Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

Denali Borough officials are scheduling a neighborhood meeting and have invited government leaders from Fairbanks.

Denali Mayor Dave Talerico said the late-February meeting will be held in his community. It will focus on railroad operations, energy issues and other topics, and public officials from Fairbanks, the Matanuska Valley, Nenana and Anderson have all been invited.

“It just seems like a very appropriate time to put our heads together, and put our forces together, and see where we’re headed in the future,” Talerico told Fairbanks North Star Borough Assembly members Thursday.

Talerico said the five communities have much in common — for example, the state railroad corporation has it eye on projects in four out of the five. He also said Denali officials would like to discuss concerns that a recent movie romanticizing the true story of a 24-year-old traveler who died near Denali National Park could result in an influx of inexperienced tourists in central Alaska looking to visit the wilderness.

Gas talk slated

Assembly members have invited oil producer ConocoPhillips to address the group at a work session next week. The company has been looking to the public with its proposal to build a natural gas pipeline across North American since Gov. Sarah Palin rejected the plan early last month. Nadine Winters, the assembly’s presiding officer, said she was contacted by a representative of the company about the possibility of a meeting, and that the assembly will hear from company representatives at its Committee of the Whole meeting Thursday night.

Contact staff writer Chris Eshleman at 459-7582.