Michael Armstrong

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The front entrance and parking lot to the Homer Police Station on Heath Street downhill from Homer High School.

Homer votes on new police station

HOMER — In considering Homer Proposition 1, a proposal to borrow up to $12 million to build a new Homer Police Station, the controversy isn’t… Continue reading

The front entrance and parking lot to the Homer Police Station on Heath Street downhill from Homer High School.
Mavis Muller, left, directs a crew of volunteer artists Monday at construction of this year's Burning Basket, Expand, at Mariner Park.

Homer’s Burning Basket vandalized

HOMER — For the second year in a row, a vandal or vandals snuck in at dark and tried to burn the Burning Basket at… Continue reading

Mavis Muller, left, directs a crew of volunteer artists Monday at construction of this year's Burning Basket, Expand, at Mariner Park.
Jennifer Wambach holds a Steller's jay that was shot with a blowgun dart. Veterinarians Dr. Ralph Broshes and Dr. Dorothy Sherwood removed the dart from the jay, as well as another jay shot with a dart. Both jays were released back into the wild.

Retired Homer vet rescues darted Steller’s jays

HOMER — Two Steller’s jays trying to fatten up for the winter almost met an early end last week. Someone in downtown Homer shot the… Continue reading

Jennifer Wambach holds a Steller's jay that was shot with a blowgun dart. Veterinarians Dr. Ralph Broshes and Dr. Dorothy Sherwood removed the dart from the jay, as well as another jay shot with a dart. Both jays were released back into the wild.

Homer bans pets in back of pickups

HOMER — Homer has made amendments to the city’s animal control laws that ban a practice some might think of as Alaskan as log cabins… Continue reading

Gov. Bill Walker, left, listens to Homer Mayor Beth Wythe, right, after speaking to the Homer City Council on Tuesday. Homer Advisory Planning Commissioner Roberta Highland, center, looks on.

Walker: ‘I’m the only guy with a bucket’

HOMER — In a talk before the Homer City Council on Tuesday, Gov. Bill Walker mentioned a historic photo of Metlakatla villagers Lt. Gov. Byron… Continue reading

Gov. Bill Walker, left, listens to Homer Mayor Beth Wythe, right, after speaking to the Homer City Council on Tuesday. Homer Advisory Planning Commissioner Roberta Highland, center, looks on.
Mark Matthews was found dead three years ago on a popular Homer trail. The identity of the person who murdered him remains a mystery.

Homer’s only unsolved murder case still in limbo

HOMER — After years of investigation, Homer’s only unsolved murder now awaits a decision by the Kenai District Attorney on whether charges can be filed.… Continue reading

Mark Matthews was found dead three years ago on a popular Homer trail. The identity of the person who murdered him remains a mystery.
A Cessna 206 floatplane owned and piloted by Alaska Dispatch News owner Alice Rogoff sits on the beach off Ismailof Island in Halibut Cove on Sunday night.

Alaska newspaper publisher survives floatplane crash

Alaska Dispatch News owner Alice Rogoff survived a floatplane crash Sunday in Halibut Cove on the Kenai Peninsula. Rogoff, who was piloting the plane when… Continue reading

A Cessna 206 floatplane owned and piloted by Alaska Dispatch News owner Alice Rogoff sits on the beach off Ismailof Island in Halibut Cove on Sunday night.
Seagulls feed on fish scraps on June 3 at the Nick Dudiak Fishing Lagoon cleaning tables on the Homer Spit. A $60,000 grant from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game will pay for a bird-proof shelter to go over the tables.

Homer’s Fishing Hole will get shelter from gulls

HOMER — On a good day when fishermen pull sea-bright king salmon out of the Nick Dudiak Fishing Lagoon faster than the tide runs, the… Continue reading

Seagulls feed on fish scraps on June 3 at the Nick Dudiak Fishing Lagoon cleaning tables on the Homer Spit. A $60,000 grant from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game will pay for a bird-proof shelter to go over the tables.

Marijuana grower sentenced to 60 days for $1.5M operation

HOMER — A Homer man who grew an estimated $1.5 million worth of cannabis at an indoor grow operation off East End Road pleaded guilty… Continue reading

Dawn Leadbetter-Thorp, left, and Stephanie Leadbetter-Thorp, right, pose for a photo with their grandson, Isaiah, after he arrived at the Homer Airport on Monday. The Leadbetter-Thorps legally adopted their grandson last week, and he was able to come to Homer in time for Christmas after traveling with a social worker from Billings, Mont.

Boy gets Christmas wish: A forever home in Alaska

HOMER — Like any 9-year-old boy, Isaiah wants all sorts of cool toys for Christmas — an Xbox, a go-cart, a motorcycle and a Nintendo.… Continue reading

Dawn Leadbetter-Thorp, left, and Stephanie Leadbetter-Thorp, right, pose for a photo with their grandson, Isaiah, after he arrived at the Homer Airport on Monday. The Leadbetter-Thorps legally adopted their grandson last week, and he was able to come to Homer in time for Christmas after traveling with a social worker from Billings, Mont.

More otters washing up; cause remains unknown

The cause of an unusual number of dead and dying otters winding up on Homer beaches remains unexplained, but preliminary results suggest toxins from harmful… Continue reading