The sign outside Soldotna City Hall is seen here on July 16, 2020. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

The sign outside Soldotna City Hall is seen here on July 16, 2020. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

Soldotna City Council votes to repeal emergency declaration and utility relief

The disaster declaration was enacted on March 19, 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Soldotna City Council unanimously voted to repeal the city’s disaster emergency declaration ordinance during its meeting on Wednesday, sending it to public hearing on June 9. The motion passed 5-0.

The repeal was introduced by Soldotna Mayor Paul Whitney. The disaster declaration was enacted on March 19, 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The council has voted to extend it on five additional occasions after it was initially enacted: last year on June 10, July 22, Oct. 14 and Dec. 31, and once more this year on March 24.

ADVERTISEMENT
0 seconds of 0 secondsVolume 0%
Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts
00:00
00:00
00:00
 

According to the official repeal ordinance 2021-011, the definition of the emergency declaration “means the condition declared by the principal executive officer of a political subdivision to designate the imminence or occurrence of a disaster.”

In an email Whitney sent to the council last week, he requested the members’ support in enacting the repeal.

“I believe the time has come to end the Citywide Disaster Emergency Declaration and return to some semblance of normalcy in our daily lives,” Whitney wrote. “The State of Alaska and many other communities within the State have ended their Disaster Emergency Declarations and I believe this is the time for Soldotna to do the same.”

If this emergency declaration is repealed on June 9, the utility ordinance 2021-012 — the temporary halt on water and sewer shutoffs due to the city’s emergency declaration during the COVID-19 pandemic — will also be affected.

The utility ordinance provided Soldotna residents some utility relief, not shutting off water or sewer if they were unable to pay it during the pandemic. That relief is set to expire once the disaster emergency declaration does. Soldotna residents with outstanding unpaid water and sewer bills will have 60 days to enter into a formal repayment plan with the city, which may not exceed two years.

The council originally voted to provide temporary utility relief on March 24, 2020, then passed by the Legislature on March 29, 2020 and signed into law by Gov. Mike Dunleavy on April 10, 2020. Last week Melanie Imholte, the Soldotna city finance director, sent an email to the mayor and city council regarding the moratorium on utility relief.

“The City’s disaster declaration is set to expire on June 9, 2021 at which time the City code requiring penalties to accrue on past due balances will apply,” the message said.

According to the email, there are currently around 25 utility customers that are more than three months past due on water and sewer bills.

Reach reporter Camille Botello at camille.botello@peninsulaclarion.com.

More in News

An Alaska Division of Forestry and Fire Protection vehicle stands among trees in Funny River, Alaska, on Oct. 2, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Early fire season begins with 2 small blazes reported and controlled

As of March 17, burn permits are required for all state, private and municipal lands.

A table used by parties to a case sits empty in Courtroom 4 of the Kenai Courthouse in Kenai, Alaska, on Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Strigle named new Kenai district attorney

Former District Attorney Scot Leaders is leaving for a new position in Kotzebue.

Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor Peter Micciche presents the findings of the Southcentral Mayors’ Energy Coalition during a luncheon hosted by the Kenai Chamber of Commerce in Kenai, Alaska, on Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Micciche reports back on Southcentral Mayors’ Energy Coalition

The group calls importation of natural gas a necessity in the short-term.

Christine Cunningham, left, and Mary Bondurant, right, both members of the Kenai Bronze Bear Sculpture Working Group, stand for a photo with Kenai Mayor Brian Gabriel and a small model of the proposed sculpture during a luncheon hosted by the Kenai Chamber of Commerce in Kenai, Alaska, on Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Model of bronze bears debuted as airport display project seeks continued funding

The sculpture, intended for the airport exterior, will feature a mother bear and two cubs.

The Kahtnuht’ana Duhdeldiht Campus on Thursday, Sept. 1, 2022, in Kenai, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninula Clarion)
State board approves Tułen Charter School

The Kenaitze Indian Tribe will be able to open their charter school this fall.

Alaska State Troopers logo.
Homer Middle School teacher arrested on charges of sexual assault and burglary

Charles Kent Rininger, 38, was arrested March 12 by Alaska State Troopers.

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski raises her right hand to demonstrate the oath she took while answering a question about her responsibility to defend the U.S. Constitution during her annual address to the Alaska Legislature on March 18, 2025. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)
Murkowski embraces many of Trump’s goals, but questions his methods

Senator addresses flood concerns, federal firings, Medicaid worries in annual speech to Legislature.

A researcher points out fragments of elodea found in the upper stretches of Crescent Creek caught on tree branches and down logs. (Emily Heale/Cook Inlet Aquaculture Association)
Homer conservation district feels impacts of federal funding freeze

Programs related to invasive species, habitat and trails, native plants and agriculture have all been negatively impacted.

Cemre Akgul of Turkey, center left, and Flokarta Hoxha of Kosovo, center right, stand for a photo with members of their host family, Casady and Patrick Herding, at the Kenai Chamber of Commerce and Visitor’s Center in Kenai, Alaska, on Friday, Nov. 29, 2024. (Photo provided by Patrick Herding)
International students get the Alaska experience

Students to share their experiences visiting the Kenai Peninsula at a fundraiser dinner on Sunday.

Most Read