PORT OF NOME— The cruise liner Hanseatic docked at the City dock last Tuesday, August 14, allowing passengers to take a land tour of Nome. Photo by Diana Haecker C VOLUME CXII NO. 34 August 23, 2012 Bonanza-Delta Western $1.5 million fight stays in Alaska By Sandra L. Medearis That decision put Nome at the court in Anchorage, saying DW was and feathered the claim by showing Development Corp. with other trans- When still-to-be settled reasons center of a media feed when the U.S. a Seattle company, while Bonanza that a Delta Western web site portation, amounting effectively to a blocked Delta Western from deliver- Coast Guard icebreaker Healy in was an Alaska company. That differ- claimed from 2005 it was an Alaska break in the Bonanza—DW agree- ing a barge load of assorted petro- January guided a Russian tanker into ence in location of the companies company. Aw, they were just spoof- ment. leum products to Bonanza Fuel last the harbor through the ice after stops and that the suit pertained to a mar- ing, DW said, to make Alaska con- Court documents show that DW fall, Sitnasuak Native Corp. made for fuel in South Korea and Dutch itime issue took it out of the jurisdic- sumers comfortable with buying said in an e-mail last spring that a the business decision to have an al- Harbor. That exercise not only tion of Alaska state court and into their products. Rather, DW argued, new contract for 2011 would be ternate vendor bring in the oil and shined up the City of Nome and the federal court for Western District of an agreement signed for petroleum forthcoming, but it did not arrive. gas. Coast Guard’s pitch for a new ice- Washington in Seattle, DW claimed. product delivery in 2006 said that Therefore, the “forum selection The other retail vendor in Nome, breaker to ply arctic waters, but Bo- Late last week, the U.S. District any disagreements would be litigated clause” expired in 2010 at the latest, Crowley Petroleum Distributors, of- nanza Fuel claimed the tanker trip Court ruled that the case stays in in Washington. That “forum selec- the court ruled. fered to sell Bonanza some fuel from cost the Sitnasuak subsidiary $1.5 Alaska—a victory for Bonanza Fuel tion clause” had not been changed The court denied Bonanza’s mo- storage in Nome and sell some of its million beyond what it would have that was balanced by a loss when the since and was still in effect during tion to have the case heard in Alaska surplus in Kotzebue to be flown in. cost for a timely Delta Western de- court then denied a motion by Bo- the 2011 delivery season, DW Superior Court in Nome, agreeing Sitnasuak’s president, Jason Evans, livery. nanza to bring the case home to state claimed. that Delta Western’s “nerve center” opted to work with Vitus Marine, Bonanza wanted that money back court in Nome. The controversy re- Nothing doing, said the Seattle was in Seattle, not Anchorage. Addi- based in Anchorage, to obtain the and filed suit in state Superior Court mains in federal court in Anchorage, court, according to documents filed tionally, the federal court “has diver- fuel. Vitus Marine contracted with against Delta Western in February to the federal court ruled. last week. Bonanza did not get fuel the ice class tanker Renda based in get it back. In mid-March, Delta During the debate, Bonanza said through DW in the 2010 season, but continued on page 5 Vladivistok. Western moved the case to federal that DW was an Alaska company, through Norton Sound Economic Sitnasuak wants White Alice gone By Diana Haecker voted to direct the Air force to re- Mountain. The large parabolic antennas on move the towers. The use of toxic polychlorinated top of Anvil Mountain may soon be Fagerstrom said that the board biphenyl and leaking fuel tanks left a sight of the past as the Sitnasuak wants ownership to the 11-acre site contamination on the installation Native Corporation last week de- through the Alaska Land Transfer grounds. The U.S. Air Force’s 611th cided to direct the Air Force to re- Acceleration Act and directors be- civil engineer squadron at Joint Base move the towers for good. Quoting lieve that the land would be valuable Elmendorf-Richardson has been the wish not to obligate future direc- for future tele-communications. For charged to cleanup the site before it tors of the board or shareholders to that purpose, Sitnasuak wants a clean can be transferred into the public do- the risk of personal injury lawsuits or site. main. financial liabilities, the Sitnasuak After the vote, the SNC press re- Sitnasuak Native Corporation se- board voted to