Anchorage Daily News

The 4th Avenue Theatre, a landmark of old Anchorage, is out of foreclosure and in the hands of a San Francisco developer. May that developer respect the city's history.

We don't expect the old art deco movie house to begin screening first-run films again. The movie memories of many people who grew up here likely will remain memories.

But the landmark 4th Avenue Theatre sign and the old interior works of paneling, mural and twinkling lights in the ceiling are worth saving, and the theater itself might continue to be a downtown meeting place. The theater is a rich part of the city's history. For all its woes, the theater has never been a blight on the cityscape.

Sacred ground? No. The new owners deserve a chance to make good on their investment, and the market hasn't supported efforts at preservation. Neither have Anchorage voters, who rejected a $2 million bond to keep the theater as is in 2006.

But we wonder if the market has been thoroughly tested yet. With the old theater in the hands of developer Joe Fang, clear of bank and tax claims, maybe it can be incorporated into a larger project using a vacant lot the developer owns across the alley from the theater.

The city's track record in preserving the theater has been checkered -- $600,000 spent on preservation rights in the 1980s went to waste when Key Bank foreclosed on the property in 1989.

And when the city seemed to have a struck a complex deal with Robert Gottstein, the Rasmuson Foundation and Wells Fargo to save the theater in 2007, that deal fell apart when the city tried to give its role to the Downtown Partnership.

That record doesn't bode well for a renewed government effort to save the theater. Most taxpayers won't pony up for memories; many weren't here when the memories were made.

History and memory, however, are part of a community, even for short-timers. Some of that history should stand. Mr. Fang would do our community a huge service if he can arrange to keep the theater with us for another generation.

BOTTOM LINE: Alaskans need a few landmarks like this one to remember where we've been.

Palin veto

Governor rejected stimulus money on weak grounds

Gov. Sarah Palin started out with potentially valid concerns about accepting $28.6 million in federal stimulus money for weatherization and energy efficiency. But the Legislature checked out her concerns and found no reason to reject the money. So it's puzzling and disappointing that the governor vetoed the Legislature's acceptance of the money last week. Taking the money, legislators found, did not require imposing a brand new, one-size-fits-all statewide energy code that would cause hassles in small Alaska communities.

Alaska could qualify for the money based on local building codes. The codes already in effect in Anchorage, Fairbanks and other urban areas are likely enough. Small communities could remain exempt from any building or energy codes.

What stuck in Gov. Palin's craw was the provision saying a governor has to encourage communities to adopt energy efficiency standards for buildings.

She doesn't believe a governor should have to offer unsolicited advice about local matters to communities in the state -- even though energy-efficient buildings are clearly in the best interest of Alaska homeowners and renters.

It looks as if Gov. Palin's personal beliefs have prevented the state from joining a program that could have helped many Alaskans conserve energy and cut fuel costs. Now the money will go to some other state.

In effect, Alaskans will pay $28.6 million so Gov. Palin could remain pure on this particular point of her personal philosophy. She failed to realize that, in a case like this, a responsible leader has to be able to set aside personal feelings and do what's best for the people she represents.

BOTTOM LINE: Gov. Palin should have accepted federal stimulus money for energy cost relief.

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