An emergency shelter set up for the 2012 Alaska Shield drill. / KUCB

It's been 50 years since the Good Friday earthquake rocked Alaska. It rattled some nerves in Unalaska, but not much else. The epicenter was hundreds of miles away.

Still, there's no telling when or where the next big quake might strike. That's why Unalaska is preparing for an imaginary earthquake and tsunami, in this year's Alaska Shield disaster exercise.

Local schools will evacuate on Thursday, and an emergency shelter will open Friday morning at the Parks, Culture, and Recreation Center.

Unalaska is a step closer to adding rules for construction camps to city code after Thursday’s planning commission meeting.

The commission approved four of five proposed changes to the zoning code, also known as Title 8. Those changes will go have to go before city council for final approval.

One set of changes creates set guidelines for where construction camps can go in town and how they should be set up. Right now, city code doesn’t contain detailed language about camps.

Unalaska’s planning commission will hold a public hearing Thursday on changes to the city zoning code, also known as Title 8.

Big issues up for discussion include construction camps and planned housing developments.

Planning Director Erin Reinders says right now, city code makes little mention of construction camps. That means the planning commission has to address them on a case-by-case basis.

City council moved to shift more than $4 million in funds from the water treatment facility project to the powerhouse project at their meeting last night.

The change would come after council accepts a loan from the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation.

It’s part of a budget amendment that got a first reading last night.

Vessels at the Carl E. Moses Small Boat Harbor might see a big drop in the charge for on- and off-loading cargo at the harbor’s drive-down float if city council approves changes to the fee schedule.

An ordinance amending the fees is up for a first reading at tonight’s council meeting.

Ports Director Peggy McLaughlin says in her memo to council that the current wharfage fees are unreasonably high for how the drive-down float is being used.

Businesses and factories that get their power from the city won’t be seeing changes to their electrical bills anytime soon.

At their meeting last night, City Council went over the current rates, who’s using power and how much the city is earning on it. They had some concerns -- like about the big differences in how much revenue is supposed to come from each group of users, particularly industrial ones.

City Council is set to ask the state to tear down the derelict torpedo building and allow the trooper vessel Stimson to stay in Unalaska at their meeting tonight.

The first resolution up for a vote shows support for keeping the Stimson homeported here.

The state is considering moving the patrol vessel to Kodiak, where it would still enforce fisheries in Western Alaska.

The fenced-off torpedo building overlooking the airport long-term parking lot in May 2013. /Courtesy: Peggy McLaughlin

City officials and local residents say they want the WWII torpedo building near Unalaska’s airport torn down.

That’s after pieces of lumber and debris flew off the building into cars in the airport long-term parking lot during last weekend’s windstorm.

City Manager Chris Hladick said at last night’s city council meeting that Troy Larue, from the Alaska Department of Transportation, is in town assessing the building’s condition.

City council will lay the groundwork for several paving projects at their meeting tonight.

Council will hold a public hearing and vote on a budget amendment that addresses paving funds and other items. The amendment would shift $4.75 million left over from previous paving projects into a 2014 paving fund.

Council will also vote on awarding two paving contracts. One would be for about $388,000 with PND Engineers for construction administration services on the paving work. The other is for $344,000 for R&M Consultants to do inspection and testing work.