Anchorage Daily News

WASILLA -- The Matanuska-Susitna Borough stands to gain $203 million under the state's proposed capital budget.

It's a figure that goes a long way toward explaining a nearly unanimous response of "pretty good" when borough officials are asked how the Mat-Su fared this year in Juneau.

With state coffers unexpectedly flush due to high oil prices, Mat-Su is benefiting from the Legislature's looser-than-usual purse strings. The Valley portion of the capital budget alone has swelled by nearly three times the $85 million it originally contained in January.

Sharon Leighow, spokeswoman for Gov. Sarah Palin, said any decision by Palin, including what if any items to veto, is weeks away.

The list of projects to fund in the Mat-Su currently runs the gamut from big ticket items like $34 million for a long-sought expansion of Trunk Road to school library upgrades to $4,000 to move a historic cabin in Willow and $2,500 for a two-stall outhouse at the Skwentna airport.

Among the biggest beneficiaries are area roads with more than $90 million allocated for patching, expanding and building roads, most in the core area around Palmer and Wasilla.

In addition to the $34 million allocated for Trunk Road, the budget includes:

• $22 million to reconstruct Fairview Loop Road;

• $20 million for a proposed rail line extension to Port MacKenzie;

• $6 million for new side road connectors along the Parks Highway in the Meadow Lakes area;

• $5 million to upgrade Burma Road;

• $3.7 million for bridge repair and construction;

• $4 million to install new stoplights along the Palmer-Wasilla Highway; and

• $3 million for Knik-Goose Bay Road construction.

Other big ticket items of note include $19 million to rebuild the Su Valley High School, which burned down last year; $25 million for Matanuska Electric Association to build three new transmission lines, including one to extend power to a new Point MacKenzie prison; and $15.7 million to finish renovating the old Valley Hospital in Palmer into state offices.

The budget also includes $2.5 million for the state to take another look at damming the Susitna River to produce hydroelectric power, $550,000 to look at a regional wastewater management plan for the borough, $340,000 to build a new shooting range, and nearly $500,000 to study salmon stocks and area lakes in light of the area's recent disappointing salmon returns.

A full list of the capital budget and the Mat-Su projects in it is online at www.legfin.state.ak.us.

Mat-Su projects funded

A look by area at some of the projects included for Mat-Su is below.

BIG LAKE:

• $17,500 Big Lake community information center; and

• $5,000 Fish Creek park playground equipment.

HOUSTON:

• $136,000 Houston High School football field lights; and

• $35,415 for purchase of new public safety animal control vehicle.

MAT-SU:

• $8.9 million to design and construct an access road for the proposed Denali Visitor Center in Denali State Park and;

• $2 million to Valley Community for Recycling Solutions to design and construct a permanent recycling center at the landfill.

MEADOW LAKES:

• $44,500 for design and construction of Meadow Lakes Community Council access road; and • $7,500 Meadow Lake elementary playground equipment.

PALMER:

• $50,000 for Mat-Su Baseball Inc. for outfield and backstop fences and other improvements at Mat-Su Miners baseball field;

• $1 million for the Alaska State Fair to upgrade its Farm Exhibits building, including sprinklers and adding a non-porous floor;

• $30,000 for Valley Performing Arts facility expansion;

• $16,117 for Palmer High School bleachers;

• $80,000 for Palmer for Americans with Disabilities Act sidewalk compliance;

• $1.5 million for new artificial turf for Palmer High School; and

• $688,224 for Felton Street Upgrade project.

SUTTON:

• $600,000 for library land acquisition.

TALKEETNA:

• $30,000 for Talkeetna Road Service area #29 for road upgrades; and • $7,500 Talkeetna Elementary school library/technology upgrade.

TRAPPER CREEK:

• $30,000 Trapper Creek road service area #30 for road upgrades; and • $7,500 Trapper Creek Elementary school library technology upgrade.

WASILLA:

• $800,000 Wasilla Senior Center upgrades and improvements;

• $2 million for South Mack Drive Extension;

• $750,000 East Susitna Avenue Extension; and

• $300,000 Wasilla Airport Train Station.

WILLOW:

• $100,000 Willow airport parking lot; and

• $2,500 Willow elementary playground fencing.

Find S.J. Komarnitsky online at adn.com/contact/skomarnitsky or call 352-6714.

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