From gridlocked highways to high-stakes elections, from flooding rivers to funding shortfalls, life in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough in 2025 was defined by disruption — and determination.

As residents navigated a year of change, challenge, and growth, the Mat-Su Sentinel tracked the stories that mattered most: transportation projects reshaping daily commutes, local decisions with lasting impact, and natural forces that tested the region’s resolve.

The Sentinel was there for all of it. In 2025, the Mat-Su Sentinel published about 235 original news stories — about 215 by Amy Bushatz and 20 by contributors — hosted four community events, and connected with residents at about a dozen local gatherings and information fairs.

We focused our coverage on the topics Mat-Su residents said they cared about most: local government and community events.

Most importantly, you — our readers — powered our work.

Through substantial individual local donations, support from local businesses, advertisers and local foundations, and a little help from national funders, the Sentinel delivered independent, community-driven news to the Mat-Su.

Here’s a look back at the issues, events and voices that shaped the borough this year.

Need-to-Know Local Accountability

Some of the Sentinel’s most important work in 2025 focused on stories residents wouldn’t have known about or fully understood without clear, sustained local reporting from Mat-Su Sentinel. These stories revealed policy shifts and behind-the-scenes decisions with real consequences for borough residents.

Borough ordered to repay millions tied to failed ferry project.

Federal officials ordered the Mat-Su Borough to repay $5.8 million in federal transit grants used for the long-defunct Knik Arm ferry project, after they rejected an appeal to further reduce the amount owed. The order put a renewed spotlight on a costly, decades-old and boondoggle for the borough.

School district removes Indigenous land acknowledgments

The Mat-Su school district removed Indigenous land acknowledgment signs from school buildings and halted the use of land acknowledgment statements at district events without public notice or a chance for public comment. The signs and statement were initially created with input from local tribal officials. The decision prompted ongoing community discussion about representation, inclusion, and how schools recognize Alaska Native history and presence.

Public bus service faces cuts or closure

Changes in borough funding threatened public bus service, putting routes used by seniors, people with disabilities and residents without reliable transportation at risk. The potential loss highlighted how budget decisions can directly affect access to essential services across the Mat-Su. The borough ultimately chose to absorb and fund the service.

Proposed gas tax sparks debate over new borough revenue

Borough officials considered a new fuel tax as a potential revenue source, framing it as a way to help fund road projects and give a new source of income for repaying voter-approved bond debt without further increasing property taxes. The proposal raised questions about cost impacts on residents, voter involvement in such decisions, and whether a gas tax was an appropriate solution amid rising living expenses. The assembly placed the issue on ballots for an advisory vote. It was soundly defeated, and the assembly ultimately rejected the plan.

Property taxes increase as assessments go up

While the assembly lowered the overall mill rate as part of the 2026 budget, Mat-Su residents still felt the pinch in their annual tax bill as property tax assessments once again increased. The situation highlighted ongoing tensions between maintaining services and limiting tax burdens, and gave residents insight into the fiscal challenges facing the borough.

No-notice election guide changes raise partisanship concerns

The Mat-Su Assembly voted to include a memorial statement for conservative activist Charlie Kirk in the borough’s official election guide with no public notice or opportunity for comment. The decision prompted debate over whether the addition blurred the line between neutral voter information and political messaging — and about how government-produced election materials should be used.

School district funding pressures drive program changes

Budget shortfalls within the Mat-Su School District led officials to make major structural changes in 2025, including a shakeup at Mat-Su Central and a new diploma pathway that drops Advanced Placement course requirements in favor of expanded electives. The moves raised questions about academic standards, student opportunity and how per-student funding constraints are shaping district priorities.

Chaos inside Houston City Hall spills into public view

A contentious city council meeting in Houston escalated to the point that state troopers were called in as council members selected a new mayor. The incident underscored ongoing divisions within city leadership and raised concerns about governance and public trust.

Roads and More Roads

Transportation once again dominated daily life – and headlines – in the Mat-Su in 2025, as residents navigated aging infrastructure, multiyear construction timelines and the promise and pain of long-awaited fixes.

Public warned to brace for massive Glenn Highway rebuild

The year kicked off with major road construction news as state transportation officials began gathering public input on a sweeping reconstruction of the Glenn Highway corridor between Anchorage and Palmer, a project expected to cost about $170 million. The candid message from planners: Expect major delays once work begins over the next few years, as crews replace pavement layers and dozens of culverts along one of the region’s most critical corridors.

