of the bidders in an oil and gas lease sale for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge last year has canceled the lease it bought, the U.S. Interior Department said. (Michael Penn / Juneau Empire File)
In this photo provided by Elizabeth Wilkins is Leo the cat on Aug. 31. Elizabeth Wilkins and her partner Tom Schwartz were reunited with Leo 26 days after their home collapsed Aug. 5 into the swollen Mendenhall River. (Elizabeth Wilkins via AP)

Couple reunited with cat 26 days after home collapsed into flooded Mendenhall River

A pair of Alaska teachers needed good news after they lost nearly all their possessions when their house collapsed into a river swollen by a… Continue reading

In this photo provided by Elizabeth Wilkins is Leo the cat on Aug. 31. Elizabeth Wilkins and her partner Tom Schwartz were reunited with Leo 26 days after their home collapsed Aug. 5 into the swollen Mendenhall River. (Elizabeth Wilkins via AP)
The front of the Alaska State Capitol in Juneau is seen on Wednesday, April 12, 2023. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)

Two more Alaska ballot measures pass legal muster, but another is disqualified

Alaska Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom on Friday approved two ballot measures and disqualified a third from advancing into the signature-gathering phase. The approved measures would… Continue reading

The front of the Alaska State Capitol in Juneau is seen on Wednesday, April 12, 2023. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)
Angela Boyd and Tiffany Ridle offer a selfie greeting to viewers as they test their livestream camera before the kickoff of the Juneau Huskies game against Service High School on Saturday in Anchorage. (Screenshot from Juneau Huskies livestream video).

Ma’amingCast: Two football moms offering wisdom and wit with livestreams of Huskies road games

With a smartphone and no previous experience, pair giving fans in Juneau an interactive experience.

Angela Boyd and Tiffany Ridle offer a selfie greeting to viewers as they test their livestream camera before the kickoff of the Juneau Huskies game against Service High School on Saturday in Anchorage. (Screenshot from Juneau Huskies livestream video).
Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire Athletes practice new moves while wrestling during a Labor Day weekend clinic at the Juneau Youth Wrestling Club’s new building on Monday.

New wrestling club building means more gym time for aspiring athletes

Nearly 60 youths flocked to building to partake in first weekend clinic since its opening.

Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire Athletes practice new moves while wrestling during a Labor Day weekend clinic at the Juneau Youth Wrestling Club’s new building on Monday.
Ketchikan High School’s Bella Westfall-Zink attempts to block Thunder Mountain High School’s Ashlyn Gates during Friday’s match in Ketchikan, which Thunder Mountain won 3-0. TMHS also swept Ketchikan 3-0 on Saturday night. (Christopher Mullen / Ketchikan Daily News)

TMHS volleyball sweeps Ketchikan during two-night road trip, remains undefeated

Last year’s conference champs haven’t lost a set this season, boost record to 4-0

Ketchikan High School’s Bella Westfall-Zink attempts to block Thunder Mountain High School’s Ashlyn Gates during Friday’s match in Ketchikan, which Thunder Mountain won 3-0. TMHS also swept Ketchikan 3-0 on Saturday night. (Christopher Mullen / Ketchikan Daily News)
David Holmes digs through a pile of board games during Platypus Gaming’s two-day mini-con at Douglas Public Library on Jan. 28. The full convention is scheduled to take place this weekend, the first time ever in September, following the reopening of Centennial Hall. (Jonson Kuhn / Juneau Empire File)

Thousands of games, hundreds of players

Platypus-Con happening this weekend for the first time in September

David Holmes digs through a pile of board games during Platypus Gaming’s two-day mini-con at Douglas Public Library on Jan. 28. The full convention is scheduled to take place this weekend, the first time ever in September, following the reopening of Centennial Hall. (Jonson Kuhn / Juneau Empire File)
Traffic at the Fred Meyer intersection, formally known as Egan and Yandukin drives, in November 2019. (Michael Penn / Juneau Empire File)

Assembly to formally urge state to improve safety at Fred Meyer intersection

A special meeting with a resolution seeking action planned Wednesday.

