Alaska

Alaska ‘bar wars’ resurface with arrival of new alcohol laws

Published

2 years ago

January 1, 2024

Alaska ‘bar wars’ resurface with arrival of new alcohol laws

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – New Alaska alcohol laws are going into effect New Year’s Day, creating what some say will be a more level playing field between bars and brewery tasting rooms.

The new laws going into effect were part of Senate Bill 9 which was passed in 2022, and intended to end the so-called “bar wars,” or the alcohol industry’s internal conflict between bars and breweries over how state laws were putting one side at a competitive disadvantage.

Odd Man Rush Brewing owner Reid McDonald said part of his frustration is that taprooms – the space in which a brewery serves its beer to customers – still cannot have TVs or stools at the bar. In addition, breweries must limit customers’ consumption to three 12-ounce beers per person.

“This is a good start, giving breweries a little more time, an extra hour a day, but [the laws] don’t go far enough,” McDonald said. “They need to erase all that stuff. I mean, the three-beer limit can get off the table, you should be able to have live music and TVs.”

Fellow Odd Man Rush Brewing owner/partner Russ Johnson said the beer limits used to put his Eagle River business at odds with its customers.

“A lot of people knew the rules that they were allowed to have 36 ounces of beer, but there’s a lot of people that didn’t,” Johnson said. “And so there were people that would get angry, and they would actually walk out and leave and go somewhere else.”

But there is a positive side. Under the new regulations, taprooms can now hold a limited number of live events each year, and stay open until 9 p.m., rather than 8 p.m.

“We were in that situation for many, many years … where you have a packed house and you got to call last call at, you know, 7:45 p.m. So that extra hour gives extra revenue,” McDonald said.

Looking at it from the bar perspective, John “J.D.” Dave, bar manager of the Time Out Lounge in Anchorage, said a beverage dispensary license can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, compared to $1,500 for a brewery license.

In addition, Dave argued that the limits placed on breweries are all part of the deal for opening that kind of operation.

“They know what they bought in to. They know what they signed up for,” Dave wrote in an emailed statement. “Businesses always should look to evolve with the times, in order to optimize their profit potential. I fully understand this. Senate Bill 9 was pushed to be able to increase the profit window for SOME of the alcohol industry, but not all. Bars will see little to no change as they idly stand by and watch the landscape of their industry change, with no options available to them, to maximize potential as others now can.”

McDonald countered and said opening breweries also includes investments that do not affect their counterpart in the alcohol industry.

“We’ve got plenty of stainless steel, that’s not cheap. So … just in stainless steel in our brewhouse is worth a liquor license,” said McDonald, saying the brewing equipment cost at least $500,000.

But in the end, McDonald said he went to the “dark side” and purchased a beverage dispensary license, because even under the new laws, as a brewery, he was leaving too much money on the table.

“I didn’t see it changing in my lifetime. And it’s taken so long just to get that extra hour. I mean, we’ve been at it for eight years and it just changed,” he said. “So that’s why we did what we did. And it’s been great for us. Unfortunately, we had to spend that kind of money to do it. But now we’re competing with other bars and restaurants.”

Also part of the new state laws is a provision that puts new limits on the number of new taprooms that can operate in a town or a city, intended to address public safety and alcohol abuse.

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Alaska

Musician performs under the aurora in Nenana — without gloves, in 17 degrees

Published

11 hours ago

February 28, 2026

Press Room

Musician performs under the aurora in Nenana — without gloves, in 17 degrees

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – A musician with Alaska Native roots recorded an hour-long live set in Interior Alaska beneath the aurora.

Chastity Ashley, a drummer, vocalist and DJ who performs under the name Neon Pony, celebrated a year since she traveled to Nenana to record a live music set beneath the northern lights for her series Beats and Hidden Retreats.

Ashley, who has Indigenous roots in New Mexico, said she was drawn to Alaska in part because of the role drums play in Alaska Native culture. A handmade Alaskan hand drum, brought to her by a man from just outside Anchorage, was incorporated into the performance in February 2025.

