Wesley Early, Alaska Public Media - Anchorage

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Wesley Early covers Anchorage life and city politics for Alaska Public Media. Reach him at wearly@alaskapublic.org and follow him on X at @wesley_early. Read more about Wesley here.

City of Anchorage sets aside more than $800K to pay legal settlements

Mayor Dave Bronson has been accused of wrongful termination by two former employees, and the city faces a lawsuit over work done on a canceled homeless shelter project.

After 5 years of mail-in ballots, Anchorage election officials say voter turnout has gone up

About 28% of registered Anchorage voters cast a ballot in the spring election. It’s the lowest voter turnout since the city moved to by-mail voting. But election officials say it’s still higher than in years before the change.

Anchorage’s former Golden Lion Hotel to open as low-income housing next month

Anchorage Homelessness Coordinator Alexis Johnson says the city plans to begin transitioning people into the Golden Lion as the Sullivan Arena mass shelter starts shutting down.

Anchorage police say they’re moving forward with body cameras, but there’s no specific timeline

“We always thought that the policy and the implementation had to be concurrent,” said APD chief Michael Kerle.
From across the street is the Anchorage Police Department, where an American and Alaskan Flag sit in front of a parking lot full of police cars.

City of Anchorage sued for not having body-worn cameras on police officers

Voters approved the cameras more than two years ago. In a lawsuit filed Wednesday, Alaska Black Caucus attorneys argue that the city and the police department are “thwarting the process by proffering one excuse after another, with no end in sight.”

Anchorage Assembly heavily limits city use of facial recognition technology

The ordinance doesn’t ban the use of facial recognition technology indefinitely, however, if the city opts to purchase and use the technology, the Assembly must approve it, and there must be a public hearing.
A man in a blue jacket waves to traffic while holding a political sign.

The 5 candidates poised to join the Anchorage Assembly say they want to turn down partisanship

The Assembly is set to keep its mostly progressive supermajority, maintaining its power to override conservative Mayor Bronson’s vetoes.

Kent Kohlhase named permanent Anchorage municipal manager

Kohlhase has been acting municipal manager since December, when Mayor Bronson abruptly fired Amy Demboski.
A group of people wave political signs on the sidewalk of a bust street.

A week after Anchorage election, most left-of-center Assembly candidates maintain their leads

City officials have counted about 54,000 of the 66,000 ballots they’ve received so far.
A man and a woman shoveling snow in front of their apartment building.

Anchorage sets new record for amount of snow on the ground in April

There's 31 inches of snow stacked up in West Anchorage, with more in other parts of town.
a man in a suit and tie

Gov. Dunleavy creates task force to address Alaska’s child care crisis

“It’s a real issue that needs to be looked at and scrutinized so that we can come up with some models that can help our folks, our families, our mothers,” said the governor.
Parking lot full of parked police cars.

Anchorage’s police body camera policy is again delayed, frustrating Assembly and community members

Anchorage Assembly members say they may need to take a more hands-on approach to get the body-worn cameras implemented.

Trombley out as Anchorage Mayor Bronson’s chief of staff

Bronson named Mario Bird as acting chief of staff, effective Wednesday. Bird is a lawyer who had previously been rejected to be the city’s municipal attorney.
A schools office space with a damaged roof and ceiling

Initial results show Anchorage voters approving school bond and using marijuana taxes to fund child care

Almost all other ballot propositions were passing. But, there are still thousands of ballots to count in Anchorage’s by-mail city election.
Large white boxes that read "Vote by Mail Ballot Drop Box" sit in a warehouse.

Anchorage voters to decide on using marijuana taxes to fund early education, child care programs

Proposition 14 would specifically allocate Anchorage marijuana tax revenue to child care and early education initiatives.

As coastal erosion pulls rural Alaska communities into the sea, new research seeks solutions

For years, coastal Alaska communities have contended with erosion. A growing field of research explores ways to address the problem.

How an Alaska oil and gas expert thinks the state could make money by not drilling in ANWR

Larry Persily wants the state to consider selling carbon credits for keeping the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge's oil and gas in the ground.
A man in a suit and glasses speaks behind a podium.

In effort to rein in Bronson spending, Anchorage Assembly makes changes to contracting code

The move comes after the mayor's administration was accused of approving major contracts and work without Assembly approval.

Anchorage Assembly approves parental leave policy for non-union employees

The policy would allow employees to receive four weeks of paid leave after the birth of a child, or an adoption or foster care placement.

Report finds that Dunleavy administration quietly removed policy protecting LGBTQ Alaskans from discrimination

Anchorage Daily News reporter Kyle Hopkins discusses his findings with Alaska Public Media’s Wesley Early.