The Kodiak City Council has yet to make a final decision on the name for its park and recreation center. That’s several months after receiving a recommendation to change the name from Baranof Park to Wamwik, which means “a place to play” in Alutiiq.
The newly upgraded recreation center includes an ice rink, a skate park, a playground, and more. But Aleksandr Baranov, for whom the park is named, was a figure of oppression for Alutiiq people.
Last year in March of 2023, the Qik’rtarmiut Alutiit Regional Advisory Committee [Qik Committee] sent a letter to Mayor Pat Branson and the city requesting the name be changed to anything else — something more inclusive. The committee cited Baranov’s exploitation and enslavement of Alutiiq hunters, along with other violent acts as reasons to not memorialize him.
"What I was saying is there’s a difference between names that have been used continuously from the period of significance of that name to the present," Molly Odell, an archaeologist with the Alutiiq Museum and chair of the Kodiak Historic Preservation Commission, said. "Baranof Park isn’t one of them. Baranof Park didn’t exist during the Russian period. Aleksandr Baranov had nothing to do with parks and recreation in Kodiak. I don’t know what the reasoning was behind naming Baranof Park, but I suspect it was just because the street was named Baranof.”
Odell told the City Council that, unlike other Russian names, Baranov has not been used continuously from the Russian period into the present day. She was in favor of changing the name to better reflect the area’s history. For example, Odell brought up the name of Shelikof which is tied to the Shelikof Strait and that name has been used continuously since the Russian time period.
Wamwik was one of the Qik committee’s suggestions for a new name. The majority of public comment — both in-person and online — favored that change. More than 50 public comments were submitted via email to the city about changing the park name, which does not include public testimony given in person during advisory board or city council meetings.
One email from Lynda Saqalngatak Lorenson said, “renaming the park to Wamwik Park would not only pay homage to the Alutiiq/Sugpiaq people but also serves as a visible symbol of inclusivity and recognition of our Indigenous history."
But Christie Chernoff, who identified herself as both Sugpiaq and Russian, argued that removing the name Baranof “cancels culture.” Instead, Chernoff said, “let’s continue to tell the story of the atrocities. Additionally, let’s also tell the beautiful story of the mixed Native/Russian lineage that remained after the occupation.”
So in August, the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board made a final recommendation to change the name to Wamwik Recreation Center.
But at this week’s city council work session on Dec. 3, council members didn’t seem to reach a consensus. Some of the council’s discussion turned towards the possibility of using different names for different parts of the city recreation area. As an example, the new playground could be called the Wamwik Playground, but the ice rink could be called something else.
The newly renovated recreation center has been open to the public for months and the new playground was officially unveiled during a public ribbon cutting ceremony on Oct. 2.
Councilmember John Whiddon said there was enough interest in using two different names and that the entire facility could be called Kodiak Community Park instead.
“But focus on the playground, which is the new facility, half-a-million-dollar facility, and call that the Wamwik Playground," Whiddon suggested to the council.
Based on city documents, the proposed name change to the Wamwik Recreation Center is ready to be finalized as soon as the council puts the proposal on a regular meeting agenda. But it’s not clear yet when the council will vote on it, as the rest of December's regular meetings have already been canceled.
