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Pete Sprague, who is running to be the mayor of Soldotna, is seen here at Froso’s Restaurant in Soldotna on Dec. 4, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

Mayoral election to be certified Dec. 30

Unofficial results show former Soldotna Mayor Pete Sprague holds almost 70% of the vote.

Pete Sprague, who is running to be the mayor of Soldotna, is seen here at Froso’s Restaurant in Soldotna on Dec. 4, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)
Joey Klecka / Peninsula Clarion                                Santa Claus gives a young fan a high five Nov. 29 at the Christmas Comes to Kenai celebration at the Kenai Visitor and Cultural Center.

Plenty of ways to keep kids entertained during break

Libraries, rec center offer a number of events.

Joey Klecka / Peninsula Clarion                                Santa Claus gives a young fan a high five Nov. 29 at the Christmas Comes to Kenai celebration at the Kenai Visitor and Cultural Center.
Alaska Waste team in Kenai builds more than 60 bikes to give to area children this holiday season. (Photo by Alaska Waste Kenai operations manager Josue Rivera-Cruz/provided by Alaska Waste)                                Alaska Waste team in Kenai builds more than 60 bikes to give to area children this holiday season. (Photo by Alaska Waste Kenai operations manager Josue Rivera-Cruz/provided by Alaska Waste)

Bicycles built for 62

The waste services company held its Christmas Promise Bike Build for the second year in a row.

Alaska Waste team in Kenai builds more than 60 bikes to give to area children this holiday season. (Photo by Alaska Waste Kenai operations manager Josue Rivera-Cruz/provided by Alaska Waste)                                Alaska Waste team in Kenai builds more than 60 bikes to give to area children this holiday season. (Photo by Alaska Waste Kenai operations manager Josue Rivera-Cruz/provided by Alaska Waste)
Longshore workers picket on the Homer Spit by Freight Dock Road on Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2019, in Homer, Alaska. They were part of a group of about 20 Alaska International Longshore and Warehouse Union members or supporters holding an “area standards” picket in response to Chumley’s Inc. use of workers to load a sulfur hauler ship the ILWU alleges are paid substandard wages. (Photo by Michael Armstrong/Homer News)

Longshore workers picket sulfur-ship loading

The “area standards” picket called for comparable wages and benefits for workers.

Longshore workers picket on the Homer Spit by Freight Dock Road on Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2019, in Homer, Alaska. They were part of a group of about 20 Alaska International Longshore and Warehouse Union members or supporters holding an “area standards” picket in response to Chumley’s Inc. use of workers to load a sulfur hauler ship the ILWU alleges are paid substandard wages. (Photo by Michael Armstrong/Homer News)
Lt. Michael Zweifel / Alaska State Troopers                                Capt. Maurice Hughes (left), Amanda Millay and retired Lt. Dane Gilmore celebrate Millay’s completion of the Alaska State Trooper Citizen Academy in this undated photo.

Deadline approaching for 2020 State Trooper Citizen Academy

The series of weekly classes provides citizens a look at the life of an Alaska State Trooper.

Lt. Michael Zweifel / Alaska State Troopers                                Capt. Maurice Hughes (left), Amanda Millay and retired Lt. Dane Gilmore celebrate Millay’s completion of the Alaska State Trooper Citizen Academy in this undated photo.
Voters took to Soldotna City Hall to cast their ballots for the city’s next mayor, who will serve until October 2020, Dec. 17, 2019, in Soldotna, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)

Unofficial results: Sprague wins Soldotna mayors race

The mayor’s seat was left vacant after the Sept. 10 death of Mayor John Nels Anderson.

Voters took to Soldotna City Hall to cast their ballots for the city’s next mayor, who will serve until October 2020, Dec. 17, 2019, in Soldotna, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
Brian Mazurek / Peninsula Clarion                                Members of the Emergency Cold-Weather Shelter Workgroup meet Tuesday at the Independent Living Center in Kalifornsky.

Zoning and building codes next step in shelter project

Any shelter, regardless of location, needs to meet a few general guidelines.

Brian Mazurek / Peninsula Clarion                                Members of the Emergency Cold-Weather Shelter Workgroup meet Tuesday at the Independent Living Center in Kalifornsky.
Flu season in full swing

Flu season in full swing

38 cases of Influenza B were confirmed by the Alaska State Virology Laboratory last week.

Flu season in full swing
The U.S. Drought Monitor conditions for Alaska can be seen in this Dec. 10, 2019 map. (Image courtesy U.S. Drought Monitor)

Snow, rain fail to ease peninsula drought

While precipitation was above normal for the Kenai Peninsula, snow pack remains below normal.

The U.S. Drought Monitor conditions for Alaska can be seen in this Dec. 10, 2019 map. (Image courtesy U.S. Drought Monitor)
Homer gets its second full traffic signal

Homer gets its second full traffic signal

Contractors powered up the signal at the intersection of Main Street and the Homer Bypass.

Homer gets its second full traffic signal
Mouhcine Guettabi, Associate Professor of Economics at the Institute of Social and Economic Research at the University of Alaska Anchorage, speaks to the Senate Finance Committee at the Capitol on Thursday, March 7, 2019. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)

Draining state savings? Lawmakers, economists criticize governor’s budget

Dunleavy’s budget takes state savings to the limit.