Knik River bridge work delivers summer-long delays on the Glenn Highway

Thousands of commuters felt the effects of major rehabilitation work on the Knik River bridge along the Glenn Highway. Residents feared long delays as crews closed entire sections of the bridge for weeks at a time. In the end, the backups were not as bad as feared, but the finished product also didn’t meet all drivers’ expectations.

Downtown Wasilla’s biggest traffic overhaul in decades moves closer to reality.

After decades of planning, a major reconstruction of downtown Wasilla took a significant step forward this year. A roughly $70 million federally funded project will convert Main Street and Yenlo Street into paired one-way corridors, add bike lanes and sidewalks, widen key connections, and install new traffic signals. The goal: relieve chronic congestion in the city’s core. The cost: years of construction impacts stretching into 2027.

Seward Meridian Parkway widens, but the finish line slips to 2026

A long-running widening project on Seward Meridian Parkway hit major milestones as new lanes and traffic signals opened between the Palmer-Wasilla Highway and Bogard Road. Still, key elements, including a Seldon Road connection and final lighting, were delayed until next year, underscoring how incremental progress can feel for drivers living with construction.

Election coverage you can’t find anywhere else

In a year packed with local races and ballot questions, the Mat-Su Sentinel doubled down on one of its core missions: providing unbiased information about what and who was on the ballot — and why it mattered.

Interactive voter guides put local races into plain language

The Sentinel published its second annual comprehensive, interactive voter guides for boroughwide races and city elections across Palmer, Wasilla and Houston, as well as the Mat-Su Assembly and School Board. The guides were built on input from voters and included candidate responses in their own words — no editing and no reshaping.

Ballot initiatives explained before voters weighed in. 

From the proposed borough gas tax, to city manager residency requirements in Palmer, and even a holiday showdown in Houston, the Sentinel leaned on just the facts to break down what each ballot initiative would do, and what supporters and opponents said was at stake.

Spin-free election results

As ballots were counted during a special Palmer mayor recall election in May and during October and November general elections, the Sentinel provided timely results and context for city and borough races, tracking wins, losses and turnout across Mat-Su communities.

Creating space for voters and candidates to connect

The Sentinel didn’t just provide written election coverage — it also hosted in-person election events designed to give residents the information they need. A Houston City Council forum gave candidates space to outline their priorities directly to voters for the first time since 2010, while the Sentinel’s first-ever “Flip the Script: Election Connection” event brought residents together to ask questions, hear from candidates and engage on important topics outside a traditional campaign format.

Critical information during natural disasters

As in most years, Mat-Su communities were tested by swift and severe natural forces. In 2025, that included river flooding in Butte and Talkeetna and the recent windstorms still fresh in our minds. The Sentinel is proud to provide critical life and safety information, even as we live through it, too.

Back-to-back storms batter communities and infrastructure.

Much of the borough is still feeling the effects of recent high-wind events, during which gusts caused widespread damage and knocked out power for thousands. A borough and state disaster declaration unlocked recovery funds for the hardest-hit residents. The Sentinel covered the story even as wind toppled trees outside Sentinel HQ and left us without power, too. When disaster strikes, we’re all in this together.

River breaches prompt emergency response and long-term planning in Butte.

The Matanuska River repeatedly breached its banks near Butte, washing over private property and threatening infrastructure. As floodwaters receded, state officials unveiled plans for a major erosion-control project along critical sections of the river corridor near Butte and Sutton, with the goal of protecting highways and private property from future flood damage.

Talkeetna River damage leads to disaster declaration

In midseason flooding, the Susitna River aggressively undermined riverbanks while rising creeks washed out segments of Petersville Road, prompting the Mat-Su Borough to declare a local disaster to unlock emergency funds and resources.

Mat-Su Sentinel is powered by you

Mat-Su Sentinel was founded to fill a community need for free, trustworthy, consistent, clear and accurate local news and civic connection. While the Sentinel does benefit from some national foundation support, the vast majority of our funding comes from readers just like you and the businesses and local foundations and organizations you support. None of this would be possible without you. Want to be a part of what keeps the Sentinel going? Support this work now.

Ketchikan’s mobile integrated healthcare program provides free, on-the-go healthcare. Since it began in June of last year, the program has provided care for over one thousand people. 

The National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health awarded one of the paramedics on that team the “Community Star” award — a recognition for individuals providing healthcare in rural places. KRBD spoke with community paramedic Ben Watson about the award and the work it’s taken him to get here.

Note: This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

Sydney Dauphinais: Ben, thanks for coming in. Can you just tell me a little bit about what this award is for?

