The MRAK Almanac is your place for political, cultural, and civic events, events where you’ll meet political leaders or, if you are interested in getting to know your state, these are great places to meet conservative- and moderate-leaning Alaskans.
Alaska Fact Book:
Question: How much land in Alaska is owned by the state, the federal government, Native corporations, and private citizens?
Answer: While most Alaskans could tell you that Alaska is by far the largest state in the U.S., few know how much of our roughly 370 million acres of prime real estate is owned by those three aforementioned parties.
The State of Alaska owns about 28% of the total land area, and still has not received all of the land it was promised after statehood. The Trump administration granted the state an additional 1.3 million acres earlier this summer.
The federal government owns around 60% of land in Alaska today. Note that the federal government owns around twice the land owned by the state.
Native corporations own about 12% of Alaska land under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) of 1971.
Less than 1% of Alaska’s land is in private hands.
7/17: House Finance Committee hearing at Fairbanks Legislative Information Office. Public testimony will run from 2 pm to 7 pm. Come share your thoughts about the committee’s recent proposal to reverse all of the Governor’s vetoes and pay a $929 PFD. Read more here.
7/17: Golden Days Old Tyme Games at Pioneer Park in Fairbanks. Registration begins at 5:30 pm and the event is set to start at 6 pm. There will be a pie-eating contest, a water bucket brigade, and so much more. Open to all ages, learn more here.
7/17: Want to support APD? Attend the Coffee with a Cop event at Town Square Park beginning at 10:30 am, free Kaladi Brothers Coffee will be provided. This is a great opportunity to say thank you and to get to know your local law enforcement. Learn more here.
7/17: The Anchorage Assembly’s committee on homelessness will meet for a regular meeting at 11 am. The committee will discuss a proposed ordinance addressing homeless shelter overflow as well as discuss wildfire dangers. Read the agenda here.
7/17: Joint luncheon of the Kenai and Soldotna chambers. Registration is required. They will be joined at lunch by Alaska Chamber CEO Kati Capozii. More details here.
7/17: The Alaska Department of Fish and Game will hold an Alaska Hunting Regulations 2019-2020 “breakdown” and information session in Anchorage at 6 pm. Registration is required and the event is free, most of the seats are still open. Register and learn more here.
7/17: Special meeting of the Ketchikan City Council at 7 pm. The council will hear a report on the city’s 2019 Compensation Study. Read more here.
7/17: Music in the Park at Peratrovich Park in Anchorage. Free to attend, begins at noon. Enjoy live music and local food options—fun for the whole family.
7/17: New member networking lunch hosted by the Anchorage Chamber of Commerce at 11:30 am. Learn how to get the most out of your Anchorage chamber membership. Facebook link here.
7/17: Drag Test & Tune Night at the Alaska Raceway Park in Palmer. Gates open at 4 pm with cars on the track by 6 pm. Free to children 10 and under, and $10 for adults. Read more at this link.
7/17: Regular meeting of the Mat-Su Farm Bureau at 6 pm. There will be a meet and greet with the Mat-Su Experimental Farm director as well as discussion of events for the coming months. More information here.
7/17: Discover Alaska lecture at the UAF Murie Auditorium, starting at 7 pm. Two NPS officials will speak about landslides and science education in Denali National Park.
7/17: Wasilla Farmers Market at Iditapark starting at 10 am. Come support a local farmer and keep agriculture alive in the Mat-Su Valley.
7/18: Mat-Su Telephone Association streaming entertainment showcase in Palmer. Registration required. Read more here.
7/18: Alaska State Bond Reimbursement and Grant Review Committee meeting via teleconference at 2 pm. Further details and call-in information here.
7/18: Regular meeting of the Haines Borough Assembly, set to gavel in at 6:30 pm. The agenda for tomorrow includes consideration of a new 3% sales tax on alcohol and marijuana products in the Haines Borough. There will be time for public testimony. Read the agenda here.
7/18: Muffins with FNSB Mayor Bryce Ward, starting at 10 am. This event is free, and no registration is required. A great opportunity to share your concerns and opinions with Mayor Ward. Facebook link here.
7/18: DYNO Shootout and Bike Night at House of Harley-Davidson in Anchorage, beginning at 5 pm. Cost is $20 to enter your bike into the shootout competition, and first prize winners will be handsomely rewarded. Read more at this link.
7/18: Last Frontier Motorcycle Ride at 6 pm. This weekly event will be recurring all summer long. Interested riders meet behind Serrano’s Mexican Grill on Northern Lights Blvd. Open to all.
7/18: Alaska Veterans Affairs community town hall in Fairbanks. All veterans and their families are invited to share their concerns and experiences with Alaska VA officials. Begins at 5 pm, visit this link for more details.
7/18: Regular meeting of the Craig City Council beginning at 7 pm. There will be an opportunity for public comment as well as consideration of the FY19 supplemental budget. Find the full agenda here.
7/17-7/20: The World Eskimo Indian Olympics (WEIO) will take place at the Carlson Center in Fairbanks. Dating back to 1961, this annual event features many traditional Native games such as the seal hop, the ear pull, and the one-foot high kick. Read more here.
Alaska History Archive:
July 17, 1897—122 years ago: A steamship named Portland arrived in Seattle’s port just after dawn. Aboard were around 70 miners and over a ton of gold mined from tributaries of the Yukon River in Canada’s Klondike region. Word quickly spread around the country and the world—the Klondike Gold Rush had officially begun.
July 19, 1873—146 years ago: Ernest Collins, the oldest delegate to the Alaska Constitutional Convention, was born in Indiana. When the convention began in Fairbanks in 1955, Collins was 82. Having moved to Alaska in 1904, he had also lived in Alaska longer than nearly all other delegates, second only to Frank Peratrovich who was born in Klawock in 1895. Collins was also elected as the speaker of the 1st Territorial House starting in 1913.
Got a Camp Berkowitz limerick for your contest. Can’t figure out how to send it, so I’ll put it here.
Camp Berkowitz says they won’t go,
It’s their indigenous land dontchaknow..
Now I’m not so sure
their motives are pure
But we’ll know when it’s 20 below.
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