Kenai, Alaska, Works to Address Bluff Erosion

Sept. 14, 2021

Work will include clearing the site, installing a storm water manhole, piping, filling and final grading on the bluff.

Kenai, Alaska, is working to address bluff erosion near Bryson Avenue caused by a failing storm water pipe.

According to The Peninsula Clarion, the pipe that moves storm water from Redoubt Avenue to a drain near Bryson Avenue began failing due to rusty connections. These connections allowed water out of the pipe before it reached the beach, according to Kenai Public Works Director Scott Curtin. 

Water escaped from the pipe, causing parts of the bluff and sand to be carried away during storms, reported The Peninsula Clarion. Curtin estimates the pipe has been there for decades.

The project is located within a drainage easement between two properties at the end of Bryson Avenue. Curtin cautions that the erosion poses a minimal additional risk to neighboring properties.

In an Aug. 25 memo to the Kenai City Council, Curtin said that project materials are expected to take a few weeks to be staged. The total project is expected to take about two months to complete.

Curtin requested that the city council introduce and pass legislation appropriating project funding and work contract in the same meeting, reported The Peninsula Clarion. According to Curtin, the council did during its Sept. 1 meeting and also voted to increase contingency funding for the project from $15,000 to $45,000.

Work will include clearing the site, installing a storm water manhole, piping, filling and final grading on the bluff. A contract was authorized between the city and Foster’s Construction at around $310,000.

Including design and construction costs as well as city administration and permit fees, the project is expected to cost around $375,000, reported The Peninsula Clarion.

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Cristina Tuser