Traffic at the Fred Meyer intersection, formally known as Egan and Yandukin drives, in November 2019. (Michael Penn / Juneau Empire File)
Environmental Protection Administrator Michael Regan speaks at a news conference on Thursday at the Alaska Native Heritage Center in Anchorage. Behind him are Bailey Richards, contamination support program coordinator for the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium; Natalie Cale, chief operating officer for the Ounalashka Corp.; and Aaron Leggett, president of the Native Village of Eklutna. Regan made a five-day tour of Alaska as part of the EPA’s national Journey to Justice program, which focuses on the ways minority, Indigenous and low-income communities are disproportionately burdened by pollution and climate change. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Alaska trip highlights challenges facing Indigenous communities, EPA leader says

Travels to the to the tiny Yup’ik village of Igiugig in the Bristol Bay region, to Utqiagvik at the northern tip of Alaska and to… Continue reading

Environmental Protection Administrator Michael Regan speaks at a news conference on Thursday at the Alaska Native Heritage Center in Anchorage. Behind him are Bailey Richards, contamination support program coordinator for the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium; Natalie Cale, chief operating officer for the Ounalashka Corp.; and Aaron Leggett, president of the Native Village of Eklutna. Regan made a five-day tour of Alaska as part of the EPA’s national Journey to Justice program, which focuses on the ways minority, Indigenous and low-income communities are disproportionately burdened by pollution and climate change. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
A Service High School player returns a punt deep into Juneau territory during the first quarter of Saturday’s game on the Anchorages school’s home field. Service scored its second touchdown a short time later to take a 15-0 lead before going on to win 54-14. (Courtesy of Juneau Huskies Football)

Punting miscues pivotal as Huskies lose to Service 54-14

Bad snap, kicks and coverage result in TDs for Anchorage team as Juneau drops to 0-4.

A Service High School player returns a punt deep into Juneau territory during the first quarter of Saturday’s game on the Anchorages school’s home field. Service scored its second touchdown a short time later to take a 15-0 lead before going on to win 54-14. (Courtesy of Juneau Huskies Football)
Doug Vincent-Lang, commissioner of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, explains the state’s position on fisheries management on the Kuskokwim River during a press conference Friday in Anchorage. Gov. Mike Dunleavy announced during the event the state is seeking summary judgment in a lawsuit by the federal government that accuses the state of illegal subsistence management practices. (Screenshot from official video by the Governor of Alaska)

Dunleavy, Taylor push to get Kuskokwim case tossed

Jurisdictional battle with feds could have long-ranging implications

Doug Vincent-Lang, commissioner of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, explains the state’s position on fisheries management on the Kuskokwim River during a press conference Friday in Anchorage. Gov. Mike Dunleavy announced during the event the state is seeking summary judgment in a lawsuit by the federal government that accuses the state of illegal subsistence management practices. (Screenshot from official video by the Governor of Alaska)
This photo shows Lemon Creek Correctional Center in Juneau. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)

Family of man who died by suicide in Juneau prison sues state for wrongful death, negligence

“It may be the last thing I do, but I intend to do every bit that I can.”

This photo shows Lemon Creek Correctional Center in Juneau. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)
Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire Sterling Salisbury (right), president of the Juneau Police Department Employees Association, and Travis Wolf, president of the International Association of Firefighters Local 4303 in Juneau, explain the format and rules of a Thursday night debate at the KTOO studios about public safety by 13 candidates seeking four open seats on the City and Borough of Juneau Assembly.

Assembly candidates debate public safety issues

Wages, affordable housing, other possible remedies for workforce shortages discussed by 13 hopefuls.

Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire Sterling Salisbury (right), president of the Juneau Police Department Employees Association, and Travis Wolf, president of the International Association of Firefighters Local 4303 in Juneau, explain the format and rules of a Thursday night debate at the KTOO studios about public safety by 13 candidates seeking four open seats on the City and Borough of Juneau Assembly.
Norval Nelson, owner and operator of Star of the Sea, and his wife, Barbara Cadiente, clean and prep the boat in Aurora Harbor on Wednesday, the same day the Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced commercial crab fisheries would remain closed again this year. (Meredith Jordan/Juneau Empire)

Commercial crab fishery closed for 2023-2024 season

News comes atop plummeting prices for chum and pink salmon for professional fishers

Norval Nelson, owner and operator of Star of the Sea, and his wife, Barbara Cadiente, clean and prep the boat in Aurora Harbor on Wednesday, the same day the Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced commercial crab fisheries would remain closed again this year. (Meredith Jordan/Juneau Empire)
A sign opposing the participation of trans girls in girls sports is propped against a fire hydrant outside of the George A. Navarre Admin Building on Thursday, June 8, 2023, in Soldotna, Alaska. The Alaska Board of Education met in the building to discuss a resolution that would ban trans girls from girls high school sports. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

State Board of Education bars trans girls from girls’ high school sports teams

Alaska becomes 24th state to impose such restrictions.

A sign opposing the participation of trans girls in girls sports is propped against a fire hydrant outside of the George A. Navarre Admin Building on Thursday, June 8, 2023, in Soldotna, Alaska. The Alaska Board of Education met in the building to discuss a resolution that would ban trans girls from girls high school sports. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Shannon Mason, 24, visits the Airport Hiking Trail in mid-August, during the transition period between her former job as a spokesperson for Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy and her new job as a spokesperson for Democratic U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

Straying on message: Former Dunleavy spokesperson now speaks for Peltola

Juneau resident Shannon Mason says switch isn’t as strange as it might seem, given Alaska’s politics.

Shannon Mason, 24, visits the Airport Hiking Trail in mid-August, during the transition period between her former job as a spokesperson for Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy and her new job as a spokesperson for Democratic U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
This is a photo of a news story on a page of the Juneau Empire published on Wednesday, Aug. 29, 1995, from an archived book. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Capital City Weekly

Empire Archives: Juneau’s history for the week of Sept. 2

Three decades of capital city coverage.

This is a photo of a news story on a page of the Juneau Empire published on Wednesday, Aug. 29, 1995, from an archived book. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
A promotional image for the 2021 TV series “Alaskan Killer Bigfoot” depicts a creature residents of Portlock say drove them from their fishing village 70 years ago. The nine-episode series on Discovery+ documented a 40-day trip by a team of people seeking clues about the creature. (Warner Bros. Discovery Inc.)
Capital City Weekly

Bigfoot making tracks to Juneau

Juneau hosting a town hall for Sasquatch-curious and devotees.

A promotional image for the 2021 TV series “Alaskan Killer Bigfoot” depicts a creature residents of Portlock say drove them from their fishing village 70 years ago. The nine-episode series on Discovery+ documented a 40-day trip by a team of people seeking clues about the creature. (Warner Bros. Discovery Inc.)
A network of pipelines, seen on Aug. 23, 2018, snakes through a portion of the Greater Prudhoe Bay Unit on Alaska’s North Slope. The oil and gas industry has more impact on Alaska’s economy than any other industry, a new study finds. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Oil and gas companies have outsized economic impact on Alaska, says industry study

The oil industry packs a bigger economic punch than any other industry in Alaska, according to study findings presented on Wednesday at an industry conference… Continue reading

A network of pipelines, seen on Aug. 23, 2018, snakes through a portion of the Greater Prudhoe Bay Unit on Alaska’s North Slope. The oil and gas industry has more impact on Alaska’s economy than any other industry, a new study finds. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
The Assembly Building is seen on Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2022, in downtown Juneau, Alaska. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)

Alaska Legislature’s new apartment building is on budget, on schedule

A project intended to renovate a historic Juneau building into apartments for state legislators and staff is running on time and on budget, officials told… Continue reading

The Assembly Building is seen on Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2022, in downtown Juneau, Alaska. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)