Whittier community’s Oceanfront faces growth

Most of Whittier's 277 residents live in the Begich Towers seen in the background. A fixture on the community's oceanfront, the coffeehouse is in danger of losing a coveted city lease during a moment when the tiny coastal town is undergoing profound change. Read the entire story below: (Photo by Soren Wuerth)

DONATE NOW

The Turnagain News is preparing for kicking off our NewsMatch campaign Nov. 1 enabling us to tell your stories and report the news into 2027. We make our news available for free to our local community—no annoying pay walls! You can even signup for the edition to be sent directly to your email at the NewsBlast tab above or below the Community Event Calendar. If you are able to contribute, click the button above. Alternatively, you can send a check to Turnagain News Inc. at P.O. Box 38, Girdwood, AK 99587.

SPONSORED ADVERTISEMENT

LATEST ARTICLES

ARTICLES
Whittier Weighs Future of Waterfront Leases Amid Growth  
Whittier Weighs Future of Waterfront Leases Amid Growth  

Prominent Business Could Face Competitive Bidding for City-Owned Land

By Soren Wuerth

TNews Editor

Kelly Bender sat on a table outside her cafe, the Frisky Mermaid, on an overcast day last month and worried about the future of her business. 

Finley, her German shepherd, chased a ball on the deck while patrons ducked inside the narrow shop for coffee, pastries or the cafe's signature homemade fudge. A few travelers nestled in chairs at the back of the shop gazing out at Whittier's boat harbor below. 

A fixture on the community's oceanfront, the coffeehouse is in danger of losing a coveted city lease during a moment when the tiny coastal town is undergoing profound change.

A new port that opened last year at the head of Passage Canal has more than doubled the number of cruise ships and Whittier's harbor has seen a 50 percent increase in boats moored temporarily at its docks.

In March, when Bender sought to expand her business to include an Avis car rental, she learned her lease was expiring. Phillips Alaska Cruises, which leases the adjacent lot, also held an expiring lease, she said.

The city then granted the businesses a six-month extension to renew their application. They were also required to follow a competitive bidding process enacted through a City Council ordinance in 2023. 

To avoid competitive bidding, however, a leaseholder must have begun a process a year ago.

She said though she's had "an impeccable record" of making payments on time, she fears the oversight could cost her Frisky Mermaid and Avis.

"We're not asking for any special favors," Bender said. "We never have, never will. But one mistake should not destroy your livelihood." 

Earlier this month, a measure that attempted to provide relief for her businesses and others failed on a 3-3 vote.

"Every time I feel pretty confident about something, it goes the other way," Bender said after the vote.

Bender and her husband, Mike, owned Lazy Otter Charters next door for 31 years before selling the business in January. They moved Whittier Fudge into the cafe this summer. Bender said her leases are the only ones on the harbor that haven't changed hands.

Bender, who's been president of the local 40-member Whittier Chamber of Commerce for two decades, is concerned her businesses will face competition when their 30-year-old leases expire Sept. 1.

Read more →
ARTICLES
FVCS led the state with Alaska’s first and only snow classic
FVCS led the state with Alaska’s first and only snow classic

By Chase Berenson

TNews Staffwriter

One of Girdwood’s beloved winter traditions is the Mount Alyeska Snow Classic, hosted by Four Valleys Community School (FVCS).  Almost everyone in Girdwood knows that the premise of a snow classic is to purchase a ticket, guess how much snow will have fallen by a certain date, and then win half the pot of money if the guess is right.  But outside of Girdwood, snow classics are unknown to many Alaskans.  When Alaska legalized snow classic betting in 2012, they only legalized one snow classic in the entire state.  Alaska Statute (AS) 05.15.690(47) reads: “‘snow classic’ means a game of chance in which a prize of money is awarded to the closest guess of the total snow accumulation on the ground at a specific location on Mount Alyeska on a specific date and time and is limited to the Alyeska Snow Classic operated and administered by Four Valleys Community School, Inc.”

Read the entire story at the link below:

https://www.turnagainnews.org/articles/fvcs-led-the-state-with-alaskas-first-and-only-snow-classic

Read more →
Walk and Talk Series Ends with Lichens
Walk and Talk Series Ends with Lichens

By Andrew Gates

TNews Contributor

In late July, Four Valleys’ “Walk and Talk” series held its final session—a lichen nature walk, headed by Howard Earl. It started at the Winner Creek Trailhead at Alyeska around eight, and there were around 20 people there. 

You could immediately tell Howard was incredibly passionate about the topic, at the very start explaining how lichens were a hybrid of fungi and algae growing in a symbiotic relationship. People started walking, but a few minutes in, he stopped the group to give a lecture on the different types of lichen, giving “Fairy Barf” as an example of crustose lichen, a variety found growing on rocks, flush to the surface. 