Ben Watson: Thanks for having me. The [Community Star] award is an annual award that [The National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health] gives out, essentially highlighting individuals and communities across the country. Every state has someone who wins, and it’s highlighting someone whose efforts have been trying to target underserved patient populations in rural environments. Accessing health care in these rural places can sometimes be a challenge. And when you introduce other factors, such as people with cognitive impairments, people who are in underserved patient populations, minorities, even seasonal workers, this adds another layer of complexity to that. So they like to highlight people’s efforts to try to help those individuals.

Dauphinais: So tell me about what you do.

Watson: It’s different every day, which is part of the reason I like it so much. You never really know what you’re going to get yourself into. A lot of what we do I wouldn’t even consider health care. As a paramedic, you think you’re going to be doing a lot of crazy stuff every day. A lot of it is just people skills, talking to people, comforting people, simple things like that. And a lot of what we do ends up being case management. We have a lot of individuals who struggle to navigate the healthcare system. It’s a difficult system to navigate, and there’s complexities to it that people don’t understand. And what we do is we help educate people as to why things are the way they are, how they can better access health care, how they can better talk to their providers to get the answers and the results they want. 

We also really, really pride ourselves on effective communication with other community partners and agencies here in town, so we kind of act as a gap fill service. We go to the hospital or KIC or SAIL (Southeast Alaska Independent Living), or any number of organizations that we partner and work with, and we sit down with our patients and really hash out what it is that needs to be accomplished. And then we can go to those organizations and relay that information. That way, it’s just easier for everyone. It’s coming from one place. It’s succinct, it’s highlighting exactly what needs to be done, and it’s just more effective that way.

Dauphinais: That sounds really important. Can you tell me a little bit about the mobile aspect of your work? 

Watson: So we work out of the fire department downtown, but we also operate out of a mobile clinic — a van, if you will. It’s a Ford Transit that’s been retrofitted, and it’s got EMT equipment. We’ve got our cardiac monitor. We’ve got medications and all types of things in there that we use to do assessments. We do a lot of wound care, and we can take this van anywhere. It’s really helpful for those people who are unhoused and don’t really have a place to go, people with no insurance, or who can’t get into primary care. We can just get them into our van and kind of do an assessment and see what their needs are. 

Dauphinais: If someone wants to access this care from the Mobile Integrated Healthcare Program, what kinds of situations would you say are best for that?

Watson: We try to focus on people with barriers in the way, right? You know, I wouldn’t consider myself someone who I would target for the program. I can talk to my doctor, I can book appointments, I have insurance. I have a good understanding of the healthcare system. There’s not a lot of barriers I have to access healthcare. So when we get referrals to patients like that, typically it’s for things like post-operative procedures, where they may need help understanding how to do proper wound care. Maybe they need help getting and learning about the medications and side effects to look out for that type of thing, but what we really like to focus on are the people who just really struggle to navigate that healthcare system. And so if those people want to get into contact with us, there’s a lot of easy ways. As long as we have the capacity to do it, we’re happy to help.

Dauphinais: So if someone is unhoused, for example, are you doing this care out of your van? Tell me about what this looks like.

Watson: We drive around and if we see people, one of the best things that’s come of this program so far, in my opinion, has been the trust we’ve been able to build with that patient population. They know us. They trust us. They come up to us if they have needs. We’ll drive around, and if we see something we’re a little concerned about, we’ll pull over, stop, ask if they need help with something, and we can address it there.

The post Nationally recognized Ketchikan paramedic talks rural, on-the-go healthcare appeared first on KRBD.

Haines’ mayor would like the borough’s Tlingit Park to be owned by the Tlingits.

In November’s Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee, the Mayor Tom Morphet made the case for granting the land, part of which is a Tlingit cemetery, to a local tribe, the Chilkoot Indian Association. The plan was met with mixed reactions.

The mayor first brought up the concept this spring and says he has had conversations with the Chilkoot Indian Association’s tribal administrator.

“I’ve been having informal discussions with Harriet Brouillette … and I posted back in March on my site,” he said. “And I also posted on Facebook, and I just figured the public wasn’t interested because I never heard anything bad. But there was quite a bit on Facebook this week, or the past few weeks, and a lot of people have questions.”

Morphet stressed that the idea is conceptual, and would need to be approved by the Tribe and the Haines Borough Assembly.

“The idea that we’ve refined, as much as it’s been refined, is to transfer the park property, the grassy part to the Tribe,” he said. “… this would require a new property line to be drawn. But the borough, at this time, would retain ownership of the … senior center and the playground of our dreams next to it. So this would be just the tribal house pavilion, the Native grave sites and the picnic tables restroom that would become owned by the CIA.”

The land would come with a caveat, according to Morphet’s plan. The trail through the park would remain open to public use.

