Dan Balmer/Peninsula Clarion Kenai City Planner Matt Kelley brings a background in coastal planning from northern California and a certificate in GIS training. As a public servant he said he welcomes input from the community.

Kenai city planner looks to clean up codes

After two months on the job, new Kenai City Planner Matt Kelley has gone from the California sun to the land of the midnight sun.… Continue reading

  • Nov 18, 2014
  • By DAN BALMER
Dan Balmer/Peninsula Clarion Kenai City Planner Matt Kelley brings a background in coastal planning from northern California and a certificate in GIS training. As a public servant he said he welcomes input from the community.

Limits on driveway width at issue in Soldotna

Soldotna resident Jerry Farrington has been trying to add 6 feet to his driveway for more than two years. Applications and appeals have bounced between… Continue reading

  • Nov 18, 2014
  • By Kelly Sullivan
Photo by Rashah McChesney/Peninsula Clarion Colleen Sonnevil gives Lisa Kendall a piece of pumpkin pie cheesecake during a nutrition class at the Kenai Peninsula Food Bank on Tuesday Nov. 11, 2014 in Soldotna, Alaska. On Tuesday, Sonnevil's class had french onion soup and beer batter bread roll with swiss cheese melted on it and a chicken salad and pita bread. Sonnevil is also offering the class on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. The group will be making beef stroganoff.
Photo by Rashah McChesney/Peninsula Clarion Colleen Sonnevil gives Lisa Kendall a piece of pumpkin pie cheesecake during a nutrition class at the Kenai Peninsula Food Bank on Tuesday Nov. 11, 2014 in Soldotna, Alaska. On Tuesday, Sonnevil's class had french onion soup and beer batter bread roll with swiss cheese melted on it and a chicken salad and pita bread. Sonnevil is also offering the class on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. The group will be making beef stroganoff.

Lynx hunting, trapping season closed for several years

It’s the end of a cycle for lynx and area hunters of the short-tailed cat will likely not get another chance at them on the… Continue reading

  • Nov 18, 2014
  • By Rashah McChesney

Fairbanks increasing use of brine for slick roads

FAIRBANKS (AP) — Annual bouts of freezing rain in Interior Alaska have spurred road crews to use a tool that they wouldn’t have considered until… Continue reading

  • Nov 18, 2014
  • By Jeff Richardson

Newspaper subscription scam reaches Alaska

A new scam that sends out bogus newspaper subscription renewal notices has made its way to Alaska from the Lower 48. The Federal Trade Commission… Continue reading

  • Nov 17, 2014
  • By DAN BALMER
Photo by Dan Balmer/Peninsula Clarion A fire destroyed a trailer home on Rustic Avenue in Soldotna Saturday. The fire is believed to have started in a chicken coop attached to the back of the home. A heating lamp was knocked on a pile of straw and the home was fully engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived.

Fire scorches home that was site of drug bust

A home destroyed in a fire Saturday in the Gas Well Road area was the site of a heroin bust on Halloween, but fire officials… Continue reading

  • Nov 17, 2014
  • By DAN BALMER
Photo by Dan Balmer/Peninsula Clarion A fire destroyed a trailer home on Rustic Avenue in Soldotna Saturday. The fire is believed to have started in a chicken coop attached to the back of the home. A heating lamp was knocked on a pile of straw and the home was fully engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived.
The 765-foot Zhen Hua 15 loads the jack-up rig Endeavour-Spirit of Independence in Kachemak Bay off the Homer Spit on Monday. The Zhen Hua 15 is a float-on, float-off heavy-lift vessel that sinks part way to allow equipment like the Endeavour to be loaded on.
The 765-foot Zhen Hua 15 loads the jack-up rig Endeavour-Spirit of Independence in Kachemak Bay off the Homer Spit on Monday. The Zhen Hua 15 is a float-on, float-off heavy-lift vessel that sinks part way to allow equipment like the Endeavour to be loaded on.

