CIRI selling its Hawaii property

January 26th, 2016 Posted By: Morgan Howard No Comments

-Pacific Business News

CIRI, an Alaskan Native corporation, is selling its 13 acres of undeveloped oceanfront land in Hawaii that’s primed for a luxury residential project for an undisclosed price, the company with the listing said Monday.

Located in Poipu on the South Shore of the island of Kauai, the Makahuena Point Subdivision has 10 parcels that are fully entitled for luxury homes and is described as the last remaining undeveloped oceanfront parcels in the area, according to CBRE Hawaii, which is listing the property for the owner, CIRI Land Development Co., a subsidiary of Cook Inlet Region Inc. CONTINUE »

ANCs search for Oil and Gas

January 12th, 2016 Posted By: Morgan Howard No Comments

by Alex DeMarban- Alaska Dispatch

Doyon used this rig to drill a well in the Nenana basin in 2013, about 60 miles southwest of Fairbanks. The company is planning to drill a third well this summer in its hunt for oil. Doyon

Alaska Native regional corporations are wildcatting for oil and gas in the state’s frontier basins, eyeing little-explored prospects after dusting off old studies by major oil companies.

They aren’t seeking the huge petroleum discoveries like those on the North Slope that have buoyed giants such as BP, Exxon Mobil and ConocoPhillips.

Instead, they say smaller finds will serve their goals of creating jobs for local residents and providing affordable energy in villages beset with towering costs, including more than $10 a gallon for gasoline and heating oil in some areas. CONTINUE »

Calista announces fall dividend for second consecutive year

October 20th, 2015 Posted By: Morgan Howard No Comments

Alaska Dispatch staff

BETHEL – Calista Corp., the Alaska Native regional corporation for the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, announced Wednesday that it was issuing a fall dividend for the second year in a row.

The $2 million Akilista Dividend will be paid out by Nov. 13, Calista said. The corporation has about 13,000 shareholders. Those who hold 100 shares, the average, will each get $151, Calista said.

This marks the second year that Calista is awarding two dividend distributions, a spring dividend from its business operations and a fall dividend from its investment portfolio.

Since its creation under the 1971 Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, Calista has distributed more than $33 million, more than half of that in the last three years. Unlike some regions, Calista does not have big mineral or logging resources to develop.

Begich signs new client focused on Native American issues

March 30th, 2015 Posted By: Morgan Howard No Comments

Alex DeMarban – Alaska Dispatch

March 30, 2015

Former U.S. Sen. Mark Begich.Loren Holmes photoFormer U.S. Sen. Mark Begich of Alaska will provide consulting services to a top legal firm focused on American Indian and Alaska Native matters.
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AFN opposes proposed Alaska Judicial Council changes

March 6th, 2014 Posted By: Morgan Howard No Comments

by Jerzy Shedlock, Alaska Dispatch.

Alaska Federation of Natives President Julie Kitka, pictured here at the 2013 AFN Convention, says there is no evidence to suggest the proposed changes to the Alaska Judicial Council are necessary. Loren Holmes photo

The state’s largest Alaska Native organization is rallying against a resolution that would increase the membership of the Alaska Judicial Council, which screens and nominates judicial vacancies.

The Alaska Constitution created the seven-member council that oversees the selection and retention of judges. Republican Sen. Pete Kelly’s Senate Joint Resolution aims to amend the constitution and add three additional members to the independent citizens’ commission. The resolution initially called for the addition of nine new members but was amended. CONTINUE »

BBNC explores for copper and gold

February 20th, 2014 Posted By: Morgan Howard No Comments

Anchorage Bay, near the Chignik Airport at the southern edge of Chignik Bay is seen in this 2005 aerial photo from West Construction Co. Bristol Bay Native Corp. plans to explore copper and gold prospects in areas around Chignik Bay in conjunction with Millrock Resources Inc. this summer. The Chignik fishery had a harvest of 3.4 million salmon, including 2.4 million sockeyes, worth $23.3 million in 2013.