The group then stopped on a boardwalk where he took time to explain lichen age. 

“There are lichens that are 50, even 100 years old,” he said, before pointing out a rock with a lichen that had been there since the 1970s, to nearly everyone’s fascination. 

He then explained that some of the oldest living lichens were over five thousand years old. Subsequently, he passed around samples of a common type of lichen so the group could observe how it attached to the bark. 

On the third stop, he took some time to discuss the spread of lichen, explaining how lichen covered 7-8% of the entire surface area of land on Earth.

There were a couple more stops where the group was able to observe some other lichens and how they were almost everywhere as a by-product of almost always being one of the first species to enter an ecosystem (a pioneer species). 

By the time the group made it over to the 5k trailhead, it was clear everyone was captivated. Finally stopping at the end, there was one final thing he showed the group, and it was incredibly impressive. He had compiled dozens of samples of lichen, all labeled and framed in a three-panel display. 

Read the entire story at the link below:

https://www.turnagainnews.org/articles/walk-and-talk-series-ends-with-lichens

Read more →
New Childcare Center Opens Doors to Community
New Childcare Center Opens Doors to Community

By Soren Wuerth

TNews Editor

The crowd that formed to toast, with cups of sparkling cider, Saturday's grand opening of Girdwood’s new early learning center had something more in common than many likely knew. 

"If you've gone to Little Bears [Playhouse], have a child who's gone or have a grandchild who's gone please raise your hand," the center's director asked the crowd. 

Read the entire story at the link below:

https://www.turnagainnews.org/articles/new-childcare-center-opens-doors-to-community

Read more →
Portage Visitor Center Closes During Mid-July Rainstorm That Raised Landslide Threat
Portage Visitor Center Closes During Mid-July Rainstorm That Raised Landslide Threat

Public Notification of Risk Limited

By Soren Wuerth

TNews Editor 

For a pair of Swiss travelers standing on a beach opposite Portage Glacier the German word for "landslide" sounds like something harsher:  "erdrutsch".

Informed about the threat of "erdrutsch" and tsunami, a menace now widely reported, the couple took a last look at the glacier across the lake and quickly began their hike out.

On a Monday in late July there were dozens of hikers on an out-and-back, two-mile trail that crosses an 800-foot pass to Portage Lake. It was just over a week after a torrential rainstorm raised concerns about a looming landslide abutting the glacier.

Read the entire story and more pictures at the link below:

https://www.turnagainnews.org/articles/portage-visitor-center-closes-during-mid-july-rainstorm-that-raised-landslide-threat

Read more →

SPONSORED ADVERTISEMENT

Support Local Journalism

Openings exist for staff writers and our board of directors. Our news is free and relies on your donations. Contribute at the Square link below:

DONATE NOW

FREEDOM TRUTH

SUPPORT OUR LOCAL COMMUNITY

ARTICLES
AWWU updates Girdwood infrastructure under residents’ feet and roads
AWWU updates Girdwood infrastructure under residents’ feet and roads

By Chase Berenson

TNews Staffwriter

One of the most important elements of water utility infrastructure is what removes the wastewater from our homes after we have used the water in our kitchen sinks, showers, and other plumbing fixtures.  Wastewater infrastructure isn’t generally thought about too much, but Anchorage Water and Wastewater Utility (AWWU) is investing in improvements in Girdwood’s wastewater system.

Read the entire story at the link below:

https://www.turnagainnews.org/articles/awwu-updates-girdwood-infrastructure-under-residents-feet-and-roads

Read more →
Forest-Bog Walk & Talk Daylights Wonder
Forest-Bog Walk & Talk Daylights Wonder

By Soren Wuerth 

TNews Editor

For most people, let's admit it, a walk through our local meadow reveals beauty writ large—the way light suffuses the field, yellow-green, distant blue-gray ridgelines, or the warped netted planks replacing a muddy track.

Rarely do we crouch for a closer look, except to search for a blueberry patch.

Read the entire story at the link below:

https://www.turnagainnews.org/articles/forest-bog-walk-amp-talk-daylights-wonder

Read more →
UPDATE: On Your Mark, Get Set, Crow!
UPDATE: On Your Mark, Get Set, Crow!

By Soren Wuerth

TNews Editor

Around 108 runners stampeded off a bridge Saturday's rainy morning on their way to Eagle River, 22.6 miles away.

Confronting them was a three-mile, 2,000-foot climb to the top of Crow Pass, a 10-mile descent through an overgrown trail to eventually cross thigh or waist-high Eagle River, then another nearly 10-mile slog to the Eagle River Nature Center.

