Kenai Peninsula

Seward asks residents how to ease congestion between harbor, cruise dock and downtown

Seward wants ideas on easing navigation and congestion between its harbor, cruise dock and downtown, and is asking for them at an open house Tuesday.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago1 min read

Soldotna Elementary parents and staff propose a charter that keeps neighborhood enrollment

Soldotna Elementary parents want a charter where neighborhood kids skip the lottery, application and parent contract. The school board reviews it Monday.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Follows: Soldotna Elementary parents and staff seek to convert their school to a charter

Seward council takes up moving city elections to November, starting in 2027

Seward council holds a public hearing Monday on moving city elections to November, enabling a November 2027 vote.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w 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

Kenai asks to join the federal review of a proposed undersea data center in Cook Inlet

Kenai wants a seat at the table as a Massachusetts company seeks to study putting 330-plus tidal turbines and 66 computer pods in Cook Inlet.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min readFrom Oct 7

Federal regulators give Seward cruise dock contractor another year to finish pile driving

Feds gave Seward's cruise dock contractor another year to finish its last 12 days of pile driving. The lone commenter wanted sound checks. The budget said no.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Kenai man gets more than 14 years for conspiring to traffic fentanyl into Alaska by mail

A Kenai man who prosecutors called the region's main fentanyl supplier got more than 14 years for conspiring to mail over four kilograms of it to Alaska.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Troopers cite Nikiski man over out-of-season moose and missing harvest ticket

Troopers cited a Nikiski man over a spike bull moose they say he took out of season, without the free harvest ticket the state requires for general hunts.

by Bill AlaskaNews3w ago1 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

Central Peninsula Hospital gets OK for an ear, nose and throat clinic in Soldotna

Central Peninsula Hospital plans an ear, nose and throat clinic, likely in 2027. A doctor warned that once the area's ENT retires, it's Anchorage or bust.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min readFrom Oct 6

Seward planning commission approves fourplex on Phoenix Road with conditions

Seward's planning commission approved a 4-unit fourplex on Phoenix Road for developer Phil Zimmerman, with parking, trash and landscaping conditions.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Seward planning commission backs letting 3- to 5-unit housing skip conditional use permits

Seward's planning commission voted 5-0 to let 3 to 5 unit housing skip conditional use permits if builders meet set rules. The City Council still must approve the change.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Seward and its chamber weigh a study of how much tourism money stays in town

Seward wants to know how much tourism money stays in town. At a work session, locals asked about J-1 wages, outside-owned rentals and empty winters.

by Melinda Communities.News3w ago3 min read

Chugach, the Alaska Chamber's business of the year, has bought five Alaska firms since 2024

Chugach, which bought Cordova's Copper River Fleece this summer, won the Alaska Chamber's big-business award. It has bought five Alaska firms since 2024.

by Melinda Communities.News3w ago2 min read

Fish and Game offers 20 permits Wednesday for a Resurrection Peninsula goat hunt

Fish and Game opens 20 permits Wednesday for a November goat hunt on the Resurrection Peninsula. Take a nanny and you're out of goat hunting for five years.

by Bill AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Kenai Peninsula Assembly president proposes filling vacant seats until 30 days left in a term

Kenai Peninsula Assembly holds a hearing tonight on Ryan Tunseth's rewrite letting it fill vacant seats until 30 days before a term ends, matching state law.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

VA seeks proposals for a 20-year lease to house its Kenai Vet Center outstation in Soldotna

The VA wants a 20 year lease for office space in Soldotna to house its Kenai Vet Center counseling outstation. Proposals are due Nov. 25, with price counting less than site and quality.

by Melinda Communities.News3w ago2 min read

Kenai plans to spend $50,000 replacing damaged holiday decorations along the Spur Highway

Kenai plans to replace worn Spur Highway holiday light decorations using $50,000, favoring repeated designs over many unique ones.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min readFrom Sep 8

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

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

Board of Fisheries will weigh Homer Spit net closures and a Kodiak trawl ban

Homer Spit nets, Kodiak trawlers and who gets the last Cook Inlet king are all on the Board of Fisheries' winter menu. Public comments are open now.

by Bill AlaskaNews3w ago3 min read

Soldotna Elementary parents and staff seek to convert their school to a charter

Soldotna Elementary parents and teachers want to turn their neighborhood school into a charter. A district committee picks the plan back up Monday.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Coast Guard's Seward shipyard job on the Sitka cutter Kukui reaches $3.3 million

The Coast Guard's tab for work on a Sitka buoy tender at a Seward shipyard went up 18 times this year, from about $2.2 million to about $3.3 million.

by Melinda Communities.News3w ago1 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

Water flows over Seward Highway near mile 13 north of Seward, Alaska 511 reports

Water is running across the Seward Highway near mile 13, north of Seward. The road's open, but drivers should slow down and not test the depth.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago1 min read

Kenai faces 29% jump in employee health premiums as council weighs Premera renewal

Kenai's employee health premiums are set to jump 29%, and that's after the broker negotiated Premera down from 36%. The council votes Wednesday.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

A second power link to Kenai would run under Cook Inlet

Alaska wants a second power line between Kenai and Anchorage, under Cook Inlet's tides and ice. First it needs builders, and $142.5 million more.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Soldotna police say Kodiak man fired gun in bar parking lot before fleeing

Soldotna police say a Kodiak man fired a gun in a bar parking lot and drove off in a Dodge Charger. He didn't get far, and he's being held without bail.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3w ago1 min read

Kenai Peninsula Borough and Soldotna man agree to end lawsuit over trespass ordinance

A Soldotna "First Amendment Auditor" and the Kenai borough agreed to walk away from his lawsuit. Each side pays its own lawyers, and the trespass law stays.

by Walter AlaskaNews4w ago2 min read

Like Vance and Trump, Cruz will campaign for Sullivan in a Republican-leaning region

Vance hit Fairbanks, Trump hit the Mat-Su and Cruz heads to Kenai. All three picked parts of Alaska where Republicans did best in 2024. We ran the numbers.

by Walter AlaskaNews4w ago3 min read

Troopers arrest Kasilof resident on DUI, weapons charges near Clam Gulch

Troopers arrested a Kasilof man near Clam Gulch after finding his car in a ditch, him asleep inside. He faces DUI and weapons charges for a loaded firearm while impaired.

by Walter AlaskaNews4w ago1 min read

Kenai commission rejects family RV campground permit on Tundra Rose Lane, 4-1

Kenai's planning commission voted 4-1 to deny Nicole and David Smith a permit for a family RV park on Tundra Rose Lane, citing traffic and neighborhood character concerns.

by Walter AlaskaNews4w ago2 min readFrom Sep 23

Kenai planners approve two Woodland Subdivision short-term rentals, one 3-2

Kenai OKs two Airbnbs in the Woodland Subdivision. Ash Avenue neighbors of 41 years lost 3-2, and one says she'll be back to oppose every permit.

by Walter AlaskaNews4w ago2 min read

Alaska's EMS clinicians gather for 50th symposium after a year of licensing changes

Alaska's EMTs head to Girdwood for their 50th symposium with a new compact, fingerprint checks coming and, in some places, a struggle to keep volunteers.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

State commission again proposes letting Cook Inlet setnetters fish beach seines

The Board of Fisheries put Cook Inlet setnetters on beach seines. Their permits don't cover seines. The state's permit commission is trying to change that.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Follows: East side Cook Inlet setnetters must prove recent fishing to stay in the fishery