Kenai Peninsula Borough

The stretch of road is one of only two ways to get between the two communities and has a higher car crash rate than the statewide average. It also has the second-highest rate of moose collisions in the state.

Currently, eligible property owners can exempt the first $50,000 of their property’s assessed value from borough taxes. If the ballot proposition passes, that exemption would increase to $75,000.

Kelli Parker says her complaints to the Kenai Peninsula Borough’s Human Resources Department went unaddressed for months.

Proponents of the change say it would boost voter turnout in local elections, which consistently trails behind turnout in state and federal elections. But some city officials say the logistics of running elections concurrently would be challenging and expensive.

The Kenai Peninsula Borough already uses paper ballots. But it uses electronic tabulators to tally results. The borough added electronic voting machines to its fleet a few years ago for voters with special needs.

Analysis from the borough’s finance department says the change could generate up to half a million more dollars in sales tax revenue each year.

If the ballot measure passes, residents in the new service area would pay more in property taxes each year to fund recreation services, with an emphasis on the pool at the K-12 school.

The borough thinks its stranded 2,000 acres could be turned into a residential development. Housing availability on the eastern peninsula is notoriously limited.

The program is an effort to make it easier for peninsula residents to buy land. Under the guidelines, the borough will knock off a quarter of the successful bid amount.

The borough mayor says it's rare for the school district to get maximum funding – it’s only happened once in the last two decades. And he says it’s unsustainable.