Morphet said there are two reasons to change ownership of the land. The first is that he believes the land should already be Native-owned. He said it was originally granted to the Presbyterian Church to be used as a mission school. Federal law says that property used for indigenous mission schools should revert to Tribes.

On his mayor’s web page, Morphet wrote the following:

“The park, a Tlingit graveyard, should have gone back to the Tlingits 40 years ago when the Presbyterian Church was deeding the last of its vacant mission properties back to the Tribe. But by then the City of Haines had scooped up the parcel for a downtown park.”

Morphet said another reason is cost. The borough has less money and more responsibilities than ever.

“The borough has a million-dollar deficit,” he said. “Also, we’ve just accepted a new park, park land from Margaret Piggott, that will cost money to maintain over time, or develop or do whatever we’re going to do.”

Former Mayor Jan Hill listened to the presentation and expressed concern. She worried that changing owners could cause unintentional harm.

“I understand the warm and fuzzy feeling that some people get from this,” she said. “But it just feels like this is a way to slough off borough responsibility and liability onto an organization that’s totally grant driven — and that doesn’t feel warm and fuzzy to me. It could put this organization in a really tough financial spot.”

Georgiana Hotch is a Chilkoot Indian Association council member. She spoke at the meeting in favor of more discussion.

“… this is a really great gesture,” she said. “Because we do have, we do have a cemetery. You can look at that as sacred, like sacred sites to our people. It’s community-oriented, which is good for the entire city. And we appreciate being able to put it on the table and talk about it.”

Members of the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee agreed that more information is needed. Their next meeting is Jan. 14.

You can contact this reporter at melinda@khns.org.

Thousands of Alaskans who rely on the federal marketplace for health insurance are experiencing sticker shock as they apply for coverage for the coming year. That’s because key health care subsidies that have helped millions of Americans afford their insurance are set to expire.

As Congress continues debating whether or not to extend the tax credits, some Juneau residents are growing increasingly worried about how sharp premium hikes will hit their wallets, and their access to life-saving health care.

David Elrod books performers for the Crystal Saloon in Downtown Juneau. He’s worked in bars for nearly 20 years, and he’s never had a bar job that offered health insurance. Right now, he pays about $60 a month for a basic plan through the Affordable Care Act marketplace.

When he went to apply for his 2026 plan, he got quite a shock. The number on the screen said $1,030 a month. 

“It was pretty scary to see,” Elrod said. “And that’s not even including dental, which I’m obviously going to skip this year.” 

He said the plan still had a $2,500 deductible — the amount he would have to pay each year before insurance kicks in.

“This is not like a Cadillac health insurance plan,” he said. 

He isn’t the only one seeing a massive jump in their premium payments. Federal subsidies that keep plans in the health care marketplace affordable are set to expire if Congress doesn’t act to extend them by the end of the year. In fact, the question of whether or not to extend the subsidies was the fundamental debate behind the recent, record-breaking government shutdown. 

The state estimates that 27,000 Alaskans buy insurance through the Affordable Care Act. KFF Health News reports that nationwide, enrollees who benefit from federal subsidies will see monthly payments increase on average by 114% if federal subsidies disappear. But Alaskans could see much higher jumps. 

The Alaska Beacon reported earlier this fall that the average monthly insurance payment for Juneau residents using federal insurance will rise from $124 to more than $1000 if the subsidies expire – likely causing some to opt out of insurance

For Elrod though, going without insurance isn’t a good option. 

He has a condition that requires expensive medication to prevent blood clots from forming.

“If I don’t take this medication, yeah, blood clots will come back. They will kill me,” he said. “I’m gonna try to cut back to one pill a day instead of two pills a day. You know, it’s like, those are the decisions that I’m having to make right now.”

For people in Juneau struggling to afford the health care they need, Heidi Adams says she and her team may be able to help. Adams is a care navigator with JAMHI Health & Wellness.

“Everyone’s situation is so very different, and so by coming in, we can assist them with connecting,” she said. “But also if we can’t meet those needs, who might be able to in a way that’s affordable or easily accessible.” 

JAMHI is a health nonprofit in Juneau. It provides primary care services and behavioral health treatment, regardless of insurance. With Alaska having some of the highest health care costs in the nation, care is often already out of reach for many Juneau residents. 

Now, with subsidies potentially ending and upcoming restrictions to Medicaid, Adams said she thinks the nonprofit will see an increase in people seeking medical care.

“We can assume we’re going to see a much larger population coming in because they can’t afford it any other way,” she said.

Randy Garcia also works at JAMHI. He assists in the intake process and supports medical providers.