Plane makes emergency landing on K-beach Road

A small plane made an emergency landing on Kalifornsky Beach Road Sunday and took off Monday without anyone in the plane or on the ground… Continue reading

  • Nov 17, 2014
  • By DAN BALMER

Begich concedes race to Sullivan

JUNEAU — Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Begich conceded the Alaska Senate race to Republican Dan Sullivan on Monday, nearly two weeks after the hard-fought election.Begich… Continue reading

  • Nov 17, 2014
  • By Becky Bohrer

Halliburton to buy Baker Hughes

After nearly a month of negotiations, Houston-based Baker Hughes on Monday announced its sale to Halliburton Company in a deal worth about $34.6 billion. Halliburton… Continue reading

  • Nov 17, 2014
  • By Rashah McChesney

Around the District

School board to meet The Kenai Peninsula Borough School District Board of Education meets at 7 p.m. in the borough building at 148 N. Binkley… Continue reading

Foundation funds scholarships, humanities program

Clarence Goodrich and his wife Anna came to Alaska in 1956, to visit. Clarence and Anna spent some time looking around Alaska. “Then, just out… Continue reading

  • Nov 16, 2014
  • By Kelly Sullivan
  • Schools

Artist in residence moves students

Standing before a packed gymnasium in black socks and a blue Soldotna Elementary T-shirt, Homer-based artist Eddie Wood plucked at the bowl-sized thumb piano cupped… Continue reading

  • Nov 16, 2014
  • By Kelly Sullivan
  • Schools
Photo by Dan Balmer/Peninsula Clarion Soldotna resident Colleen O'Connell kneels down next to her grand-daughter Colbie Broyles, 3, during a candlelight vigil Thursday at Farnsworth Park in Soldotna. The vigil, attended by nearly 100 people, was to raise awareness for homeless students.
Photo by Dan Balmer/Peninsula Clarion Soldotna resident Colleen O'Connell kneels down next to her grand-daughter Colbie Broyles, 3, during a candlelight vigil Thursday at Farnsworth Park in Soldotna. The vigil, attended by nearly 100 people, was to raise awareness for homeless students.

Not going to waste: Old electronics collected for recycling

16 volunteers from non-profit recycling advocate ReGroup spent this Saturday at Soldotna’s Central Peninsula Landfill for ReGroup’s 7th annual electronics recycling drive. Jan Wallace, secretary… Continue reading

ADVANCE FOR USE SUNDAY, NOV. 9 - In this photo taken Oct. 25, 2014, Hiland Mountain Correctional Center inmates listen as former inmates offer tips for transitioning out of prison life during the "Probation Tips for Success" session in Eagle River, Alaska. The Hiland inmates attended the workshop sessions as part of the Success Inside & Out agenda. In its ninth year, the program highlights tips and coping strategies for pre-release inmates, offering panels and classes in such areas as probation tips, educational horizons, child custody and re-entry support. (AP Photo/Chugiak Eagle River Star, Cinthia Ritchie)

Prison program offers inmates skills for outside success

The classroom at Hiland Mountain Correctional Center was serene and airy with silver-soft light filtering across the room. Bright nature murals sprawl across the walls… Continue reading

  • Nov 16, 2014
  • By CINTHIA RITCHIE
ADVANCE FOR USE SUNDAY, NOV. 9 - In this photo taken Oct. 25, 2014, Hiland Mountain Correctional Center inmates listen as former inmates offer tips for transitioning out of prison life during the "Probation Tips for Success" session in Eagle River, Alaska. The Hiland inmates attended the workshop sessions as part of the Success Inside & Out agenda. In its ninth year, the program highlights tips and coping strategies for pre-release inmates, offering panels and classes in such areas as probation tips, educational horizons, child custody and re-entry support. (AP Photo/Chugiak Eagle River Star, Cinthia Ritchie)

Fishermen get hands-on with marketing their harvest

From Sitka to Kodiak, small, independent commercial fishermen are taking an increasingly hands-on role in marketing their own fish.Rhonda Hubbard and her husband Jim of… Continue reading

  • Nov 16, 2014
  • By Molly Dischner

Verbatim: Delegation takes trust, forgiveness

In a relay race, even the fastest and most capable runner cannot run the entire distance by themselves and expect to win. They must pass… Continue reading

  • Nov 16, 2014
  • By Claire Kincaid
  • Schools

Classes provide help with health care enrollment process

With the second open enrollment period for the Affordable Health Care Act underway, Alaskans will have another opportunity to sign up for insurance through Alaska’s… Continue reading

  • Nov 15, 2014
  • By Rashah McChesney