Recording in the cold

The team spent eight days in Nenana waiting for the aurora to appear. Ashley said the lights did not come out until around 4 a.m., and she performed a continuous, uninterrupted hour-long set in 17-degree weather without gloves.

“It was freezing. I couldn’t wear gloves because I’m actually playing, yeah, hand drums and holding drumsticks. And there was ice underneath my feet,” Ashley said.

“So, I had to really utilize my balance and my willpower and my ability to just really immerse in the music and let go and make it about the celebration of what I was doing as opposed to worrying about all the other elements or what could go wrong.”

She said she performed in a leotard to allow full range of motion while drumming, DJing and singing.

Filming on Nenana tribal land

Ashley said she did not initially know the filming location was on indigenous land. After local authorities told her the decision was not theirs to make, she contacted the Nenana tribe directly for permission.

“I went into it kind of starting to tell them who I was and that I too was a part of a native background,” Ashley said. “And they just did not even care. They’re like, listen, we’re about to have a party for one of our friends here. Go and do what you like.”

Ashley said the tribe gave her full permission to film on the reservation, and that the aurora footage seen in the episode was captured there.

Seeing the aurora for the first time

Ashley said the Nenana performance marked her first time seeing the northern lights in person.

“It felt as if I were awake in a dream,” she said. “It really doesn’t seem real.”

She said she felt humbled and blessed to perform beneath the aurora and to celebrate its beauty and grandeur through her music.

“I feel incredibly humbled and blessed that not only did I get to take part in seeing something like that, but to play underneath it and celebrate its beauty and its grandeur.”

The Alaska episode is the second installment of Beats and Hidden Retreats, which is available on YouTube at @NeonPony. Ashley said two additional episodes are in production and she hopes to make it back up to Alaska in the future.

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Alaska

Over $150K worth of drugs seized from man in Juneau, police say

Published

23 hours ago

February 27, 2026

Press Room

Over 0K worth of drugs seized from man in Juneau, police say

JUNEAU, Alaska (KTUU) – An Alaska drug task force seized roughly $162,000 worth of controlled substances during an operation in Juneau Thursday, according to the Juneau Police Department.

Around 3 p.m. Thursday, investigators with the Southeast Alaska Cities Against Drugs (SEACAD) approached 50-year-old Juneau resident Jermiah Pond in the Nugget Mall parking lot while he was sitting in his car, according to JPD.

A probation search of the car revealed a container holding about 7.3 gross grams of a substance that tested presumptively positive for methamphetamine, as well as about 1.21 gross grams of a substance that tested presumptively positive for fentanyl.

As part of the investigation, investigators executed a search warrant at Pond’s residence, during which they found about 46.63 gross grams of ketamine, 293.56 gross grams of fentanyl, 25.84 gross grams of methamphetamine and 25.5 gross grams of MDMA.

In all, it amounted to just less than a pound of drugs worth $162,500.

Investigators also seized $102,640 in cash and multiple recreational vehicles believed to be associated with the investigation.

Pond was lodged on charges of second-degree misconduct involving a controlled substance, two counts of third-degree misconduct involving a controlled substance, five counts of fourth-degree misconduct involving a substance and an outstanding felony probation warrant.

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Alaska

Sand Point teen found 3 days after going missing in lake

Published

1 day ago

February 27, 2026

Press Room

Sand Point teen found 3 days after going missing in lake

SAND POINT, Alaska (KTUU) – A teenage boy who was last seen Monday when the canoe he was in tipped over has been found by a dive team in a lake near Sand Point, according to a person familiar with the situation.

Alaska’s News Source confirmed with the person, who is close to the search efforts, that the dive team found 15-year-old Kaipo Kaminanga deceased Thursday in Red Cove Lake, located a short drive from the town of Sand Point on the Aleutian Island chain.

Kaminanga was last seen canoeing with three other friends on Monday when the boat tipped over.

A search and rescue operation ensued shortly after.

Alaska Dive Search Rescue and Recovery Team posted on Facebook Thursday night that they were able to “locate and recover” Kaminanga at around 5 p.m. Thursday.

“We are glad we could bring closure to his family, friends and community,” the post said.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated when more details become available.

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