Frontiersman 2013

Mat-Su Valley

FRIDAY, MAY 31, 2013 | FRONTIERSMAN.COM

VOLUME 65, NUMBER 110 50 CENTS

Published for the Mat-Su Valley and Eva Baker of Wasilla.

Mat-Su fights fires, frets over floods

BY ANDREW WELLNER
Frontiersman.com

Inside

PALMER The story of the past couple weeks around the Mat-Su has to include both wildfires and flooding. Weve got all this water and were in a red flag (wildfire) situation, go figure right? said Talkeetna Fire Chief Ken Farina, referring to the Red Flag Warning the Valley was under Thursday afternoon due to dry weather and combustible fuels.

Sudden summer poses a double threat for emergency responders

As of press time Thursday evening, borough fire crews were responding to a fire in the Point MacKenzie area that had consumed at least three acres. The area was reported on emergency band radio as being accessible by four-wheelers and that it had already consumed one cabin. Read this story online at frontiersman.com for updates on the Point MacKenzie fire. Farina was actually worried more about the floods than the fires, though. His part of the Valley had been relatively quiet on the fire front, but was staffing up Thursday night to keep an eye on Montana Creek.

Were going to go back and check all the hot spots Kalispell Road; Yoder Road, which overflowed last night actually; Montana Creek Campground all the usual suspects where it floods. The Talkeetna area was among the hardest hit in last years floods. At the end of fall as the rivers froze up, there had been dire warnings about an ice jam on the Talkeetna River and fears of renewed flooding
See FRETS, Page A9

POINT MacKENZIE RAIL

No room for error
Big inning proves costly in Knights loss at state tourney.
SPORTS, B1

Missing man found in lake

BY ANDREW WELLNER
Frontiersman.com

Local
4 years in federal prison for Wasilla man.
PAGE A3

HEATHER A. RESZ/Frontiersman

Alaska Railroad contracts manager Bob Hanson points to the route where the 32-mile Port MacKenzie Rail Extension will connect with the main line south of Houston.

Book of Elements
Dancers to take Anchorage stage for annual workshop.
ARTS & LEISURE, A11

BREAKING GROUND
Rail extension equals millions in contracts, jobs
BY HEATHER A. RESZ
Frontiersman.com

Weather
HIGH: 70s LOW: 40s
Partly sunny. Isolated showers in afternoon.
Full forecast, PAGE A2

Index
A section
Pet Tails . . . . . . . . . A2 Faith . . . . . . . . . . . . A5 Opinion . . . . . . . . . A6 Obituaries . . . . . . . A8 Police Beat . . . . . . . A8 Health. . . . . . . . . . A10 Arts & Leisure . . . A11

B section
Sports . . . . . . . . . . . Outdoors . . . . . . . . Comics . . . . . . . . . . Classifieds . . . . . . . B1 B1 B5 B6

HOUSTON Its the Mat-Su Borough and the Alaska Railroads largest ongoing project. But youll have to leave the beaten path to get a look at the dirt work going on for the Port MacKenzie Rail Extension. An agreement the borough and Alaska Railroad Corp. inked in 2007 began a years-long process of designing, permitting and constructing new rail, from just south of Houston to the boroughs tidewater at Port MacKenzie, said Borough Public Affairs Director Patty Sullivan. A groundbreaking ceremony at 2:30 p.m., June 4 at Port MacKenzie will make the formal start for the construction phase of the rail extension project. Gov. Sean Parnell is among speakers confirmed for the event, Sullivan said. In advance of that cer-

HEATHER A. RESZ/Frontiersman

Granite heavy equipment operator dumps a load of dirt at the segment 6 construction site near Houston Wednesday. A groundbreaking ceremony for the project is set for 2:30 p.m., June 4 at Port MacKenzie.

emony, the borough organized a media tour May 29 of segments 6 and 3. The 32-mile project is divided into six segments of track that will eventually connect the railroads main line to the boroughs port. Bristol Environmental was awarded the contact for segment 1, on the Port MacKenzie end, and began dirt work there in 2012. Then in February, Granite was awarded the

contract for segment 6 and in March, Quality Asphalt Paving won the bid to build segment 3. Segment 4 is out to bid now and a contact will be awarded this spring, Sullivan said. Thus far, the borough has received $171 million in state grants and bonds for the rail extension project. The total project cost is estimated at $272.5 million. When the project is complete depends in large part on when the bor-

ough and railroad get the remaining $101.5 million needed to finish work. Bob Hanson, who oversees contracts for Alaska Railroad, said this years cold, wet spring has delayed construction. A mix of muddy and frozen ground conditions bogged down work on segment 1 until last week. The construction season is about three weeks behind, Hanson said. On segments 3 and 6, he said contactors were working quickly to have all the trees taken down before the May 15 deadline in the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Because the borough owns the land along the rail route, Sullivan said the plan is to salvage suitable trees for personal use firewood. Segment 6, located off Millers Reach Road, burned during the June 1996 by the same name. Hanson said thats why much of the birch, spruce
See RAIL, Page A12

PALMER Alaska State Troopers say they may have found the body of a man missing since October 2012. According to a press release issued Tuesday, the body was found in a Palmer-area Lovell lake May 24. The deceased was noted to be a Caucasian male. Preliminary indications are consistent with it being the missing person Shanon Lovell, 30, of Anchorage, according to the press release. Troopers report theyre not positive the body discovered in the lake is Lovell, but clothing found with the body and a tattoo strongly indicated it was his body. By Thursday, numerous condolences had been posted to the Facebook page dedicated to the search for Lovell. In the back of my mind I had hoped that somehow or some way you would appear and I wouldnt have to break the horrible news to our daughter. Rest in peace Shanon. You are missed dearly, reads one. Lovell, son of Wasilla City Councilman Steve Lovell, has been missing since he was last seen leaving a party on McLeod Road in Palmer at around midnight on Oct. 5, 2012. Troopers say he was found in a lake off of Lakeshore Loop. McLeod and Lakeshore are in the same neighborhood wedged between the Matanuska River and Outer Springer Loop. There are a handful of small lakes on maps of the area. Councilman Lovell said his son had a drug habit that kept him in and out of jail. He has been raising his 12-year-old
See LOVELL, Page A3

Frontiersman

OUR NEIGHBORS

Tweets.

Tiniest trooper vows to serve and protect

BY ANDREW WELLNER
Frontiersman.com

http://twitter.com/matsu_news http://twitter.com/matsu_sports

PALMER All Joel Shelton wanted was to hang out with an Alaska State Trooper for an afternoon. Joel has wanted to be a police officer as long as hes known what one is. But the 6-year-old wanted to be a trooper ever since he met one during a family fishing trip to the Russian River last year. He got a plastic badge and a little trooper pen and highlighter, and thats been his favorite couple

little things for the last year, said his father, Willy Shelton. The last year has been a particularly difficult one for Joel and his family. Joel was diagnosed with leukemia in February, four days before his birthday. Willy remembers the day well. Their family doctor, who is also Joels grandpa, called him with the news. You got to go pick him up, its not good, the doctor said. Willy works with a former Wasilla police officer. When he
See TROOPER, Page A12

Courtesy Alaska State Troopers

Joel Shelton, a 6-year-old Valley boy battling leukemia, has been made an honorary Alaska State Trooper.