Kenai River Flats access project nears July 1 opening

A new river-access project at the Kenai River Flats wayside is nearing completion, with a contractor saying the facility will fully open July 1.

Alaska State Parks identified the project in a February construction update for the Kenai Peninsula. The work is at the existing wayside and river-access facility near the Warren Ames Memorial Bridge on Bridge Access Road, inside the Kenai River Special Management Area.

The project includes an elevated walkway with river-access stairs and paving for the existing wayside parking area and turnaround. State Parks said the work is being done in partnership with the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities and funded with Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council money.

The February notice said construction was scheduled to begin in spring 2025. A contractor post provided to Alaska News said the new access point was nearly finished and would be fully open July 1. The post included the tags "Kenai River," "elevated walkway," "river access" and "Chumleys Inc."

The Kenai River Flats work is one of 11 State Parks construction projects listed for the Kenai Peninsula in 2025. Other Kenai River Special Management Area projects named in the same notice include work at Eagle Rock, Big Eddy and Morgan's Landing.

State Parks said the projects may affect community members and business owners during construction and that the agency would provide more specific dates as seasonal planning moves forward.