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Seeking Shelter: Part of community task force’s plan for possible sanctioned camps still in flux

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Seeking Shelter: Part of community task force’s plan for possible sanctioned camps still in flux


ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – Since the closing of the largest shelter in Anchorage weeks ago left just a few dozen homeless residents with somewhere to stay, there are still questions about where the most vulnerable people will be housed in the long term.

The Sanctioned Camps Community Task Force is proposing several possible sites across the Anchorage area for designated campsites where basic resources would be available such as water and bathrooms. Three of the sites proposed include areas near West 100th Avenue and C Street, the corner of Bragaw Street and East Sixth Avenue, and the Eagle River Campground.

This part of the task force’s resolution is still in flux.

Caroline Storm, a member of the task force, sent a message to Alaska’s News Source on Tuesday saying the corporation that owns the land at the proposed site near 100th Avenue and C Street is “upset” they were named in the resolution and that the task force was going to clarify that site and the Eagle River location to more generic terms; Storm said they would be “a site in South Anchorage” and “a site in Eagle River.”

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The original resolution, submitted to the Anchorage Assembly last week, lists land at C Street and 100th Avenue with Cook Inlet Region, Inc., also known as CIRI.

“We’re just disappointed a resolution like that would include a private company without first contacting them or consideration of a private land owner,” said Ethan Tyler, CIRI senior director of external affairs.

CIRI isn’t the only entity that said it wasn’t notified before being listed on the resolution. Pacific Northern Academy also says they weren’t notified of having a possible site at Bragaw and East Sixth Avenue.

The Alaska Department of Natural Resources, which manages the Eagle River Campground as listed on the task force’s resolution, issued a statement to Alaska’s News Source saying that the location would not be suitable for sheltering those without suitable housing.

“While the Department of Natural Resources is sympathetic to the challenges facing unhoused people in the Anchorage area, the Eagle River Campground in Chugach State Park would not be an appropriate place for a sanctioned homeless camp,” DNR Director of Communications Lorraine Henry wrote in an email. “After the Sanctioned Camps Community Task Force released their recommendation to the Anchorage Assembly last week that included asking the State of Alaska to consider allowing a sanctioned homeless camp at the Eagle River Campground, DNR spoke with Anchorage Parks and Recreation to let them know we will not be changing the fee or length of stay policy at the Eagle River Campground this season. If the Anchorage Assembly brings forward a proposal for sanctioned homeless camps on other State land managed by DNR, we would evaluate each option carefully.”

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In response to the groups that said they were not notified they would be listed on the task force’s resolution, Storm said in an email that the task force was faced with quickly coming up with locations before the closure of the Sullivan Arena on May 31.

“I can fully appreciate that private property owners feel put-on-the-spot by being named in the Task Force resolution that had been prepared for the May 23rd Assembly meeting,” Storm wrote. “The Task Force felt an enormous urgency to recommend specific sites that could be deployed ahead of the May 31st Sullivan closure and the abatement of the Cuddy Park area. Sites named for immediate deployment were understood to be MOA owned, and the sites listed as future possibilities were simply options to be considered for future action as required.

“I can’t speak for the entire Task Force yet want to offer a personal apology to those property owners for putting you in a situation where you now have to deal with public opinion and any negative optics.”

Alaska’s News Source spoke with several residents who live near the proposed site on Bragaw Street.

“They do need somewhere to live and our government should help provide some sort of help, but it does bring a certain element of nervousness knowing that it would be right next to my home and neighbors that I know and love,” Morgan Tullos said.

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John Elson also lives near the proposed sanctioned camp on Bragaw Street.

“This community here has enough trouble,” Elson said. “There are some good honest people living around here. All my neighbors are good. It’s just going to cause a lot of trouble.”

For the Task Force, the hope is that whatever location might be chosen — if any — it could include basic resources such as bathrooms and drinking water for those living on the streets, as well as many other proposed resources listed in the original resolution.

The Anchorage Assembly will consider the task force recommendations during the June 6 regular Assembly meeting. A work session has been scheduled for Friday.

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Alaska

OPINION: CDQ program and pollock fishery are essential to Western Alaska

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OPINION: CDQ program and pollock fishery are essential to Western Alaska


By Eric Deakin, Ragnar Alstrom and Michael Link

Updated: 1 hour ago Published: 1 hour ago

We work every day to support Alaska’s rural communities through the Community Development Quota (CDQ) program and have seen firsthand the lifeline the program provides to our state’s most isolated and economically vulnerable areas.

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This program is one of the most successful social justice programs in the United States, giving rural, coastal communities a stake in the success of the Bering Sea fisheries, and transferring these benefits into community investments. Our fisheries participation provides $80 million to $100 million of programs, wages and benefits into Western Alaska annually, and the full economic reach of the CDQ program is substantially larger when accounting for jobs and support services statewide.