He said JAMHI is a safety net for moments like this, when nothing else feels like an option. 

“It’s a scary moment, especially when things that are expected are being taken away or stopped, and you don’t know where to turn,” he said. “Well, you can always turn to JAMHI.” 

Open enrollment on the federal marketplace lasts until Jan. 15. For coverage that begins with the new year, the deadline is even sooner – on Dec. 15. 

In the meantime, Elrod said he’s waiting as long as he can to finish his application, in the hopes that something changes. 

Correction: This story has been updated to correct that the Beacon reported that federal insurance will rise from $124 to more than $1000 if the subsidies expire.

What you need to know:

• The Mat-Su Central Landfill near Palmer has installed a state-of-the-art system that filters and vaporizes murky runoff known as leachate, eliminating the need to truck it to Anchorage for treatment and discharge into Cook Inlet. 
• The system captures pollutants, including PFAS and zinc, and is powered by methane from the landfill. It is expected to save the borough about $270,000 annually. 
• Since late October, the evaporator has processed 600,000 gallons of runoff. Anchorage plans to install a larger version at its landfill next year to treat 40 million gallons of annual leachate.

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PALMER — A large vapor plume now periodically visible over the Mat-Su Central Landfill near Palmer is caused by a new, state-of-the-art evaporator system that scrubs and pumps decomposing trash water into the air instead of leaving it to be trucked to Anchorage for treatment and release into Cook Inlet, borough officials said this week.

The vapor will be released from the top of the new evaporator system for up to several hours on weekdays on about 200 days a year, depending on how much runoff needs to be processed, Matanuska-Susitna Central Landfill Manager Jeff Smith said during a tour of the facility Wednesday.

Residents near the landfill may notice the plume shooting about 20 feet into the air, he said. It is particularly visible on cold days because it is so much warmer than the air it is entering, Smith said.

The vapor carries no measurable air pollution because of the way the runoff is processed by the machine, Smith told the Mat-Su Assembly during a regular meeting Tuseday. While it does carry a slight odor, any especially trashy smells residents notice from the landfill are most likely due to unrelated gas from decomposing solid waste and the liquid awaiting processing in the evaporator, landfill officials said during the event Wednesday.

The evaporator is the first of its kind in the region, Smith said. It is powered by methane produced by the landfill instead of natural gas, he said. 

The system represents a significant shift in the environmental impact of the landfill because it puts a stop to hauling the liquid 40 miles down the highway to the Anchorage Regional Landfill in Eagle River for processing and ends the practice of dumping it into the inlet, he said.

“In Anchorage, they pull out the solids, and then the liquid goes out into the Cook Inlet. That’s what goes into our fish and we eat it. It’s treated, but you can’t really take everything out of it — it’s still not good stuff,” he said. “There’s zinc and there’s other particulates in there.” 

Known as leachate, the black trash soup is created by the landfill’s household waste cells as refuse breaks down and combines with rain and snow. About 5 million gallons of leachate is pumped annually from the bottom of the cells and into a series of collection ponds on the landfill property, Smith said.

Until late October, that pooled liquid was moved into trucks, hauled to Eagle River, processed by Anchorage officials and then released into the inlet as treated effluent, Smith said. That system cost the borough about twice as much per gallon of leachate and required complicated permitting and environmental monitoring, he said.

The new $6 million evaporator captures and removes a wide variety of pollutants, including a group of chemicals known as PFAS, Smith said.

Those chemicals and other toxins, including zinc, are not removed to the same extent when the runoff is treated and released into the inlet, he said, but can be successfully captured before it is released as hot vapor. 

The evaporator pumps the sludgy, toxin-laden leftovers into a containment tub, and it is ultimately dumped back into the landfill’s trash cells, where it eventually integrates into the new leachate headed back into the processing system, he said.

After operations and related staffing costs, use of the machine is expected to save the borough $270,000 a year, he said. 

Over the last month, the machine has processed 600,000 gallons of leachate that would have otherwise been shipped to Anchorage over about 100 individual trips, Smith said. 

Anchorage officials said they plan to install a larger version of the system at their facility next year, Ian Goodwin, an operations superintendent for Anchorage Solid Waste Services, said during the Mat-Su facility tour.  

Anchorage currently treats 40 million gallons of leachate created by its municipal waste each year before funneling it into the inlet, he said.

The new treatment facility does not process all of the borough’s liquid waste. Millions of gallons of sewage are pumped from Mat-Su septic tanks and trucked into Anchorage for treatment, filtration and disposal into the inlet each year. A sewage plant for the landfill was last discussed in 2015 but was put on hold.

