Alaska News Nightly: May 19, 2009

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Skwentna Man Facing Charges for Feeding Bears
Dave Donaldson, APRN – Juneau
A Skwentna man who has gotten international attention for feeding bears outside his cabin faces twenty counts of criminal misdemeanor charges for his activities.

Target Range Draws Fans and Foes
Ellen Lockyer, APRN – Anchorage
Bodenberg Butte, just Southwest of Palmer, is a rural community edging the Knik River. The area is popular with local folks for
its fishing, canoeing and hiking opportunities.. and, for some less -than- quiet recreational fun.. like target practice.

Conditions are Ripe for Wildfires
Dan Bross, KUAC – Fairbanks
Wild fire conditions are ripe across much of Alaska right now, as warm dry weather evaporates moisture released from snow and
ice melt.

Homer Pulled Together While Fighting Wildfire
Casey Kelly, KBBI – Homer
One of the big stories of last week’s East End Road wildfire in Homer was how well the local community pulled together to
support the firefighting forces.

Organizers Narrowing Requests for Flood Victims
Dan Bross, KUAC Fairbanks
An organization managing flood relief is narrowing its request for help. Arlen DeYoung with the Alaska Volunteer Organizations
Active in Disaster or VO-AD, which includes the Red Cross and many other groups, says they’re trying to organize donations so that residents of flood damaged villages get what they need.

Some Southeast Communities Might Get Own Village Corporation
Ed Schoenfeld, CoastAlaska – Juneau
Alaska Natives with roots in five Southeast communities would get their own village corporations under new federal legislation.
Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski introduced the landless Native bill as part of a package aimed at improving the region’s economy.

Sitka Senator Says Legislature Wouldn’t Overturn a Veto on Stimulus Funds
Ed Schoenfeld, CoastAlaska – Juneau
Sitka Senator Bert Stedman says the legislature will not overturn Governor Sarah Palin’s decision to reject stimulus money tied to
energy standards. But he says she should accept the funds. And he says concerns about “strings attached” were overblown.

New State Building to Take Name of Statehood Pioneer
Rosemarie Alexander, KTOO – Juneau
Alaska statehood pioneer Tom Stewart is now remembered in law as the namesake for a new legislative building.

Little Norway Draws Large Crowds
Alex Hotz, KFSK – Petersburg
Petersburg streets were packed with locals and visitors over the weekend during the 51st annual Little Norway Festival. The celebration
of Norwegian culture included four days of food, music, art and more.

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