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Numbers are stories in the last 30 days.
Photo: David Wipf via Wikimedia Commons · Photo source · CC BY 2.0
Three apply for the Homer City Council seat Shelly Erickson left to become mayor
The Homer City Council plans to interview three applicants Monday and appoint one to the seat Shelly Erickson gave up when voters elected her mayor Nov. 3.
Larry Anthony, Michael Heimbuch and Bob Shavelson had applied as of Thursday, according to a memo from City Clerk Amy Woodruff. Others can still apply until the meeting starts at 4:30 pm Monday.
The appointee will be sworn in on the spot and serve until November 2027.
Anthony spent 20 years with the Arizona Department of Public Safety, where he said he oversaw a budget of about $15 million to $20 million a year. He started a youth sports nonprofit in Arizona, and he and his wife own Still North Legal Solutions in Homer. He ran for the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly this year. He wrote that he would bring "an independent perspective, a collaborative approach, and a strong commitment to transparency, fiscal responsibility, and accountability."
Heimbuch has lived in Homer since 1975 and served on the council from 2005 to 2009. He lists commercial fishing and a term on the state Board of Fisheries in his background, and he has served on the city's Port and Harbor Commission and library board. He wrote that he led the council push for the city's nine-month break from sales tax on food, because "the cost of peak summer city services should not be borne by taxing the food of winter residents." He listed the harbor expansion and a possible extension of city services into Kachemak City as interests.
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Stories on what’s next
Seldovia Fish and Game Advisory Committee Meeting
Board of Fisheries to weigh pushing commercial nets back from the Homer Spit
Proposals say commercial nets off the Homer Spit block the way to the harbor, and the Board of Fisheries will weigh pushing them back as far as a mile.
Appeal Deadline for Homer Planning Commission Permit Decisions
Homer planners approve cabins and commercial buildings with stormwater plans required
Homer planners OK'd eight Lake Street cabins and two Ocean Drive buildings, with stormwater plans required. A neighbor says a planned ditch was never built.
Board of Fisheries Lower Cook Inlet Finfish: Written Comment Deadline
Board of Fisheries to weigh closing Homer Spit waters to commercial fishing
Two Board of Fisheries proposals would push commercial fishing back from the Homer Spit, by half a mile or a full mile. The board decides in Seward in December.
Homer City Council Public Hearing on Fund Balance Ordinance
Outgoing Homer mayor proposes a new rule for how much money the city keeps in reserve
Homer's outgoing mayor wants the city to save three months of spending, not four months of revenue. She's bringing it the night her successor is sworn in.
Latest
November 2026
Homer finds five missed ballots between dividers, and one is still unaccounted for
Homer found five ballot envelopes between sorting dividers and added eight ballots to its count. One is still unaccounted for. No result changed.
by Walter AlaskaNews2d ago2 min read
Homer councilmember wants to put the city's health insurance broker back on a flat fee
Homer's health insurance broker earns more when the city's premiums go up. A councilmember wants to go back to the flat fee the city paid until 2021.
by Walter AlaskaNews5d ago3 min read
Homer canvass board takes up 1,000-plus ballots with a council race 75 votes apart
Homer's canvass board took up more than 1,000 absentee and other ballots Friday, nearly matching Election Day turnout. One council race is just 75 votes apart.
by Walter AlaskaNews6d ago2 min read
Homer staff asks what matters most as float project estimate tops $22 million
Replacing Homer Harbor's 1964 floats is now estimated at over $22M, up from $17M. Staff wants the port commission to say what matters most if it's trimmed.
by Walter AlaskaNews6d ago3 min read
Fish board to weigh resident-first kings, Homer Spit nets and helicopter anglers
Alaska Board of Fisheries meets Dec. 1-4 in Seward on 50 Lower Cook Inlet proposals: resident king salmon priority, Homer Spit closures, helicopter limits and hatchery plans.
by Bill AlaskaNews1w ago3 min read
Homer advisory committee to weigh proposals pushing commercial fishing back from the Spit
Homer's fish and game committee meets Tuesday on proposals to push commercial nets back from the Spit over boater safety. The Board of Fisheries decides in Seward Dec. 1-4.
by Walter AlaskaNews1w ago2 min read
Homer draft would limit short-term rentals in 4 zones to operators' homes
Homer's draft rule would let short-term rentals in four residential zones run only where the operator lives. Planning commissioners weigh in Wednesday.
