Anchorage Daily News

>As money pours into the state treasury, some legislators are going crazy with ideas for spending it all. A proposal making the rounds in Juneau calls for spending $21 billion (yes, billion) on renewable and alternative energy.

That's a breathtakingly outrageous and irresponsible amount of money.

The Legislature already passed a bill this year to spend $250 million on renewable energy projects like hydro-power and wind power over the next five years.

But Rep. John Harris thinks we need to spend 80 times as much. He drafted the bill for a $21 billion, five-year energy project fund. The money isn't just for renewable energy; it's for "alternative" energy projects as well.

That's to make room for an unproven Fairbanks project that uses coal -- not a renewable resource -- to produce liquid fuels.

Fairbanks North Star Borough Mayor Jim Whitaker helped Harris develop the $21 billion bill, which so far is just in draft form.

"That number was chosen because that is a number that is meaningful," said Whitaker. It will give substance to a statewide energy plan the administration is working on, he said.

Maybe the state will need to put more than currently planned into renewable energy, but $21 billion?

That's enough money to fund the state's entire K-12 education system for two decades. Educating children is a constitutionally mandated function of state government. Supplying cheaper energy is not.

There's simply no need to change the renewable energy fund to an "alternative" energy fund that encompasses projects using coal, a dirty-burning fossil fuel.

Many ideas for getting affordable fuels to Alaskans are on the table. We're studying a Susitna dam, an in-state natural gas pipeline, wind power, geothermal. Exploring them all could burn up a lot of state money.

There's a TV show called "House" where a doctor named House is given the most difficult cases to diagnose. Every episode, House makes one wrong diagnosis after another, subjecting patients to extreme treatments that send them to the brink of death, before he finally arrives at the right answer.

Speaker Harris is playing Dr. House. He's ready to throw $21 billion at Alaskans' energy problems, with no idea which ones might actually work. Even with $140-a-barrel oil, Alaska can't afford that kind of gamble. What Speaker Harris wants to do is not an energy policy -- it's a political move that will empty the state's pocketbook.

BOTTOM LINE: Keep the focus on renewable projects, and keep the dollars committed to a reasonable amount.

Notebook

'SoNo'??

Heard about the happenin' new urban neighborhood in downtown Anchorage called "SoNo"?

Didn't think so. Unless you're a patron of the hipster joint Bernie's Bungalow, you don't have much reason to hang out "south of Nordstrom." (Bernie's is actually across the street to the west of Nordie's, but whatever.)

The city has decided it must help end the relative obscurity of this emerging urban scene. It has officially named the area and has put up signs letting all comers know they are in SoNo.

I'm sure the inmates at the halfway house south of Nordstrom at Ninth Avenue will be glad to know that.

In case you didn't know, SoNo isn't the only distinctive district in Anchorage's downtown. The city will put up signs proclaiming three more. There will be the Convention Center district, sited -- duh! -- around the new convention center. Just a couple blocks away will be the Art District featuring some local art galleries. And just a block or two away from that is the Historic District, centered on the historic 4th Avenue Theatre and old Federal Building.

Phew! That's a lot of names to cover not much real estate. But, if we're going to plaster downtown "districts" with names, I have a few suggestions:

Asphalt West, for the many parking lots around the Conoco Building and the Marriott Hotel.

Panhandlers' Alley, around the old city hall on Fourth Avenue. (Actually, that name could apply almost anywhere downtown, so never mind that one.)

East End. It doesn't have centuries of history, as in London, but what tourist is going to want to miss all those lovely auto dealerships? Plus, there's unique lodging available at the city's homeless shelter, and fine fare at the soup kitchen next door.

And -- the piece de resistance-- the Left Bank of Ship Creek. You won't see any Paris fashions, but this is the place for urban anglers who want to show off your latest garb from REI or Cabella's --provided you don't mind tromping through the tidal muck to pursue your salmon. You can unwind by hitting the vending machines at The Comfort Inn. And there's the Ulu Factory, in case you need one of those handy knives for filleting your salmon.

So don't wait for the city to put up signs before you check out all these cool areas. Otherwise, you'll be missing out on downtown Anchorage's Big Wild Life!

-- Matt Zencey

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