Photo/File/West Construction Co.

Less than a month after Bristol Bay Native Corp. issued a statement supporting the Environmental Protection Agency’s conclusion that the proposed Pebble mine would endanger region salmon stocks, the Alaska Native corporation announced it had secured a partner to explore for copper and gold on company lands on the Alaska Peninsula.

The “area of interest” covers about 480,000 acres from north of Chignik Bay to Stepovak Bay to the southwest on the Gulf of Alaska side of the peninsula. The area is believed to contain approximately 125 million tons of near-surface copper ore and “remains open for exciting new discoveries,” according to a report from BBNC’s project partner Millrock Resources Inc.

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Gwitchyaa Zee Corp. employee suspected of fraud

February 5th, 2014 Posted By: Morgan Howard No Comments

A Fort Yukon woman may have stolen more than $100,000 from the Alaska Native corporation for which she used to handle finances. By allegedly falsifying records from the corporation’s fuel store and stealing money from a safe, the state says, she collected enough cash to fund two family vacations and purchase a new vehicle.

Zelma Louie Fairchild is accused of stealing $118,085 over five months, according to an affidavit filed last week in Anchorage. She allegedly stole the money from the Gwitchyaa Zhee Corporation, a Fort Yukon-based Native village corporation.

The Office of Special Prosecutions is handling the case, but the charges have yet to go through a grand jury, so it hasn’t been decided if there is enough evidence against Fairchild to go forward with a trial.

Gwitchyaa Zhee draws some of the profits for its shareholders from a fuel store, and it’s from the store’s daily sales sheets that Fairchild allegedly funneled more money than her salary paid. The alleged thefts have come back to haunt her, as charges weren’t handed down until four years after the crimes are believed to have been committed. CONTINUE »

Sequester to impact Alaska Native Corporations

March 6th, 2013 Posted By: Morgan Howard No Comments

By Joaqlin Estus, KNBA

Across-the-board federal budget cuts are coming, half from the Department of Defense budget; the other half to other federal agency budgets. But how will the cuts will affect Alaska Natives?

Cuts to the Department of Defense, budget will lead to reduced funding for Army and Air Force base operations and civilian employees likely will go on two days a month of leave without pay. DoD cuts will also affect Alaska Natives through a Small Business Administration program. Under SBA 8(a), Alaska Native for-profit corporations, federally recognized tribes across the country, and Native Hawaiians are given advantages in bidding on federal contracts. In fiscal year 2011, nationwide, SBA 8(a) participants secured $16.7 billion in contracts. Executive director of the Native American Contractors Association Kevin Allis says the upcoming cuts put those contracts in jeopardy. CONTINUE »

AFN in Fairbanks for 2013

December 7th, 2012 Posted By: Morgan Howard No Comments

from Alaska Dispatch

The annual Alaska Federation Natives convention — the largest annual gathering of indigenous people in the United States — will head to Fairbanks next year.

That’s according to Helen Renfrew, director of meetings and conventions for the Fairbanks Convention and Visitors Bureau. She said the vote — taken by the AFN board of directors — was close. CONTINUE »

AFN CONVENTION 2012

October 18th, 2012 Posted By: Morgan Howard No Comments

2012 Convention: The AFN Convention is the largest representative annual gathering in the United States of any Native peoples. Delegates are elected on a population formula of one representative per twenty-five Native residents in the area and delegate participation rates at the annual convention typically exceed 95 percent.

Each year, the AFN Convention draws between 4,000–5,000 attendees. The proceedings are broadcast live via television, radio and webcast reaching a diverse audience from Barrow to Ketchikan, from the Aleutian Chain to the Canadian border. During the convention, the entire state of Alaska is blanketed with discussion on current events and issues. International observers are present at most meetings, both exchanging information and learning from the Alaska Native experience.