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	<title>Homer Tribune</title>
	<link>http://homertribune.com</link>
	<description>Homer, Alaska</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Thu, 17 May 2012 19:40:25 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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		<title>Homer gasline approved</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Gov. Sean Parnell approved funding for the South Peninsula Natural Gas Pipeline Monday, leaving intact the entire $8,150,000 request in the 2013 Capital Budget.
The governor said it made a difference that customers along the Enstar line would help pay for construction through the $1 tariff. “That is what I had requested and I was glad to see it was followed through. I will be glad the people of the Southern Kenai Peninsula will have access to natural gas,” Parnell said during a press conference explaining his budget decisions. 
Losing no time, the Homer City Council passed a resolution Monday night to begin the process for obtaining natural gas. A workshop is set for June 4 to “initiate a broad community review process on the merits of public financing for gasline construction.” 
“This is what we’ve waited a long time for,” said Mayor Jim Hornaday, who often mentions the town has sought natural gas heat for 40 years. “It’s going to make a tremendous difference in our bottom line, for  every business and individual in town.”]]></description>
		<link>http://homertribune.com/2012/05/homer-gasline-approved/</link>
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		<title>Brown bear spotted on Greer Road</title>
		<description><![CDATA[A brown bear is the suspected culprit of a chicken coup raid and of seriously damaging a spring garden after ripping into a high tunnel off Greer Road, nine miles East End Road in the Fritz Creek area. The bear has also wreaked havoc on Yukon Road before Greer. 
Adam Green found all his plantings ruined – carrots, beats, potatoes, greens. 
“All trampled,” he said Monday. “The bear came along and put his paws on it and pushed in all the sides every four feet. He ripped open doors on each end – absolutely ripped it apart,” Green said. The damage can be repaired but it's going to take some work. ]]></description>
		<link>http://homertribune.com/2012/05/brown-bear-spotted-on-greer-road/</link>
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		<title>Tiglax gets tied up in first sign of federal budget cuts</title>
		<description><![CDATA[In a difficult cost-cutting move, the research vessel the M/V Tiglax will sit tied to the Homer dock for two weeks this summer.
The Alaska National Maritime Wildlife Refuge owns the famed research ship, built in 1987 especially for difficult work in the stormy Aleutians. Refuge Manager Steve Delehanty said the move will save the refuge $80,000.
“This will be the most noticeable cut in terms of the public, because the ship will be tied up at the dock for two weeks in the prime of the season,” Delehanty said. 
The cuts also mean foregoing or postponing research at Barren Islands, a long-term sea bird monitoring project studying ocean health through bird diets.  
The refuge’s annual budget of roughly $4 million goes to all operations throughout the Alaska National Maritime Wildlife Refuge. With increasing costs and budget cuts of 2 percent, the refuge has a budget shortfall of about $400,000.]]></description>
		<link>http://homertribune.com/2012/05/tiglax-gets-tied-up-in-first-sign-of-federal-budget-cuts/</link>
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		<title>HoPP recruiting volunteers all week</title>
		<description><![CDATA[HoPP will be recruiting building volunteers and helpers for its Karen Hornaday Park Playground Project starting Sunday and running through to May 27. 
The old Karen Hornaday playground was taken down by the City of Homer this weekend, leaving open ground for creating the ambitious nature-themed playground for Homer’s children. 
Organizer Miranda Weiss said the Sunday-to-Sunday building schedule still needs to be filled in with people geared toward one of three tasks.
“There are three ways to help out: On building, helping with child care  or  helping to serve or donate meals,” she said.]]></description>
		<link>http://homertribune.com/2012/05/hopp-recruiting-volunteers-all-week/</link>
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		<title>FYI news briefs &amp; announcements &#8211; May 16</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Senator concerned about debris hazards Hearing tsunami debris concerns rising among Alaska’s fishermen, Sen. Lisa Murkowski reached out to NOAA Administrator Jane Lubchenco, pushing for information on the status of ongoing prevention and monitoring efforts. “Alaska is already experiencing higher levels of debris than typical, particularly off Montague and Kayak Islands in the Prince Williams [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://homertribune.com/2012/05/fyi-news-briefs-announcements-may-16/</link>
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		<title>City pursues $5 million port-harbor revenue bond</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Fees will increase to help pay for a backlog of neglected harbor maintenance after the Homer City council passed a measure Monday night to pursue matching grant funding with a $5 million revenue bond.
The Port and Harbor Improvement Committee recommended four main areas to target for fixes with $9 million. Of that, $4.7 million would come from revenue bonds and the rest from grants, including two Denali Grants totaling nearly $1 million.
One noticeable absence from the list was the Homer Harbormaster's Office, a building that has caught fire twice, and dates back to the early 1980s in a cobbling together of three other buildings. Council member Francie Roberts asked why it was taken off the list. A replacement building has been on a town priority list for nearly 30 years. 
“It always ends up getting removed for some reason,” said Mayor Jim Hornaday. ]]></description>
		<link>http://homertribune.com/2012/05/city-pursues-5-million-port-harbor-revenue-bond/</link>
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		<title>Homer’s 7th annual bike to work week</title>
		<description><![CDATA[National Bike Month is an opportunity to celebrate the unique power of the bicycle and the many reasons we ride. Whether you bike to work or school; to save money or time; to preserve your health or the environment; to explore your community or get to your destination, get involved in Bike Month in your city or state — and help get more people in your community out riding, too.
Somehow we’re already into the thick of Bike To Work Week, and by the time this goes to press several events have already concluded. On May 13, there was a group Spit ride which was open to riders of all ages and abilities. The afternoon was blustery, but still people showed up and enjoyed a mellow bike out to Coal Town Coffee for treats before the ride back. Even blustery snow showers could not stop the fun.]]></description>
		<link>http://homertribune.com/2012/05/homer%e2%80%99s-7th-annual-bike-to-work-week/</link>
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		<title>Japan’s nuclear loss is Alaska’s natural gas gain</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Japan’s decision to walk away from nuclear power has it scrambling for natural gas, giving the U.S. a chance to be a large-scale energy exporter.
A week ago, Japan pulled the plug on the last unit of the Tomari nuclear plant, leaving the country without nuclear energy for the first time since May 1970. Just across the Pacific a few days earlier, Alaska approved a plan for a pipeline to move natural gas from the North Slope to the coast for liquefaction and export.
The two seemingly unrelated events mark the beginning of an emerging strategic energy partnership, built around the United States’ growing glut of natural gas, that could reduce its trade deficit with Japan and strengthen its bond with the world’s third-largest economy.]]></description>
		<link>http://homertribune.com/2012/05/japan%e2%80%99s-nuclear-loss-is-alaska%e2%80%99s-natural-gas-gain/</link>
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		<title>Letters &#8211; May 16</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Click for full listing]]></description>
		<link>http://homertribune.com/2012/05/letters-may-16/</link>
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		<title>Take time to build healthy women</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Starting on Mother’s Day, National Women’s Health Week runs May 13–19, and is a time to encourage making health a priority in the lives of women. This is a week to raise awareness among all of us about the simple commitments we can each make to work healthy doses of exercise, nutrition and sleep into [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://homertribune.com/2012/05/take-time-to-build-healthy-women/</link>
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