Port Lions

On a Friday in March, the Kodiak Public Library was filled with people perusing video game and movie merchandise during Fan Con, the town’s popular annual culture convention. Some folks sold earrings or stuffed toys but Guy Bartleson’s table was full of comic books.  Guy Bartleson holding two of his most valuable books, the first apearances of Iron Man and …

Kodiak Public Library hosted the island’s second-ever popular culture convention, Fan Con, on March 22 and 23. Attendees competed in video game tournaments, watched movies, made various crafts together, and heard from a published author. KMXT’s Brian Venua stopped by and has this story.  The library had several games set up and hosted tournamets for “Mario Kart 8” and “Super …

Kodiak’s proposed Anton Larsen Bay road extension has received a significant financial nudge forward from the federal government. Sen. Lisa Murkowski announced on March 20 $2.5 million dollars in funding for the project through Congress’ Fiscal Year 2024 appropriations package, which was signed into law earlier this month on March 9. Extending this road on Kodiak Island would provide year-round …

The head teacher in Port Lions urged the Kodiak Island Borough School District to address several maintenance issues during the district’s Board of Education meeting on Jan. 22. The Port Lions school has just two teachers – Shayla Demming handles the primary education and her partner, Ken Stockard, handles secondary education alongside a secretary/teacher’s aide.  Demming said they currently serve …

Construction on high speed internet infrastructure is expected to begin in the Kodiak Island communities of Larsen Bay and Port Lions this year, as GCI prepares to set up fiber internet around the island and Alaska Peninsula. GCI’s AU-Aleutians Fiber Project has two phases. The first involves connecting four Aleutian communities along with Chignik Bay and Kodiak’s Larsen Bay to …

The Kodiak Island Borough Assembly approved its capital improvement project priorities list at its meeting last night (Thurs, Jan. 4).  The St. Herman Harbor Infrastructure Replacement project tops the list, and the borough is asking for an estimated $5 million from the state going into the 2024 legislative session. St. Herman Harbor is owned by the City of Kodiak, and …

The Kodiak Island Borough’s efforts to get mail-in ballots to outlying communities in time for this Tuesday’s municipal election has run into some problems. Dorinda Kewan, Mayor of Port Lions. Port Lion’s mayor, Dorinda Kewan, says some voters haven’t received their ballots yet. “I’m concerned about the process they set up,” Kewan said. “I know it’s new. This has never …

Stormy weather in the Gulf of Alaska cancelled the Tustumena’s departure from Homer on Sunday night. In an online notice, the Alaska Marine Highway System said all ports of call scheduled for Monday, Sept. 7 are cancelled due to weather. Had the Tustumena departed Homer as scheduled at 8:45 Sunday night, it would have arrived in Port Lions and Ouzinkie …

It’ll be a tough winter for a lot of coastal communities that depend on state ferry service. “It’s greatly reduced,” said Amanda Becker, the ferry terminal manager in Kodiak. “There’s no two ways about it.” That’s how Becker sums up the new winter schedule, which was finalized after a brief five-day public comment period. Although the Alaska Marine Highway System …

The Alaska Marine Highway System is at a critical crossroads, as the first round of hearings on restructuring the ferry system gets underway this Wednesday. A nine-member working group is reviewing a $250,000 study commissioned by the Dunleavy administration, one that’s already ruled out privatizing the state ferry fleet, because it doesn’t pencil out. Now they will hear what the …