— Contact Amy Bushatz at contact@matsusentinel.com

Alaska might soon regulate its own hazardous waste if the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency authorizes the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation’s new hazardous waste program.

Alaska is one of only two U.S. states without an authorized program, the other being Iowa. That means the EPA regulates the generation, storage and disposal of the state’s hazardous waste. 

Lori Aldrich, the manager of the state’s new hazardous waste program, said the team consists of six DEC employees, including her, who have been training to take on the responsibility for the past three years. If the program gets federal approval, she said the team will take the lead on permitting, inspections and clean-ups instead of the EPA. 

“Honestly, for Alaska, it doesn’t mean that much change, except that you’re going to have somebody at ADEC here to call,” Aldrich said.

The state Legislature adopted new hazardous waste regulations in 2023 that went into effect this summer. For the most part, the state’s rules now mirror the federal rules under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.

According to the most recent EPA data, 2,729 tons of hazardous waste were generated in Alaska in 2023. The three largest producers were the Petro Star Valdez Refinery, Eielson Air Force Base — a Superfund site in Fairbanks — and a company that handles hazardous waste and spills. Together, they were responsible for 57% of the hazardous waste generated in Alaska that year.

Aldrich said Alaska’s generation rate is quite low compared to most other states, and one reason is that petroleum, on its own, is not categorized as hazardous waste. 

She said businesses commonly toss things like cleaning solvents, paint and oil contaminated with other chemicals, which are hazardous wastes. Some things are hazardous due to their toxicity, while others are hazardous because of how they react. 

For instance, “cylinder gas is a hazardous waste if you’re throwing it away, because it could blow up,” Aldrich said.

She said that if the program gets approved, her team will start with a lot of outreach to educate Alaskans about what counts as hazardous waste. 

“Getting people to manage it properly and to make sure that it’s not impacting health or environment here in Alaska is what’s the most important part of our job,” she said.

Aldrich said that almost all of the hazardous waste in Alaska is shipped to disposal facilities in the Lower 48, and that her team would only be in charge of the waste when it’s within state boundaries. 

The public comment period on the state’s application to the EPA is open until December 8.

What you need to know:

• The Palmer City Council approved a measure banning camping or sleeping on public property. Violators may be connected with resources and could face fines of up to $300, according to the ordinance.
• A separate proposal banning sleeping in areas that block access to public spaces, such as private driveways and sidewalks, was delayed for legal review.
• The measures drew divided public feedback, with some residents and council members saying the ban supports public safety and order, while others argued it lacks compassion. 

• Short on time but need the local news scoop? Get free weekly news in your inbox for Mat-Su, from Mat-Su.

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PALMER — Individuals found camping or sleeping on public property in Palmer may face fines under a new measure approved by the City Council during a regular meeting Tuesday.

A separate measure banning sleeping in spaces that block access to public property, such as private driveways and sidewalks, was delayed until a meeting scheduled for late next month.

The council voted 4-1 to approve the public property camping ban, with Council member John Alcantra voting no and Council member Amanda Graham absent. A seventh council seat is vacant.

The ban is designed to reduce the practice of homeless people sleeping on city streets but not the status of being homeless, city officials said.

Palmer police will enforce the new rule, officials said. Individuals who violate the measure may receive information about local resources and could face fines of up to $300, according to the measure.

That fine amount may be adjusted as part of the city’s new budget, which starts in January, city officials said.

There are no homeless shelters in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough. Warming stations in the region operate on a case-by-case basis, depending on the weather forecast.

Palmer police make regular contact with about 10 unhoused individuals, down from about 40 in 2022, Cmdr. Luke Szipzsky said in a statement.

The council opted to delay the related measure addressing sleeping on driveways and sidewalks and send it back to the city attorney for additional review and edits. That proposal is meant to ban individuals from blocking public spaces, but does not clearly state that the city lacks authority over private property, council members said.

The delay passed 4-1, with Council member Victoria Hudson voting no.

The measures were originally set for a vote earlier this month but were postponed to give newly elected council members time to review the issue and allow the city attorney to update some of the proposed language.

The ordinances were the subject of lengthy public comment during Tuesday’s meeting, with about two dozen individuals testifying for or against the proposals. Supporters said the ban is a necessary step that gives Palmer police a way to protect public safety, while some who testified against the measure said it unnecessarily penalizes homelessness.

Alcantra, who said he experienced homelessness as a child and lived in a tent with his mother and sisters on a property now occupied by the Palmer Courthouse, voted against the ban because “it’s the wrong execution of a right idea” of getting people off the street, he said.

