Chambers set schedules
■ The Soldotna and Kenai Chambers of Commerce will host a joint luncheon at noon on Wednesday at the Kenai Visitors Center. The State of Alaska Governor’s Forum is planned. RSVP to 262-9814 or 283-1991.
SBA accepting Small Business Week Award nominations
The U.S. Small Business Administration – Alaska district office has announced the opening of SBA’s online portal and is ready to accept nominations for its 2015 National Small Business Week Awards, including the annual Small Business Person of the Year award.
SBA has been following the mantra – Smart, Bold and Accessible in the way the agency conducts business. This is now the third year SBA has been using the online portal submission process, a great and smart improvement from years past. The improved dedicated web portal http://awards.sba.gov provides all the guidelines and has made it much easier to submit and track submissions of nominees for National Small Business Week.
Since 1963, National Small Business Week has recognized the outstanding achievements of America’s small businesses for their contributions to their local communities, and to our nation’s economy. For over 50 years, SBA will continue its tradition in honoring the nation’s 28 million small businesses.
All nominations must be submitted online, postmarked or hand delivered to the SBA no later than 3 p.m. EST, Monday, Jan. 5, 2015. In addition to the portal, nominations can also be sent directly to SBA’s Alaska District Office. For contact information and other District Office information visit online at www.sba.gov/ak, call 800-755-7034 or visit in person at 420 L Street, Suite 300, Anchorage, Alaska.
HEA plans area meetings, Soldotna Combustion Turbine Plant tour
Homer Electric Association is hosting a series of area meetings throughout the Kenai Peninsula. The meetings will feature a family-style barbecue dinner followed by a short presentation on current HEA projects and activities.
In addition, tours will be offered of the new Soldotna Combustion Turbine Plant from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Oct. 8. The plant is located on the Sterling Highway and Boundary Avenue in Soldotna.
The schedule for the area meeting and tour is as follows:
■ Oct. 2 — Ninilchik, Kenai Peninsula Fairgrounds, 5:30 p.m.
■ Oct. 6 — Funny River Community Center, 5:30 p.m.
■ Oct. 8 — Soldotna Combustion Turbine Plant Tour, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
■ Oct. 8 — Sterling Community Club, 5:30 p.m.
■ Oct. 9 — Nikiski Community Recreation Center, 5:30 p.m.
■ Oct. 13 — Port Graham, Community Center, noon
HEA members are encouraged to attend the area meetings and learn about some of the exciting projects that the electric cooperative is undertaking. For more information about the area meetings, please call HEA Director of Member Relations Joe Gallagher at 283-2324.
Agricultural equipment for rent
The Kenai Soil & Water Conservation District has a wide variety of agricultural equipment for rent, including manual and mechanized tools for soil preparation (Meri Crusher), tillage, re-seeding, planting, pesticide and fertilizer application and bale wrapping. For information, see the “Equipment Rental” page at www.kenaisoilandwater.org or call 283-8732 ext. 5.
Job Center hosts training
The following job skills workshops will be offered at the Peninsula Job Center the week of Oct. 6:
Monday, Oct. 6 — 10:30 a.m., Introduction to ALEXsys and the Job Center, 2 p.m. Resume Writing Workshop
Tuesday, Oct. 7 — 10:30 a.m., CareerReady 101 Lab
Wednesday, Oct. 8 — 9 a.m., WorkKeys® Testing
Thursday, Oct. 9 — No workshops offered
Friday, Oct. 10 — No workshops offered
All workshop are free of charge to the public
Those interested in attending any workshops offered at the Peninsula Job Center can reserve space by clicking on the “Schedule Workshops” option located on the main screen in your ALEXsys account (www.jobs.alaska.gov ), call 335-3010, or visit the job center located in Kenai at 11312 Kenai Spur Hwy., Suite #2. Business hours are Monday – Friday, 8:00am to 5:00pm excluding state and federal holidays.