by Walter AlaskaNews1w ago3 min read
Kenai Peninsula school board votes Monday on 10-year renewal of Fireweed Academy charter
Kenai school board votes Monday on a 10 year charter renewal for Homer's Fireweed Academy, through 2037. • Same meeting, district leaders recommend denying a proposed Soldotna Elementary charter over budget and compliance issues.
by Walter AlaskaNews1w ago1 min read
More from Homer
Citizen board that advises on Kachemak Bay State Park meets Nov. 10 in Homer
The citizen board advising on Kachemak Bay State Park meets Nov. 10 in Homer. In March it backed a bill rewriting state habitat laws, Kachemak Bay's included.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1w ago1 min read
October 2026
Homer mayor's budget code proposal drops off Monday's council agendas
Homer's mayor has proposed changing the city's budget code. It isn't on either of Monday's final City Council agendas, and the agendas don't say why.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago1 min read
Homer's Fireweed Academy asks Kenai Peninsula school district to renew its charter for 10 years
Fireweed Academy asked the Kenai Peninsula school district to renew its charter for 10 years, through 2037. The district board and state board of education must still approve it.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read
Homer may ask the federal government to review its air service as boardings drop
Homer's mayor wants the city to ask the feds to review its air service. Boardings there have fallen by more than a third in two years. Valdez did the same in 2024.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read
Homer port director recommends inflation increases for most 2027 dock and harbor rates
Homer's port director wants most dock fees to rise with inflation. He's also eyeing Anchorage, where a cargo surcharge nearly triples in January.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read
Pier One Theatre seeks one more Homer Spit lease, and port staff want it to be the last
Pier One Theatre wants five more years in its $1-a-year city warehouse on the Homer Spit. Port staff say fine, but make it the last lease. The theater agrees.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read
Homer Electric bills rise about $8 a month as power cost charge climbs
Homer Electric raised its power cost charge Oct. 1, adding about $8 to an average monthly bill. It expects 117 days off the larger grid in the coming year.
by Melinda Communities.News3w ago2 min read
Homer voters will decide on the road tax, a council race and an Assembly seat Nov. 3
Homer votes Nov. 3 on keeping its road tax, a City Council race and a borough Assembly seat. The mayor's race has exactly one name on the ballot.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago3 min read
About Homer
Homer is a city on Kachemak Bay at the end of the Sterling Highway, on the southern Kenai Peninsula in Southcentral Alaska. It is known for the Homer Spit, halibut and salmon charter fishing and an arts community.
The city council and its commissions decide zoning, short-term rental rules, the city budget, and dock and harbor rates for the port on the Spit. Commercial fishing in Lower Cook Inlet and Kachemak Bay, including set nets near the Spit, is a recurring question before the Board of Fisheries.
Homer Electric Association supplies power to the area, and its rates, fees and solar programs affect households across its service area. Nearby communities include Anchor Point, Ninilchik, Seldovia, Halibut Cove and Fritz Creek.
More from Homer
Homer mayor proposes changing the rules for how the city writes its budget
Homer Mayor Rachel Lord proposed changes to the city's budget code, up for council discussion Oct. 26. A public hearing and possible adoption vote is set for Nov. 9.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago1 min read
Homer council to vote Oct. 26 on spending $60,000 to audit its volunteer fire department
Homer residents spent early 2025 telling the council its fire department was short on volunteers. Now the city may spend $60,000 on an audit to take a look.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read
Troopers say Anchor Point man fired handgun during argument on Anchor Point beach
An argument on Anchor Point beach ended with a handgun fired and a 40-year-old man in the Homer Jail, troopers say. He wasn't allowed to have the gun.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago1 min read
Homer's draft code would require engineered stormwater plans for far smaller projects
Homer's draft zoning code would make more projects hire an engineer for stormwater. Its community development director says drainage needs more than that.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read
Homer library board recommends making its meeting room free after hours
Homer's library got a security grille, so staff no longer need to stay late for evening meetings. Its board says the room should be free, night or day.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read
Mt. Edgecumbe review ends with 22 recommendations to the state board
A state review of Mt. Edgecumbe ends with 22 recommendations, from dorm rules to calling parents. Enrollment at the school is still below capacity.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago3 min read
Premera would save Homer money over Moda next year but raise employees' copays
Homer can pay Moda about $197,000 more in 2027 or switch to cheaper Premera plans with higher copays. Its broker says Premera may be "buying the business."