have them taken lease said, they informed the Air lected the land and after the cleanup down. Sitnasuak President Charles Force of their decision as well as would be complete, the Air Force Fagerstrom issued a press release on Nome City Manager Josie Bahnke would turn the land over to the fed- Monday saying that Sitnasuak re- and Nome Museum and Library eral Bureau of Land Management. ceived notification from the Air Commission chairman John Hande- BLM field officer Tom Sparks Force that the Anvil Mountain tow- land. said in an email correspondence that ers were not a demolition project and However, as of Tuesday, the Air the BLM has worked cooperatively that the Air Force would be leaving Force has not received such infor- with Sitnasuak Native Corporation the structures standing given the mation and declined to comment and the USAF on the conveyance of local interest that dates back to 1996. until SNC gives official notification property at Anvil Mountain to Sitna- During the quarterly meeting last of their decision. suak as part of its ANCSA entitle- week, the Sitnasuak board of direc- The land used for the White Alice, ment. “Sitnasuak’s decision to accept tors were made aware of the Air the military’s distant early warning the lands with the towers removed Forces’ stance and after a long dis- line system during the cold war, cussion, Fagerstrom said, the board spreads over 11.7 acres atop Anvil continued on page 4 Runway closure and bad weather limit jet traffic to Nome By Diana Haecker of constant rain, fog and low hang- tion crew that was supposed to start An emergency repair that was ing clouds. Seven Alaska Airlines fixing the runway was stranded in supposed to start last week put the flights were canceled, no cargo Anchorage, due to the double prob- main runway of the Nome Interna- planes made it in all week, except for lem of runway closure and bad tional Airport out of commission one NAC cargo plane on Monday, weather. starting August 13 until October 1. August 13. People attempting to travel from The ramifications of the runway Not until Saturday and Sunday Anchorage to Nome on Friday went closure were compounded by a week could cargo planes land in Nome to Kotzebue twice but couldn’t make with two NAC aircraft arriving on it to Nome. Sunday and one Everts Air Cargo Alaska Airlines, the only passen- On the Web: plane on Saturday. ger jet service with three regular By Friday, empty produce shelves daily flights to Nome, is bound to www.nomenugget.net at Hanson’s grocery store bore testa- see delays from now until the run- E-mail: ment to the lack of goods coming way is fixed. Alaska Airlines spokes- into Nome. Post office boxes pro- woman Marianne Lindsey said that [email protected] duced not even junk mail. And peo- the Nome runway closure is impact- ple who opted to get out of the rain ing flights as weather and visibility and to watch a movie were out of is the limiting factor, causing delays. luck, too. “Total Recall”, the movie “Because the instrument landing Photo by Diana Haecker that was supposed to play at the local system that allows us to land in WET RUN— Tim Schmidt toughens out the inclement weather and Gold Coast movie theatre didn’t Nome in the poorest weather is for runs through the rain during Saturday’s fundraiser for the Nome- make it into Nome, either. Beltz cross-country running team. See story page 10. KNOM reports, that the construc- continued on page 4 2 THURSDAY, AUGUST 23, 2012 OPINION THE NOME NUGGET Letters To the Editor, you can’t find your printed copies of property, to attend NSEDC events, My letter to the editor on page the paper. or to attend NSEDC board meetings. two in the August 16 Nome Nugget Janis Ivanoff’s letter contained Any violations of these restrictions A Look at the Past responding to an August 9 letter to false accusations of offenses she and any threats or confrontations the editor from NSEDC's Janis claims I committed and malicious with board members or employees Ivanoff contains a URL linked to a misrepresentations of my words and will be reported immediately to the YouTube video. A character was actions. The YouTube clip was proper authorities.” Apparently, omitted when the Nugget staff tran- posted so that people can decide for lawyer Trickey was able to say what scribed the URL, which made the themselves which of the conflicting NSEDC could not say the day before link not work. accounts of what transpired at the NSEDC could not say it. The correct link to the YouTube meeting is truthful. His letter goes on to say without video is below.