Small business workshops offered
Six small business workshops will be offered weekly in Fairbanks and by videoconference in Delta Junction, Juneau, Soldotna and Kodiak, beginning Oct. 9. The series is hosted by the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service and the UAF Community and Technical College.
Kathryn Dodge, Extension economic development specialist, said the workshops will offer guidance to small business owners interested in starting or expanding their businesses. Participants may attend one or all of the workshops. The topics include:
■ Starting a small business, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 9
■ E-commerce and web-based tools for businesses, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Oct. 17
■ Writing a business plan, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 23
■ Legal forms of business, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 30
■ Record keeping and taxes for mining, 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. Nov. 6
■ How to get a small business loan, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Nov. 13
Each class costs $25. Register online at http://bit.ly/ces-workshops. See more information about the classes and videoconference locations at www.uaf.edu/ces . All workshops except for the Nov. 13 session will meet in Room 421 of the UAF Community and Technical College at 604 Barnette St. The final class will meet at the Extension district office at 724 27th Ave., Suite 1.
Instructors will include Fairbanks attorney John Burns; accountant Paul Robinson; Scott Swingle of the Small Business Administration; Russ Talvi of the Alaska Small Business Development Center; Paul Bauer of the Spirit of Alaska Federal Credit Union; and Adam Krynicki of the UAF Office of Intellectual Property and Commercialization.
For more information, contact Dodge at 474-6497 or kdodge@alaska.edu.
ENSTAR Natural Gas announces new president
ENSTAR Natural Gas today announced the appointment of Jared Green as president of ENSTAR.
Mr. Green brings more than 15 years of industry experience to his new role. Prior to joining ENSTAR, he was Vice President and Corporate Controller at AltaGas Ltd., ENSTAR’s parent company.
He succeeds outgoing President, Colleen Starring, who is assuming a new position at AltaGas as Senior Vice President of Canadian Utilities and Chief Executive Officer of Pacific Northern Gas.
“I’m very pleased to be handing over the reins to Jared, his experience with AltaGas’ utilities and understanding of working in a northern environment make him the right candidate for this role,” said Starring. “Jared inherits a strong leadership team with in-depth experience within the industry and across the state.”
“I look forward to working with the team at ENSTAR and becoming part of the Alaska community. Together, the ENSTAR team will continue to provide our customers with safe and reliable service,” said Green.
ENSTAR Natural Gas Company, headquartered in Anchorage, Alaska, is a regulated public utility that delivers natural gas to approximately 137,000 residential, commercial, and industrial customers in Southcentral Alaska. ENSTAR’s service area encompasses over 57 percent of Alaska’s population. ENSTAR is a division of SEMCO Energy Inc., an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of AltaGas Ltd.
Frontier to end seasonal flights to Fairbanks
FAIRBANKS (AP) — Frontier Airlines will not resume seasonal flights from Denver to Fairbanks next year, according to officials at Fairbanks International Airport.
Frontier offered no-frills slights from mid-May and mid-September in 2014 but said in a letter last week it planned to end the service, the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reported.
The airline cited the closure of the Flint Hills Resources petroleum refinery in North Pole, which made jet fuel, and the possibility of higher fuel costs as a major factor in the decision, said airport spokeswoman Angie Spear.
The company also cited a decision to reposition its national fleet, Spear said.
Frontier flew Airbus 319 flights three to four times weekly between Fairbanks and Denver in summer months. Frontier will continue flights between Denver and Anchorage.
Alaska Airlines is the only year-round major airline in Fairbanks. United Airlines began seasonal service in 2013 and confirmed last week it will return to Fairbanks next summer, Spear said.
What’s new in your business?
Have you opened a new business, moved to a new location, hired a new person or promoted an employee?
Send us your information at news@peninsulaclarion.com, fax it to 907-283-3299, or drop it by the Clarion at 150 Trading Bay in Kenai. Questions? Call 907-335-1251.
Business announcements may be submitted to news@peninsulaclarion.com.