In some communities, CDQs are the largest and only private-sector employer; the only market for small-boat fishermen; the only nonfederal funding available for critical infrastructure projects; and an essential program provider for local subsistence and commercial fishing access. There is no replacement for the CDQ program, and harm to it would come at a severe cost. As one resident framed it, CDQ is to Western Alaska communities, what oil is to Alaska.

Consistent with their statutory mandate, CDQ groups have increased their fisheries investments, and their 65 member communities are now major players in the Bering Sea. The foundation of the program is the Bering Sea pollock fishery, 30% of which is owned by CDQ groups. We invest in pollock because it remains one of the most sustainably managed fisheries in the world, backed by rigorous science, with independent observers on every vessel, ensuring that bycatch is carefully monitored and minimized.

We also invest in pollock because the industry is committed to constantly improving and responding to new challenges. We understand the impact that salmon collapses are having on culture and food security in Western Alaska communities. Working with industry partners, we have reduced chinook bycatch to historically low levels and achieved more than an 80% reduction in chum bycatch over the past three years. This is a clear demonstration that CDQ groups and industry are taking the dire salmon situation seriously, despite science that shows bycatch reductions will have very minimal, if any, positive impact on subsistence access.

The effects of recent warm summers on the Bering Sea ecosystem have been well documented by science. This has caused some species to prosper, like sablefish and Bristol Bay sockeye salmon, while others have been negatively impacted, including several species of crab and salmon. Adding to these challenges is the unregulated and growing hatchery production of chum salmon in Russia and Asia, which is competing for limited resources in the Bering Sea, and increasing management challenges.

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Attributing the current salmon crises to this fishery is misguided and could cause unnecessary harm to CDQ communities. Without the pollock fishery, we would see dramatic increases in the cost of food, fuel and other goods that are shipped to rural Alaska. We would also see the collapse of the CDQ program and all that it provides, including a wide array of projects and jobs that help keep families fed and children in school.

The challenges Alaska faces are significant, and to address them we need to collectively work together to mitigate the impacts of warming oceans on our fisheries, build resiliency in our communities and fishery management, and continue to improve practices to minimize fishing impacts. We must also recognize the vital need for the types of community investments and job opportunities that the CDQ program creates for Western Alaska and ensure these benefits are considered when talking about the Bering Sea pollock fishery.

Eric Deakin is chief executive officer of the Coastal Villages Region Fund.

Ragnar Alstrom is executive director of the Yukon Delta Fisheries Development Association.

Michael Link is president and CEO of Bristol Bay Economic Development Corp.

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The views expressed here are the writer’s and are not necessarily endorsed by the Anchorage Daily News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a piece for consideration, email commentary(at)adn.com. Send submissions shorter than 200 words to letters@adn.com or click here to submit via any web browser. Read our full guidelines for letters and commentaries here.





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Alaska

‘Drag racing for dogs:’ Anchorage canines gather for the ‘Great Alaska Barkout’

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‘Drag racing for dogs:’ Anchorage canines gather for the ‘Great Alaska Barkout’


ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – Alaska’s first “flyball” league held its annual “Great Alaska Barkout Flyball Tournament” on Saturday in midtown at Alyeska Canine Trainers.

Flyball is a fast-paced sport in which relay teams of four dogs and their handlers compete to cross the finish line first while carrying a tennis ball launched from a spring loaded box. Saturday’s tournament was one of several throughout the year held by “Dogs Gone Wild,” which started in 2004 as Alaska’s first flyball league.

“We have here in Alaska, we’ve got, I think it’s about 6 tournaments per year,” said competitor and handler Maija Doggett. “So you know every other month or so there will be a tournament hosted. Most of them are hosted right here at Alyeska Canine Trainers.”

See a spelling or grammar error? Report it to web@ktuu.com

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Alaska

State of Alaska will defend its right to facilitate oil and gas development

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State of Alaska will defend its right to facilitate oil and gas development


Last week, Superior Court Judge Andrew Guidi indicated he will rule that Alaska does not have authority to permit access across its lands to facilitate oil and gas development on the North Slope.

The Alaska Dept. of Natural Resources plans to fight and appeal any final adverse ruling that undermines the state’s constitutional interests in resource development.

The Department of Natural Resources has issued a permit allowing Oil Search Alaska (OSA) to cross the Kuparuk River Unit, operated by Conoco Phillips Alaska, to develop the Pikka Unit. As described in the State’s brief to the court, “the denial of such access implicates the delay of development of millions of barrels of oil and billions of dollars of public revenues.”

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“The State of Alaska has a constitutional obligation to maximize the development of our resources,” DNR Commissioner John Boyle said on Nov. 22. “We have to confirm with the Supreme Court that we have the authority to permit access for all developers to ensure we can meet this obligation.”

Once the Superior Court issues the final judgement, Alaska will be able to file its appeal. This is expected to occur in the coming weeks.

Click here to support the Alaska Watchman.

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