Mouhcine Guettabi, Associate Professor of Economics at the Institute of Social and Economic Research at the University of Alaska Anchorage, speaks to the Senate Finance Committee at the Capitol on Thursday, March 7, 2019. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)
Victoria Petersen / Peninsula Clarion                                 Rick McGlasson bought Kassik’s Brewery in Nikiski with his wife, Michelle.

Community meets Kassik’s Brewery new owners

15 years after they started their brewery, the Kassiks are set to retire to be closer to family.

Victoria Petersen / Peninsula Clarion                                 Rick McGlasson bought Kassik’s Brewery in Nikiski with his wife, Michelle.
Gov. Mike Dunleavy announces his state budget during a press conference at the Capitol on Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2019. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)
Gov. Mike Dunleavy announces his state budget during a press conference at the Capitol on Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2019. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)
This Dec. 3, 2019 photo shows Santa Claus arriving in Napakiak, Alaska, on an Alaska National Guard UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter. The Guard brought its Operation Santa Claus to the western Alaska community, which is being severely eroded by the nearby Kuskokwim River. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

Santa, soldiers bring joy to Alaska village

The Alaska National Guard gave folks a reason to smile, thanks to its “Operation Santa Claus” program.

  • Dec 14, 2019
  • By MARK THIESSEN Associated Press
This Dec. 3, 2019 photo shows Santa Claus arriving in Napakiak, Alaska, on an Alaska National Guard UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter. The Guard brought its Operation Santa Claus to the western Alaska community, which is being severely eroded by the nearby Kuskokwim River. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)
Pete Sprague, left, and Charlene Tautfest, right, are seen here at the Soldotna Mayoral Candidate’s Forum at Froso’s Restaurant in Soldotna, Alaska on Dec. 4, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

Soldotna mayoral election Tuesday

After the death of Mayor John Nels Anderson, the city council declared the mayor’s seat vacant.

Pete Sprague, left, and Charlene Tautfest, right, are seen here at the Soldotna Mayoral Candidate’s Forum at Froso’s Restaurant in Soldotna, Alaska on Dec. 4, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)
Students from Kenai Central and Nikiski Middle/High School are recognized as Students of the Month at the Kenai and Soldotna Chambers of Commerce Luncheon at the Kenai Visitor and Cultural Center on Dec. 4, 2019. From left: Kenai Central High School Principal Briana Randle, Hunter Beck, Scott Cunningham, Damaris Severson, Tucker Mueller, Bryan McCollum, Kaycee Bostic, Kaitlyn Johnson and Nikiski Middle/High School Principal Dan Carstens. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

Schools briefs for the week of Dec. 15-22

What’s happening this week

  • Dec 14, 2019
Students from Kenai Central and Nikiski Middle/High School are recognized as Students of the Month at the Kenai and Soldotna Chambers of Commerce Luncheon at the Kenai Visitor and Cultural Center on Dec. 4, 2019. From left: Kenai Central High School Principal Briana Randle, Hunter Beck, Scott Cunningham, Damaris Severson, Tucker Mueller, Bryan McCollum, Kaycee Bostic, Kaitlyn Johnson and Nikiski Middle/High School Principal Dan Carstens. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)
Nikiski man killed in collision

Nikiski man killed in collision

The man was traveling northbound on the Kenai Spur Highway on Friday.

Nikiski man killed in collision
Newman Court in Diamond Ridge, Alaska. (Photo courtesy of Kenai Peninsula Borough Office of Emergency Management)

Assembly approves disaster funds, extends emergency declaration

Assembly voted to appropriate $280,000 to make necessary repairs to public infrastructure.

Newman Court in Diamond Ridge, Alaska. (Photo courtesy of Kenai Peninsula Borough Office of Emergency Management)
Volunteers for the Kenai Peninsula emergency cold-weather shelter participate in a training session on trauma-informed care at Soldotna United Methodist Church in Soldotna, Alaska, on Dec. 14, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

Volunteers train for cold-weather shelter

The shelter will operate on nights where the temperature in Kenai drops below 20 degrees Fahrenheit.

Volunteers for the Kenai Peninsula emergency cold-weather shelter participate in a training session on trauma-informed care at Soldotna United Methodist Church in Soldotna, Alaska, on Dec. 14, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)
Redoubt Chamber Orchestra Conductor Tammy Vollom-Matturro leads the Kenai Peninsula Singers during a rehearsal on Dec. 11, 2017. The choir and orchestra will perform together in the 2019 Evening of Christmas on Friday, Dec. 15. (Photo by Erin Thompson/Peninsula Clarion)

“Evening of Christmas” concert returns for 17th year

The evening features the Redoubt Chamber Orchestra and the Kenai Peninsula Singers.

Redoubt Chamber Orchestra Conductor Tammy Vollom-Matturro leads the Kenai Peninsula Singers during a rehearsal on Dec. 11, 2017. The choir and orchestra will perform together in the 2019 Evening of Christmas on Friday, Dec. 15. (Photo by Erin Thompson/Peninsula Clarion)