“You have to bring your own compassion, your own religious beliefs, if you will. I know I’ve been counseled against that. But at some point, when the roll is called up yonder, I won’t be able to say, hey, I voted to make this a criminal activity,” he said during the meeting. “I can’t do it. I’m a ‘no’ vote.”

Hudson, who sponsored the measures in September with now-former Council member Carolina Anzeloti, said they are needed to protect public order.

“Palmer is a compassionate city, but compassion without order leads to chaos,” she said during the meeting. “It is not the local government’s job to be someone’s baby daddy. I will never make a vote to support laziness or enabling. Get a job, pay taxes.”

— Contact Amy Bushatz at contact@matsusentinel.com

This story was updated Oct. 29 to clarify the council’s objections to the wording of a measure regulating sleeping on sidewalks and driveways.

Alaska Senator Dan Sullivan visited Wrangell earlier this month to discuss the reconciliation bill known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. KSTK’s Colette Czarnecki caught up with him to ask a few questions about other state and national issues. 

Sullivan voted to cut all funding to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which helps fund public radio stations in Alaska, like KSTK. He said he supports rural radio stations in the state and is looking for other sources of funding.

This interview has been lightly edited for clarity and brevity.

I’ve been a strong supporter of our rural radio stations. At the same time, I had been telling the leadership at the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and NPR that, ‘Hey, look, you can’t have (that) kind of bias reporting year after year.’ Which I thought was very biased when it’s funded through the American taxpayer. 

I had worked with the administration, literally everybody, from the President on down, saying, ‘Hey, Alaska has unique needs in this area.’ 

So we had been working with BIA, that’s the Department of Interior, but we had also been working with OMB, the Office of Management and Budget, through the Denali Commission, to get additional funding. So that’s ongoing, and we’re making good progress on the latest list.  Let us get back to you on the exact status, because it’s been changing daily.

So the Denali Commission is more so a long-term solution?

Yeah, there’s a lot of opportunities there. There are other longer term solutions we’ve been looking at, the foundations and everything are also stepping up. I think we’re in a good spot.

Can you say anything about how the federal shutdown affects federally managed fisheries?

Look, on the shutdown, to be honest, it’s a real disappointment.

We’ve been in discussions with OMB and others about all the important federal agencies in Alaska. You might remember the last big shutdown, we worked really hard with the federal government to explain the importance of some of the federal fisheries management issues, which, to be honest, aren’t super well understood in DC. 

There’s a North Pacific Fishery Management Council meeting, and so they can’t speak with NOAA scientists about fisheries.

We can check into that. Like I said, we’ve been very proactively working with the administration and OMB on specific federal agencies that are really important to keep going, of course, our military, Coast Guard, but there are other ones. 

What are your thoughts on sending military troops to fight crime in Chicago and Portland, where elected leaders there don’t want them?

I think it depends on what’s happening in those communities. I think if there’s violence that’s relating to federal agencies or federal buildings, federal authorities have that capability. I wish those leaders in those communities would do more to deal with their violent crime challenges. Chicago is a national disgrace. 

Most Americans would want whatever we can do to bring down crime rates. 

One of the reasons I’m in Wrangell, you might want to ask me those questions, is to explain what was in this budget reconciliation bill. 

But one of the things that we did, we put a ton of money behind securing the border. That’s law enforcement. That’s ICE. It matters hugely to Alaska. We’ve had the highest fentanyl overdose rates in the country. 

You have Mexican drug cartels that are literally poisoning our Alaska youth. And so I think when you get more resources to law enforcement to bring down crime, to bring down drug dealing, to help our communities, I think it’s important. So, I don’t have all the specifics about Chicago and Portland. I think in some ways it’s good the President’s talking about that. 

Do you see that military troops will fight the fentanyl epidemic then?

Right now, what’s happening is the President, through the funds, we got him in the budget reconciliation bill in July, but also through his own actions, has really shut down illegal immigration.

I’ve gotten briefs from Alaska law enforcement. We’ve literally had Mexican drug cartels in our states and small communities like Wrangell and other communities. And I’m for doing everything we can to crush that and you don’t have these very violent, evil criminal organizations that are bringing that poison to our people and also really engaged in human trafficking and so many other heinous crimes that hurt our state and our country.

I think we’ve made really big progress since President Trump got elected. Huge. Illegal immigration in the United States is down 99% so the border is no longer open.

My last question, some of my colleages have had trouble getting a comment from you. How can public radio reporters get an easier comment from you?

I comment all the time, I’m one of the most open.

