Wesley Early, Alaska Public Media - Anchorage
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.
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.
State says Anchorage faces more than $600K in fines for safety violations. City officials say they’ve been addressed.
Safety concerns went back to the administrations of Mayors Ethan Berkowitz and Dan Sullivan and ranged from a lack of guardrails in some facilities and workers being exposed to electrical hazards to workplace injuries not being reported on time.
Mat-Su school bus drivers reach tentative contract agreement, potentially ending month-long strike
Teamsters Local 959 officials announced Thursday night that they’d reached a tentative agreement with Durham School Services.
Anchorage Assembly member wants to ban the city from using of facial recognition technology
“Oftentimes, facial recognition algorithms and the databases they use end up having inaccuracies," said Assembly member Joey Sweet.
Bronson aims to pay contractor millions for work on nixed homeless shelter, without Assembly approval
In a response letter, Assembly leaders wrote that “making the proposed payment without additional Assembly action would be illegal.”
Anchorage Assembly considers adding paid parental leave for city workers after mayor revoked policy
It’s the second time in less than two years that Assembly member Austin Quinn-Davidson has attempted to secure paid parental leave for city workers.
Fur Rondy’s sled dog sprint races draw a large crowd to downtown Anchorage
The three-day sprint mushing event brought veterans and rookies alike, all competing for the glory and prize money in front of a packed crowd.
Anchorage School Board passes a budget that largely relies on savings and one-time funds
The roughly $900 million budget is about 6% larger than this year’s.
Anchorage mayor sued in federal court for firing investigator looking into deputy library director complaints
Heather MacAlpine served as the director of Anchorage’s Office of Equal Opportunity from 2015 until 2022, when she was abruptly fired.
Juneteenth and Indigenous Peoples Day are now Anchorage municipal holidays
The Anchorage Assembly on Tuesday unanimously agreed to add the two holidays.
Anchorage Assembly directs city to create online checkbook to increase transparency
The move comes amid concerns from Assembly members about the amount of time it’s taken them to get financial information through records requests to the Bronson administration.
As Anchorage School Board prepares to approve budget, lawmakers consider increasing state education funding
While the Anchorage School Board follows its timeline for approving its budget — big uncertainty still looms.
Anchorage police say 8-month-old baby found safe; father arrested on murder charges
State emergency officials had issued an AMBER alert for Ahmiri Chaney on Friday afternoon.
Mat-Su parents say ongoing bus driver strike has led to lost income and carpool complications
"My wife had to resign from her job," Kent Schiebl told the Matanuska-Susitna Borough School Board.
Anchorage Assembly chair subpoenas mayor for documents tied to former health director
In a statement, the mayor said he would not provide the documents to the Assembly, citing privacy protections of personnel issues.
Anchorage has seen almost double its usual snowfall since December
The weekend storm prompted the Anchorage School District to declare a remote learning day Monday.
Anchorage Mayor Bronson names Anne Helzer as his third municipal attorney
She takes over as the city’s head lawyer at a time of upheaval. The mayor is facing allegations of numerous improper, unethical and unlawful actions.
Mat-Su school bus drivers’ strike continues as contract negotiations escalate
The union representing the drivers is accusing the company that employs them of canceling negotiation meetings and refusing to address safety concerns.
As state grapples with food stamp backlog, an Anchorage middle school steps up to feed families
When principal Marcus Wilson found out about one student’s family struggling to get food, he sent out a message to all families to see if it was a bigger issue. And it was.