NOME - The winner of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race has come under the burled arch in this western Alaska outpost, but that's just the beginning for this community, where every musher to finish the race gets a hero's welcome. The town's sirens blare when each of the more than four dozen competitors is about a mile out, and the mushers are all treated like royalty as they cross the finish line under the famed arch on Front Street, and have their pictures taken with fans.

Three new assisted-living facilities are in various stages of development between Kenai and Soldotna as developers try to address a local need for senior services.

...suspects it's a conservative estimate, but one he and others have used for years. George Schaaf, executive director of the city-funded Juneau trails nonprofit Trail Mix Inc., said, "We have a feeling about which trails are most popular...

Connie Hocker, a Soldotna resident of 30 years, is now one step closer to transforming the neglected Aspen Park into something the community can be proud of. After two years of planning, persistence, and navigating bureaucratic hoops, Hocker got the Soldotna City Council to designate half of the park as a fenced-in area for dogs to play off-leash.

Voting to reduce taxes may seem like a no-brainer. But Kenai Peninsula finance officials say that voters with brains would do well to think twice about an upcoming ballot initiative.