Projects that survived the vetoes included the expansion of the Anchorage Fire Department Station 11 in Eagle River, the development of a local Anchorage Police Department substation, and money for a traffic safety and calming study for the core area of Eagle River.

The $496,000 for the firehouse expansion was the largest-priced item among local projects that remain in the budget.

Station 11 Capt. Bill Miller said the station expansion is vital to providing adequate fire service to the area. The money will go toward converting a building that was not originally designed to be a fire station. He added that the sleeping quarters at the station will be expanded.

A $130,000 grant to APD included in the final version of the supplemental budget will pay for the development of a staffed substation in Eagle River. According to APD spokesman Lt. Paul Honeman, the facility will be located in the planned Eagle River Town Center -- assuming the proposal to buy the building goes through -- or at the current police substation.

The governor also spared $100,000 for a traffic safety and calming study for the downtown Eagle River business district.

Even after the vetoes, the supplemental budget totals $4.3 billion. It includes $300 million for energy conservation, $125 million for oil and gas tax credits, and $44.7 million for bargaining unit agreements. Another $3.6 billion will go into the state savings accounts of the constitutional budget reserve and statutory budget reserve.

“Alaska is blessed to have surplus revenues that we can save for the future when oil price and production declines. I applaud legislators for committing $3.6 billion of the (fiscal year) 2008 surplus to savings,” Palin said in an April 3 written release. “At the same time, high oil prices have hit Alaskans hard in the cost of energy. Funding for weatherization and energy efficiencies will help families across the state.”

The Legislature had included $70 million in capital projects that were vetoed last summer, including nine local projects.

Local projects cut from the bill included funding for an Alaska Veterans Memorial Museum feasibility study ($25,000), building maintenance at the Chugiak Benefit Association ($20,000), the preservation of historic documents by the Chugiak-Eagle River Historical Society ($5,000), the expansion of the McDonald Recreation Center ($990,000), technology and other upgrades to the Chugiak-Eagle River branch library ($370,000) and to address drainage issues on Yosemite Drive ($500,000).

When signing the bill, Palin said supplemental budgets are reserved for unforeseen expenses, not items that should be part of a capital budget. She recommended the House Finance Committee consider adding the vetoed projects, which totaled $35.4 million, as an amendment to the capital budget.

Reach the reporter at darrell.breese@alaskastar.com.

This article published in The Alaska Star on Thursday, April 10, 2008.