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.
Man charged with selling bootleg alcohol to Anchorage homeless residents
Investigators say Brandon Reed sold thousands of dollars' worth of vodka to people at the Sullivan Arena and other places frequented by the homeless.
Anchorage police department and union reach agreement on body-worn camera policy, 2 years after approved by voters
Even with the agreement, the timeline for when the cameras will actually be on officers is still unknown.
Anchorage Assembly rejects $550K Demboski legal settlement, opts to pay out MacAlpine
Both Amy Demboski and Heather MacAlpine allege they were illegally fired by Mayor Dave Bronson's administration.
Anchorage families struggle with sparse and expensive child care options
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0KNdZwsGgA
Judy Eledge resigns as Anchorage’s deputy library director
Mayor Dave Bronson announced Tuesday that he had accepted Eledge's resignation, hours before Assembly members were set to vote on a resolution calling on her to step down.
Former Anchorage Assembly chair Suzanne LaFrance to run for mayor next year
LaFrance is registered nonpartisan, and represented South Anchorage on the Assembly from 2017 to 2023, serving as chair for two years.
High prices and lengthy waitlists: How Alaska’s child care crisis is impacting Anchorage families
The lack of available and affordable child care means some people are quitting their jobs, considering moving out of state or putting a big chunk of their income toward daycare.
Anchorage mayor names Tyler Anderson as new HR director
Tyler Anderson takes over from Raylene Griffith, who was acting HR manager after Niki Tshibaka's sudden resignation.
Policy finalized to put body cameras on Alaska State Troopers
Thirty officers already have the cameras, and the goal is for all troopers to be equipped with them by the end of the year.
Alaska has a child care crisis. We want to hear from you.
Help inform our coverage of Alaska’s child care shortage by sharing your story about finding care in the state.
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.
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.
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 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.
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.