Sometimes I do interviews like this and sometimes I do statements. You know, I’m pretty busy. But you give me the name of the reporter or the editor, and you have them call my team.

The post Q & A with Alaska Senator Dan Sullivan appeared first on KSTK.

Wrangell third graders from Evergreen Elementary gathered around two microphones in KSTK’s studio to sing Alaska Flag and the Wrangell Song to celebrate Alaska Day, which is Oct. 18. Music teacher Tasha Morse accompanied the students with her guitar. They’ve been practicing for the past two weeks, but this has been a Wrangell tradition for at least 25 years.

Wrangell’s third graders sing the Alaska Flag song and the Wrangell Song on Oct. 17, 2025. (Colette Czarnecki/KSTK)

The post Wrangell third graders continue singing the tradition for Alaska Day appeared first on KSTK.

On a dreary evening late last week, dozens of people packed into the back of the Haines Public Library. Before long, two attendees broke into a chant.

“No road! No road! No road!” they shouted.

Their words captured the tenor of the gathering, which centered around a controversial effort by the state of Alaska to study what it would take to build a road that would – at least in theory – better connect Juneau, Haines and Skagway.

The Department of Transportation and Public Facilities announced the study last spring, indicating that the plan was to assess options for the route along the west side of the Lynn Canal.

The agency organized last week’s open house-style event to provide information to the community and get feedback.

“We’re trying to show people what this project looks like, what potential benefits there are. We also want to understand everybody’s concerns,” said Greg Lockwood, DOT’s Southcoast region project manager.

Some locals have expressed support for the idea, noting that the state ferry system is unreliable and that a road could open up access for recreation and other purposes. But others are opposed, for a long list of reasons.

Attendee Shannon Donahue, who initiated the “no road” chant, is among them. In an interview, she said that as she sees it, it’s clear the state’s central goal is to “create roads to resources.”

“It’s unlikely that this whole thing is going to come to fruition,” Donahue said. “Pieces may come to fruition. Roads to logging, roads to mines, and you know, that can do a lot of damage.”

Others at the open house raised the same concern, particularly given that state officials recently unveiled plans to remove longstanding logging restrictions in the Haines State Forest and open up the entire area to logging. The potential west-side road would run through that forest and could provide better access for timber sales.

In a phone interview following the open house, DOT’s Lockwood said finding ways to partner with and benefit industry is an important part of the process. He added that the potential project “is just not purely a ferry terminal, and road to a ferry terminal.”

“If we can find added value, a freight dock, if we can find a way for mining trucks coming from the Yukon to use [a west side road] and stay out of town, or if there’s timber to be harvested, that would all be value added that would help support this roadway,” Lockwood said.

Critics of the idea have also raised concerns including the rugged terrain along the canal, which would complicate building a road and maintaining it, particularly during winter.

Other worries include implications for people traveling by ferry without a vehicle – and potential environmental impacts of the road itself.

“The Marine Highway is an excellent alternative,” said Sky Skiles, another attendee. “I think putting money into that to keep it in good shape is a better alternative than to cause so much damage to our environment.”

A new ferry terminal, route options

The idea of building a road between Juneau and Haines has been around for decades. But it’s never come to fruition, despite a smattering of earlier feasibility studies. This time around, the study will cost at least $1 million and is being carried out by DOWL LLC, a Washington-based consulting firm.

Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s administration says a road would create more cost-effective and efficient transportation for the region. That idea is that the road in Haines would reduce the length of ferry service between the two locations.

The contractor is studying two main route possibilities, which were illustrated in detail on maps set up during the event last week. Both rely on a yet-to-be-built ferry terminal at Cascade Point, about 30 miles north of Juneau.

The state signed an initial contract for that project this summer, a move that sparked criticism in the upper Lynn Canal but was welcomed by a mining company planning an ore shipping facility in the same location.

Under the first route option, travelers starting in Juneau would need first to travel from town to Cascade Point. From there, they would take a ferry across the canal to William Henry Bay, at which point they would drive north until they hit a bridge back into Haines.

In the second option, travelers would still need to get to Cascade Point and board a ferry. But the ferry would take them further north to Pyramid Harbor, near Haines. From there, they’d drive a much shorter distance to a bridge and then cross back into Haines.

Notably, neither option, as illustrated on maps, indicates how people would get to Skagway.

Lockwood, of DOT, emphasized that it’s still early days, and the agency is still purely gathering information.

“People need to understand this, this isn’t a done deal.” he said. “We haven’t made any decisions.”

The agency plans to have a draft report in December and a final version in January, which will be used to inform next steps. The public can ask for more information and provide feedback by emailing ChilkatConnector@dowl.com.