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
State plans to sell Homer contractor 5,000 cubic yards from Ohlson Mountain site
The state intends to sell a Homer contractor 5,000 cubic yards of material from atop Ohlson Mountain. That's roughly 400 to 500 dump-truck loads.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min readFrom 
Homer council to hear ordinance letting residents live-trap feral rabbits
Homer may finally let residents trap the feral rabbits damaging their homes. The catch: the shelter mostly can't take them, and you can't let them go.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Homer commission backs limiting residential short-term rentals to operators' homes
A Homer commission wants short-term rentals in residential neighborhoods limited to the operator's own home. It finalizes that advice Tuesday.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Alaska House members ask FCC to preserve E-Rate school internet discounts
Twenty-one Alaska House members asked the FCC to preserve E-Rate, which discounts school internet. Alaska's own school broadband grant depends on it.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min readFrom 
Corps seeks state water quality OK for $402 million Homer harbor to end five-deep rafting
Homer's boats tie up as many as five deep. The Corps wants a $402 million fix, Homer would owe about $170 million, and the math says 77 cents back per dollar.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min readFrom 
State proposes giving 5,805 acres to energy authority for Bradley Lake hydro expansion
DNR's 5,805 acres for the Alaska Energy Authority near Homer are for Bradley Lake hydro, where AEA says a glacier diversion could boost power 40%.
by Alaska News1mo ago1 min readFrom 
Prince William Sound parallel cod season closes to pot gear at noon Wednesday
Alaska closes pot fishing for Pacific cod in Prince William Sound at noon Wednesday, Oct. 7, following a federal season closure, while longline and jig seasons stay open.
by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
September 2026
Two Ninilchik men charged in alleged illegal bull moose harvest on Brody Road trails
Troopers say two Ninilchik men took a bull moose off the Brody Road trails during a motorized closure. Now they face eight misdemeanors between them.
by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Trail camera shows first fawns from deer moved to the southern Kenai Peninsula
A collared doe with two fawns is the first sign that deer moved to the southern Kenai Peninsula are having babies. Hunters, keep waiting: there's no season.
by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Homer Electric design fee for new hookups doubles to $1,000 Tuesday
Want power at your new place on the Kenai? Homer Electric's design fee doubles to $1,000 Tuesday, and three-phase hookups lose $3,000 in help.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Alaska Supreme Court: spouse's word alone cannot shield inheritance in divorce
Put an inheritance into the family home? In an Alaska divorce, your word alone won't get it back out, the Supreme Court says. Paperwork, it turns out, matters.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read
Hope's second Fox Fest brings three bands to Creekbend Cafe on Saturday
Hope's Creekbend Cafe hosts its second Fox Fest on Saturday, Sept. 26, with three live bands performing from 3 to 10 p.m. for $35 adults, free for kids 15 and under.
by Alaska News1mo ago1 min read
State's draft road plan puts about $551 million into Kenai Peninsula projects; comments due Oct. 29
The state's draft road plan pours over half a billion dollars into Kenai Peninsula roads, mostly the Sterling Highway. Speak now: comments close Oct. 29.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago4 min readFrom 
Homer asks FCC to keep internet discount that covers most of the public library's bill
Homer's library gets $11,970 a year from a federal internet discount the FCC is reviewing. The City Council would like it left alone, please.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min readFrom 
Homer's tsunami evacuation route is being raised and widened
The road Homer would use to get people off the Spit ahead of a tsunami is being raised and widened, with $1.17 million obligated toward it so far.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Homer man arrested on 11 felony counts in $8,000 Anchor Point theft
Homer man Wyatt Stollar arrested on 11 felony counts after roughly $8,000 in tools, jewelry, an ATV and firearms stolen from an Anchor Point property turned up at a pawn shop.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
State Parks tells Homer hikers to avoid new Kachemak Bay trails near moose kill
Alaska State Parks is warning Homer hikers to avoid new trails in the Cottonwood Eastland section of Kachemak Bay State Park because a moose kill near the construction site may attract predators.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read