City of Kenai

Members say it’s tough for them to meet even the bare minimum to hold meetings. Last year, the commission cancelled more than half of its meetings leading up to the work session where they considered sunsetting.

Kenai Fire Chief Jay Teague says structure fire risk tends to increase during the winter months, but the two recent hotel fires are anomalies.

Voters will consider whether to move city elections from October to November. The Kenai Peninsula Borough and the City of Soldotna made the same change after roughly two-thirds of peninsula voters enacted the change through a ballot proposition.

The move would keep city and Kenai Peninsula Borough elections aligned, saving some money.

Kenai City Council members last Wednesday agreed to spend $200,000 on access to Wildwood Drive’s underlying right-of-way from the Kenai Native Association. The move comes after years of disagreements over who should be responsible for upkeep.

Pettey will take the seat previously held by Henry Knackstedt, who left the seat to run for mayor.

Efforts to bring the three bronze bears to Kenai started two years ago. The installation had an estimated cost of around $200,000. But Bondurant said Thursday the actual cost came in under budget – around $172,000.

The roughly 5,000-foot rock berm along the north shore of the Kenai River parallels the bluff, which loses about three feet a year due to erosion.

Every council member, some city staff and attendees thanked outgoing Mayor Brian Gabriel for his contributions to the city.

The bears are scheduled to arrive in Kenai from Utah next month, in time for an unveiling at the end of October.