Soldotna's Centennial Park will be closed to pedestrians and campers for most of May so the city can address the park's dead and dying beetle kill trees, which it says pose a fall risk.
Andrew Carmichael is director of the Soldotna Parks and Recreation Department. He said the campground will open May 20 this year, rather than May 15.
"We have opened even later than the 20 before, due to weather," Carmichael said. "So as far as the 20-year average, we’re still within the normal window.”
Instead of basing that opening off weather alone this year, the city's basing it off beetle kill.
Spruce bark beetles have been decimating trees at Centennial and other city-owned parks, making them more prone to toppling.
The city is in the process of addressing that threat. At its meeting Tuesday, the Soldotna City Council greenlit a contract with a construction company to deal with the beetle kill trees at the park.
Carmichael said until crews finish hauling away the risky trees, the city is asking people to avoid the park completely. That includes the park's walking trails, which will be closed between May 1 and May 20 to pedestrians.
Carmichael said when work is done, the campground will look a lot more open.
“If they’ve driven by Cooper Landing, by the Russian River Campground turn-in where all the spruce is gone, it’s going to be a lot like that," Carmichael said. "We’re not going to be totally clear-cut, but around the sites and those areas we’re going to have very few trees left because so many are dead.”
At the Soldotna City Council meeting Wednesday, Public Works Director Kyle Kornelis said crews hope to begin work Monday.
“The requirement is to conclude their work in Centennial and Swiftwater Park — which is nearly 1,000 trees — by May 19,” he said.
Carmichael said the May 20 finish date could change if the contractor hasn’t finished up by then or if the roads and pathways in the campground haven’t firmed up enough for drivers.
