Sabine Poux anchors KDLL’s evening news show on Monday, Dec. 13, 2021 in Kenai, Alaska. KDLL will add a reporter to its staff through the Report for America program. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

A new voice for the peninsula

New radio reporter to bring expanded community news coverage.

Sabine Poux anchors KDLL’s evening news show on Monday, Dec. 13, 2021 in Kenai, Alaska. KDLL will add a reporter to its staff through the Report for America program. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

Alaska reports its 1st omicron case

The case was reported in an Anchorage resident who had tested positive for the virus after traveling internationally.

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)
(Black Press File)

Alternatives sought for tobacco-related school suspensions

Tobacco policy violations accounted for more than 1,800 days lost from school in Alaska in the 2018-2019 school year.

(Black Press File)
Volunteers at the Alaska SeaLife Center feed a milk and electrolyte mix to a beluga calf, rescued on Sept. 30, 2017, after being stranded in Trading Bay, on Friday, Oct. 6 in Seward, Alaska. The calf, dubbed Tyonek, and a second stranded beluga sent to the Alaska SeaLife Center were featured in a study published last month in the scientific journal Polar Research. (Courtesy photo)

A tale of 2 cetaceans

Study analyzes outcomes for stranded beluga calves rehabilitated at SeaLife Center.

Volunteers at the Alaska SeaLife Center feed a milk and electrolyte mix to a beluga calf, rescued on Sept. 30, 2017, after being stranded in Trading Bay, on Friday, Oct. 6 in Seward, Alaska. The calf, dubbed Tyonek, and a second stranded beluga sent to the Alaska SeaLife Center were featured in a study published last month in the scientific journal Polar Research. (Courtesy photo)
Alaska State Troopers logo.
Alaska State Troopers logo.
COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

Cases down statewide; uncertainty over omicron looms

On Friday, the state reported 453 new COVID cases, for a seven-day cumulative rolling average of 195 cases per day.

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)
Kenai Courthouse is photographed on February 26, 2019 in Kenai, Alaska. (Clarion file)
Kenai Courthouse is photographed on February 26, 2019 in Kenai, Alaska. (Clarion file)
Maria Dixson, left, rings up a purchase by Sarah Pyhala, right, at River City Books in Soldotna, Alaska, on Jan. 2, 2021. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion file)

Last call for $100 shop local vouchers

The Soldotna City Council voted to set aside $350,000 in excess CARES dollars for the shop local program earlier this year.

Maria Dixson, left, rings up a purchase by Sarah Pyhala, right, at River City Books in Soldotna, Alaska, on Jan. 2, 2021. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion file)
Brian Prather sits with Santa at the Nikiski Community Recreation Center on Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021, in Nikiski, Alaska. (Camille Botello/Peninsula Clarion)

Santa comes to town

Nikiski rec center hosts Christmas celebration

Brian Prather sits with Santa at the Nikiski Community Recreation Center on Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021, in Nikiski, Alaska. (Camille Botello/Peninsula Clarion)
Dorothy Thomson stands while giving a thumbs down as Gov. Mike Dunleavy gives his State of Alaska Address during the 2019 Alaska Federation of Natives Convention Thursday, Oct. 17, 2019. The 2019 convention was the last in-person convention as the COVID-19 pandemic has caused the meeting to go digital for the second year in a row. (Eric Engman/Fairbanks Daily News-Miner via AP)

‘Relationships are key’: AFN Convention brings leaders to the table

This year’s convention will look back on 50 years of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act.

Dorothy Thomson stands while giving a thumbs down as Gov. Mike Dunleavy gives his State of Alaska Address during the 2019 Alaska Federation of Natives Convention Thursday, Oct. 17, 2019. The 2019 convention was the last in-person convention as the COVID-19 pandemic has caused the meeting to go digital for the second year in a row. (Eric Engman/Fairbanks Daily News-Miner via AP)
A student pets Wilson, a therapy dog, in a hallway at French Middle School, Wednesday, Nov. 3, 2021, in Topeka, Kan. The dog is one of the tools designed to relieve stresses faced by students as they return to classrooms amid the ongoing pandemic. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
A student pets Wilson, a therapy dog, in a hallway at French Middle School, Wednesday, Nov. 3, 2021, in Topeka, Kan. The dog is one of the tools designed to relieve stresses faced by students as they return to classrooms amid the ongoing pandemic. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Alaska Lt. Gov. Kevin Meyer is seen on the floor of the Alaska House on Tuesday, Jan. 15, 2019, in Juneau, Alaska. Meyer, a Republican who oversees elections in Alaska, in November 2020, announced plans for a hand-count review of votes cast on a successful ballot initiative, which would change how elections in Alaska are conducted, casting the review as a way to calm questions that had been raised about the validity of election results. The Associated Press received emails on Nov. 30, 2021, hat were received by Meyer’s office with complaints or concerns about the election, more than a year after they were requested. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer, File)

Email complaints scarce before ballot review

The hand count cost around $55,750.

