MATANUSKA-SUSITNA BOROUGH NEWS
Special Santa program provides Christmas for more...
WASILLA - Christmas will be a bit happier for more than 3,000 Valley children who will find themselves on Santa's "nice" list this year.
Ewing joins state House race
WASILLA - Though he's been making noise about wanting to enter the race since at least July, Mark Ewing made it official this past week, filing to run for the state House of Representatives.
Wasilla, borough work on land deal
WASILLA - Once upon a time in 1978, the city built its downtown public library. Use of the library soon outgrew its 8,000 square feet of space, and more than 20 years of wishing to build a new facility is now moving from the fiction section to non-fiction.
Council politics turn personal
WASILLA - It seems even municipal bodies aren't immune to the emotional effects of social media. On the heels of a heated municipal election season, a Facebook post has opened a rift among some Wasilla City Council members.
Wasilla native among dead in Washington helicopter...
WASILLA - The Mat-Su Valley's  CWO3, Chief Warrant Officer Shan Joseph Satterfield was one of four Army aviators who perished when two helicopters crashed during training at Joint Base Lewis-McChord on Monday.
Group hopes to help prisoners return to society
WASILLA - The Valley's court system, probations offices and case workers have banded together to do something about a problem many might not be aware of - what to do with prisoners re-entering society.
Bikes-for-Books event returns to Mat-Su schools
PALMER - The Matanuska Foundation, sponsored by the Matanuska Masonic Lodge in Palmer, is conducting its Bikes-for-Books program at Swanson, Sherrod, Butte, Sutton, Pioneer Peak and Finger Lake elementary schools.
Copter crash claims Wasilla man
WASILLA - The Mat-Su Valley's CWO3 Shan Joseph Satterfield was one of four Army aviators who perished when two helicopters crashed Monday during training at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.
Coalition meets to discuss homelessness
WASILLA â?" Grant writers, volunteers, advocates and just about anyone with an interest in the topic will be talking about homelessness in the Valley at an all-day conference today.
'Homeless Summit' is tomorrow in Wasilla
WASILLA - State and local advocates and officials are set to meet Tuesday to discuss what to do about homelessness in the Valley.
Community councils change postponed
PALMER - A measure that would allow community councils to open their rolls to landowners rather than just residents was put off until April 2012.
Assemblyman may resurrect gravel debate
PALMER - Saying he wanted to see the entire ordinance in one place before voting to pass it, Mat-Su Borough Assemblyman Noel Woods resurrected a gravel ordinance that passed Dec. 6.
Menard recall election set
WASILLA - A unanimous vote by city council members officially puts Wasilla's first ever recall election on the calendar.
Wolves relocated
PALMER - A tourist attraction featuring wolves got rid of its animals Friday.

Kohring provides details of lawsuits
PALMER - Vic Kohring had to hire a private investigator to track down and serve a lawsuit against the star witness in his public corruption trial.
Assembly passes revamped gravel mining rules
PALMER - After six years of discussion, by some accounts, the Mat-Su Borough's gravel issue came down to a couple hours of debate and a handful of amendments.
Bess, 83, still tilting at social injustice
PALMER - What do the Palmer Arts Council, Daybreak Mental Health Services, Institute of Welcoming Resources, Radio Free Palmer, Valley Christian Charities, Valley Christian Conference and Valley Residential Services have in common?
Wolf Country USA getting rid of its wolves
PALMER - A tourist attraction featuring wolves is getting rid of its animals today, the owner said by phone.
Popular social media no longer allowed at assembly...
PALMER - After once trying and failing to set rules on texting during assembly meetings, the Mat-Su Borough Assembly on Tuesday decided to restrict electronic communications during its meetings.
Willow breeder opts for trial
PALMER - A Willow man accused of 50 counts of animal cruelty stemming from a raid on his dog breeding business backed out of a plea agreement Wednesday.
Christmas classic gets new, wonderful life as...
PALMER - The characters are familiar - George Bailey, Mr. Potter and Clarence, Angel Second Class - and we know the lines by heart - â??Every time a bell rings an angel gets his wings.â?
Jury acquits veteran of rape
PALMER - A jury found an Anchorage man not guilty Monday of the most serious counts he faced after a Glennallen-area fight resulted in sexual assault charges.
Nativities return for Colony Christmas
PALMER - The public is invited to view more than 1,000 privately owned nativity scenes on display during Colony Christmas at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 560 West Arctic Ave, Palmer, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Dec. 10, and from 2 to 7 p.m., Dec. 11.
Neighbor saves man sleeping in burning home
MAT-SU - Fire crews from Palmer and Mat-Su Central fire departments descended on a fire in a two-story house with an attached hangar on Hart Lake Loop near the Wolf Lake airstrip Friday afternoon.
Plenty for landowners if change to borough rules...
PALMER - Community councils could be getting larger if the Mat-Su Borough assembly approves a proposal from Mayor Larry DeVilbiss.
Borough to take another whack at gravel rules
PALMER - A years-long debate over gravel mining in the Mat-Su Borough is back in front of the assembly for resolution.
Neighbor saves neighbor from burning home
WASILLA - Fire crews from Palmer and Mat-Su Central fire departments descended on a fire in a two-story house with an attached hangar on Hart Lake Loop near the Wolf Lake airstrip Friday afternoon.
Firefighters battle blaze at Hart Lake Loop house...
Fire crews from Palmer and Mat-Su Central fire departments descended on a fire in a two-story house with an attached hangar on Hart Lake Loop near the Wolf Lake airstrip Friday afternoon.
Appeals court sides with judge
PALMER - Except for one small piece, an appeals court Friday stood by the way a Superior Court Judge handled a rape trial best described as unusual.
Explosive Situation
The Palmer water tower is silhouetted against an explosion of fireworks during the Country Cutts fireworks show in downtown Palmer Saturday night.
Complaint challenges coal permit
SUTTON - A coalition of groups opposed to a proposed Wishbone Hill coal mining project has filed a complaint alleging the company exploring the possibility of mining between Palmer and Sutton lacks a permit to do so.
Shelter looking for new top dog
PALMER - The Mat-Su Borough animal shelter has been without a chief for a month but, with any luck, that will change by New Year's.
District urges driver safety around school buses
PALMER - After a series of bus accidents â?" included one fatality â?" this winter driving season, the Mat-Su Borough School District is urging motorists to be more careful.
Assembly decides what to allow at port
PALMER - Changes to the documents laying out Port MacKenzie's special use district include lists of what's allowed there and what isn't.
Assembly overrides mayorâ??s veto
PALMER - Mat-Su Borough Mayor Larry DeVilbiss didn't really put up much of a fight when the assembly struck down his veto that would have retained a cap for how much money the borough can put in savings each year.
One of three charges thrown out for convicted...
PALMER - Saying they couldn't prove the man was forcibly rather than passively resisting officers, an appeals court Friday threw out one of three charges a Palmer man was convicted of three years ago.
MEA kicks power plant contractor to the curb
PALMER - Matanuska Electric Association has parted ways with its contractor and is taking a different route to building a power plant in the Eklutna area.
Drug case thrown out
PALMER - Citing flaws in the way the search was conducted and directing relatively harsh words at one of the officers involved, a judge has thrown out criminal charges against a marijuana grower.
FROM THE Fight leads to shot in the gut
PALMER - Alaska State Troopers say a fight at a home south of town led to one man getting shot in the abdomen.

  MTA wire theft case reaches conclusion
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