Prior to the start, runners had received a warning: it's going to be a cold one. A steady drizzle made the 50-degree morning feel downright chilly.

And with a capacity for 150 racers, only 108 bibs were picked up. 

This year the 41st-annual race is going to be a little "longer and slower", Race Director Matias Saari said as he packed up gear below a tent at the start.

Later he sent a text:  "two come from behind wins".

Crossing the finish line three hours and 33 minutes later, Allan Spangler had a five minute lead over 18-year-old Zan Griffis. Spangler "caught and passed" Griffis with three miles to go, Saari said, and Christy Marvin "chased down" Shauna Severson to be the first woman to cross the tape. The two took 8th and 9th overall.

A new trail section adds nearly a half mile to the run. The time limit for completion was increased to seven hours.

Read the entire story at the link below;

https://www.turnagainnews.org/articles/one-your-mark-get-set-crow

Read more →

COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT

SPONSORED ADVERTISMENT

Empower Your Community:

Champion Local News! 

DONATE NOW

Have an event which the community would want to know more about? Let us know at the email below.

Paid positions are available. For more information:

Publisher@

TurnagainNews.org

Interested in writing, photography or being a board member, email TurnagainNews@gmail.com. Our NEWS is

Written by locals for

the Community!

UPCOMING EVENTS

STORIES YOU MAY HAVE MISSED

ARTICLES
Girdwood Sees Record Turnout for Local Anti-Trump "No Kings" Demonstration
Girdwood Sees Record Turnout for Local Anti-Trump "No Kings" Demonstration

By Soren Wuerth

TNews Editor

Organizers estimate eight million people hit the streets in yesterday's "No Kings" demonstrations across the country.

If Girdwood is any indication, it was the largest day of protest yet seen since Donald Trump took office a little over a year ago.

All four corners of Alyeska Hwy. and Hightower Rd. were packed with locals holding signs and banners. Organizer Emma Kramer counted 110 at one point, the highest seen locally in the 10 held since the start of Trump's election.

"There was one in the summer where we had numbers close to this, but I think we exceeded it by 20 or 25 people," Kramer said. 

A variety of signs fluttered in the crowd, highlighted by morning sunshine rounding Max's Mtn. 

"I think the message here was 'bring a friend' because chances are you and your friend will both find reasons for things you wish were different, things you want to change, things you can't stand by and watch happening," Kramer said.

Read the entire story at the link below:

https://turnagain-news.squarespace.com/config/pages

Read more →
100 Percent Dump Increase Beleaguers Local Residents 
100 Percent Dump Increase Beleaguers Local Residents 

By Soren Wuerth

TNews Editor

A new rate increase that doubles the cost of trash disposal at municipal transfer facilities has some local residents storing their garbage and others laying a course to fight the fee.

Paying $10 to throw out a single bag of garbage is a high cost for a single person living paycheck to paycheck, said a municipal employee who declined to be identified. 

"There are elderly people stockpiling stinky trash in their house because they don't have a shed," the source said. 

The price to throw out one-to-four bags shot up from $5 to $10, a 100% increase. A load of a cubic yard or less went from $10 to $15 and a truck load climbed from $20 to $27.

Only a small part of the increase, 5 percent, pays for "rising operating costs" of Solid Waste Service, according to a flyer from the self-funded utility.

The bulk of the extra cost is a $4 surcharge to fund a "Healthy Spaces" crew of workers tasked with cleaning parks and other public spaces in the municipality. 

The measure, championed by Anchorage Assembly Member Chris Constant, passed the Assembly in September and took effect in January. At a press conference two weeks ago Mayor Suzanne LaFrance said the Healthy Spaces program added 10 year-round positions.

Read the entire story at the link below:

https://www.turnagainnews.org/articles/100-percent-dump-increase-beleaguers-local-residentsnbsp

Read more →
Noncommercial Shrimp Season Reduced, Commercial Season Closed for 2026
Noncommercial Shrimp Season Reduced, Commercial Season Closed for 2026

By Allison Sayer

TNews Staffwriter

 On February 26, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) announced the noncommercial (sport + subsistence)spot shrimp fishery would be open from May 1 through June 8, and fishers would be limited to two pots. This is over six weeks less than last year, and almost four months shorter than the 2024 season.

 The guideline harvest limit (GHL) in the 2026 noncommercial fishery is 29,782 pounds. Managers determine the GHL as a proportion of the estimated population, which has declined each year since 2021. Pot and season limits are then implemented based on the limit.

 The 2025 GHL was 54,311 pounds of shrimp, and the season was open May 1 though July 31 with two pots. During 2025, fishers exceeded the GHL, catching 60,234 pounds. The noncommercial fishery catch has exceeded the GHL for seven of the past seventeen seasons, despite managers implementing pot and season limits.

