Gov. Sean Parnell said Tuesday he wants the Legislature to once again suspend the state’s gasoline tax, already the lowest in the nation.

A city-wide power outage Wednesday afternoon was caused by a tree falling into one of two large power lines near Thane, said Gayle Wood, spokeswoman for Alaska Electric Light & Power.

Power was out for an hour and ten minutes, but was restored shortly before 4 p.m., she said.

Alaska Electric Light & Power officials said Wednesday afternoon that the area-wide power outage was due to a problem with transmission lines between Thane and Salmon Creek.

An Anchorage-based economist predicts a weak, uneven recovery for Alaska in 2010.

Former state House Speaker Pete Kott has submitted a new court filing in his effort to have his conviction on corruption charges thrown out.

Gov. Sean Parnell wants to renew a mortgage loan program for veterans, a plan that will require voters to authorize up to $800 million in state-guaranteed bonds.

I am writing to address concerns about a juvenile detention facility in Anchorage. My now-21-year-old son spent some time there. He told me that when the resident youths tried to address grievances, the paperwork would just disappear. It seemed that just because they were locked up, the staff felt all they wanted was attention. I’ve heard similar complaints about adult correctional centers as well.

I am writing to address concerns about a juvenile detention facility in Anchorage. My now-21-year-old son spent some time there. He told me that when the resident youths tried to address grievances, the paperwork would just disappear. It seemed that just because they were locked up, the staff felt all they wanted was attention. I’ve heard similar complaints about adult correctional centers as well.

It broke my heart to read the story in Monday’s Empire about the break-in at Art Sutch’s photography and digital imaging business on Seward Street. Why in the world is this kind of criminal activity taking place on an historical street, in an historical building in our state capital? Someone (and it’s not the owner) is not paying attention.

It broke my heart to read the story in Monday’s Empire about the break-in at Art Sutch’s photography and digital imaging business on Seward Street. Why in the world is this kind of criminal activity taking place on an historical street, in an historical building in our state capital? Someone (and it’s not the owner) is not paying attention.