  • Dec 11, 2021
  • By BECKY BOHRER Associated Press
  • State News
Alaska Lt. Gov. Kevin Meyer is seen on the floor of the Alaska House on Tuesday, Jan. 15, 2019, in Juneau, Alaska. Meyer, a Republican who oversees elections in Alaska, in November 2020, announced plans for a hand-count review of votes cast on a successful ballot initiative, which would change how elections in Alaska are conducted, casting the review as a way to calm questions that had been raised about the validity of election results. The Associated Press received emails on Nov. 30, 2021, hat were received by Meyer’s office with complaints or concerns about the election, more than a year after they were requested. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer, File)
One of the two buildings used to teach elementary school children in Kachemak Selo sits on the outer edge of the village Thursday, Aug. 30, 2018 in the village at the head of Kachemack Bay. (Photo by Megan Pacer/Homer News)

Borough awards contract for K-Selo design report

The bid award will cover a programming phase, value analysis and cost estimate in a not-to-exceed amount of $125,000.

One of the two buildings used to teach elementary school children in Kachemak Selo sits on the outer edge of the village Thursday, Aug. 30, 2018 in the village at the head of Kachemack Bay. (Photo by Megan Pacer/Homer News)
Informatin about Cook Inletkeeper is displayed next to artwork for sale as part of the “ART Sale 258” at the Cook Inletkeeper Community Action Studio on Thursday, Dec. 9, 2021 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

Artists raise awareness about inlet lease sale

The proposed Lease Sale 258 includes about 224 blocks covering more than 1 million acres of seafloor.

Informatin about Cook Inletkeeper is displayed next to artwork for sale as part of the “ART Sale 258” at the Cook Inletkeeper Community Action Studio on Thursday, Dec. 9, 2021 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Central Peninsula Hospital Pharmacy Technician Jessica Hulet rolls a cart carrying doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine into Central Peninsula Hospital on Wednesday, Dec. 16 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

1 year after vaccine, push against virus continues

A Toyota Sienna minivan delivered the peninsula’s first COVID shots to Central Peninsula Hospital in Soldotna on Dec. 16 last year.

Central Peninsula Hospital Pharmacy Technician Jessica Hulet rolls a cart carrying doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine into Central Peninsula Hospital on Wednesday, Dec. 16 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Jacquelynn Tomrdle, left, and Nicole Murphy, right, present on behalf of the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District Students in Transition program at the Kenai Peninsula Association of Realtors award ceremony at Kenai Catering on Thursday, Dec. 9, 2021. (Camille Botello/Peninsula Clarion)

‘Happiest time’

Realtors donate holiday gifts to at-risk kids.

Jacquelynn Tomrdle, left, and Nicole Murphy, right, present on behalf of the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District Students in Transition program at the Kenai Peninsula Association of Realtors award ceremony at Kenai Catering on Thursday, Dec. 9, 2021. (Camille Botello/Peninsula Clarion)
Assembly members Richard Derkevorkian (left) and Jesse Bjorkman (right) consult during a meeting of the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly on Tuesday, Dec. 7, 2021 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O'Hara)

Assembly approves sweeping changes to planning commission

The changes come after months of contention over the process for approving new members to the commission.

Assembly members Richard Derkevorkian (left) and Jesse Bjorkman (right) consult during a meeting of the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly on Tuesday, Dec. 7, 2021 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O'Hara)
The film “Finding Balance” directed by Santino “Tino” Martirano will be featured in the upcoming Backcountry Film Festival hosted by Tsalteshi Trails Association at the organization’s annual meeting on Saturday. (Courtesy of David Julian and the Winter Wildlands Alliance)

Tsalteshi to feature films from Backcountry Film Festival at meeting

The films range from extreme sports to outdoor winter hobbies, while also promoting sustainable recreation.

The film “Finding Balance” directed by Santino “Tino” Martirano will be featured in the upcoming Backcountry Film Festival hosted by Tsalteshi Trails Association at the organization’s annual meeting on Saturday. (Courtesy of David Julian and the Winter Wildlands Alliance)
Snow on Heath Street is blown into a truck, which will later be dumped near Public Works. (Photo by Sarah Knapp/Homer News)

Storm wallops Homer

Blizzard clogged roads, shut down school and buried southern peninsula.

Snow on Heath Street is blown into a truck, which will later be dumped near Public Works. (Photo by Sarah Knapp/Homer News)
Alaska State Troopers logo.

Missing hunter found dead in Whittier

The man and a companion were hunting deer and seals on Esther Island in Prince William Sound, troopers said.

Alaska State Troopers logo.