Jenny Willoughby

For the past few years, the Talkeetna riverbanks have been eroding at the end of Main Street and downriver. According to Mat-Su Borough Public Works Director Tom Adams, there have been repairs to stop the erosion three of the last four years.

Current Mat-Su Borough land classifications along the Deshka River are based on the State’s Deshka River Recreation Management Plan from the 1990s. Borough Natural Resources Manager Emerson Krueger says the lower portion of the Deshka is classified for public recreation. But some of the Borough land in the middle river is classified as land bank, which is a holding class.

Since the Alaska State Trooper outpost was removed from the Talkeetna area in 2015, residents in the Upper Valley have tried to get it back. Captain Kid Chan attended the Trapper Creek Community Council meeting this week to discuss possibilities. He says there are a number of issues preventing them from reestablishing an outpost here.

The Mat-Su Borough is working to update the Talkeetna Transfer Station with a new entrance and to build a compost bay. Borough Solid Waste Division Manager Jeff Smith says a Solid Waste Infrastructure for Recycling grant is funding a new entrance and the compost program. Most of the 3.5 million grant is for building out the compost facility at the landfill in Palmer and the Big Lake transfer site, with the remainder for the Willow and Talkeetna sites.

The Mat-Su Borough CLEANS program helps residents who may be experiencing hardships to clean up their properties. Borough Development Services Manager Wade Long says residents can apply to the program for assistance with removing junk cars and trash.

Large gravel pits in the Mat-Su Borough have an outsized impact on the community in terms of dust, noise, and traffic, according to District 2 Assemblymember Stephanie Nowers. And, according to her, residents have been asking for a gravel tax for a long time.

The delayed spring has kept the fire season dampened so far, according to Alaska Division of Forestry and Fire Protection Information Officer Sam Harrel. But, he says, the season is turning.

The Mat-Su Borough Assembly voted down several tax proposals at their meeting this week. All are in an effort to diversify the tax structure.

Two women were murdered in Trapper Creek in the summer of 2023. Since then, the Trapper Creek community has revived discussions to reinstate the Alaska State Trooper post. The Talkeetna Post located at the Y was closed in 2015 due to budget cuts.

Two State-owned parcels on Front Street in Talkeetna will be transferred to the Mat-Su Borough to be used for water storage and a new well site, according to a Final Finding and Decision from Alaska Department of Natural Resources. But the 1.42 acres is still in the 100-year floodplain. This is one of the reasons for moving the well site from its C Street location.