 ADF&G commercial and sport fishery staff hosted an online meeting February 12 to discuss shrimp research and take public questions and comments. According to Area Management Biologist Brittany Blain-Roth, about 130 people tuned into the meeting. 

 One bright spot presented by Fisheries Biologist Alissa Cole was the 2025 shift in commercial and noncommercial season opening days from April 15 to May 1 reduced the percentage of egg-bearing females taken in the harvest- from 36% of the fishery to just 5%. Presumably, the later date gave most females time to release their eggs before being harvested. 

 Cole shared population estimates come from an annual survey that has been performed in October throughout Prince William Sound since 1992.

Read the entire story at the link below

https://www.turnagainnews.org/articles/noncommercial-shrimp-season-reduced-commercial-season-closed-for-2026

Read more →
Seward Highway project meeting held in Girdwood
Seward Highway project meeting held in Girdwood

By Chase Berenson

TNews Staffwriter

On Tuesday, January 13th, Girdwood residents met with representatives of the Alaska Department of Transportation (DOT) and their consultants HDR and Michael Baker International to discuss the Safer Seward Highway project.  This is a massive infrastructure project that would dramatically reimagine the Seward Highway between mileposts 98.5 and 118, or approximately from Bird Flats in the south to Rabbit Creek in the north.  In December 2025 the DOT published the draft Environmental Assessment (EA), and this meeting allowed the public to comment on the assessment.

The Safer Seward Highway project is a construction project that is predicted to cost $1.4 billion and to take 15-20 years of work.  This project will convert the road into a four-lane divided highway, like the Glenn Highway between Anchorage and Wasilla.  This project will straighten out the curves of the highway by blasting rock walls and cliffs, will destroy over 300 acres of wildlife habitat, and will fill in 101 acres of mudflats to provide space to expand the Alaska Railroad tracks and the Seward Highway itself.  The Environmental Assessment states that the project may entail highway closures for construction for some period of the day that may take place daily over the 15-20 years of construction.

The DOT’s goals with the project are threefold: reduce crashes, increase mobility/reliability, and accommodate mixed-use in the highway right-of-way.  It approaches these goals by expanding the highway to be safer, which the DOT claims should reduce accident-related closures and make the highway more reliable.  The project also includes a multi-use pathway from the northern end of the Bird-to-Gird all the way to Anchorage, accommodating pedestrians and bicyclists who want to connect Anchorage and Girdwood without using the highway.

Read the entire story at the link below:

https://www.turnagainnews.org/articles/seward-highway-project-meeting-held-in-girdwood

Read more →
Turnagain Community Health: Don’t Give Up On Accessing Health Care
Turnagain Community Health: Don’t Give Up On Accessing Health Care

By Allison Sayer

TNews Staffwriter

 The deadline to enroll in Affordable Care Act (ACA) Health Insurance (also widely called “Obamacare”) is just days away- Thursday, January 15. I spoke to Turnagain Community Health Patient Assistance Program Coordinator Linda Mankoff on January 9 to learn more about options for health insurance in 2026.

 Free appointments for help understanding your options are available at Turnagain Community Health. Call 783-1355, choose option 1, and ask to be scheduled with a Community Health Worker.   The best times to call are Tuesday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. You do not have to be a patient to receive help.

 Congressional wrangling over extending pandemic-era insurance subsidies has been all over national news. Mankoff feels there has been confusion about what Congress is actually fighting about. In 2021, extra subsidies were added to the already existing ACA program. In particular, substantial subsidies were extended to people making over $75,000 per year. Those extra subsidies expired December 31. Extending them was what Congress is fighting about.

 “We could not get people in here on the first of November [when the enrollment period started]. The way it came out in the media, it sounded like Obamacare was gone.” She felt people who were making $30,000 or $40,000 per year didn’t understand they could still be eligible for premium tax credits and lower premiums.  

 What if you earn more than $75,000? Mankoff said she has worked with Girdwood small business owners who initially thought, “I’m never going to be able to afford the marketplace.” However, she continued, “The Marketplace counts net profits for small business owners.” “I tell owners, if you made a big profit, but then you reinvested in the business, what did you actually see at the end of the day? You could be eligible.”

 There are people who will see a huge jump in premiums if the extra subsidies end. “If you are in a certain category, you may have paid $400 last year for insurance but it could be as much as $1500-1800 per month this year,” said Mankoff.

Read the entire story at the link below:

https://www.turnagainnews.org/articles/turnagain-community-health-dont-give-up-on-accessing-health-care

Read more →

SPONSORED ADVERTISEMENT