Daniel Hasche, Rachel Lord, Caroline Venuti and Joni Wise participate in a Homer City Council Candidate Forum at Homer Public Library in Homer, Alaska, on Monday, Sept. 18, 2023. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

Daniel Hasche, Rachel Lord, Caroline Venuti and Joni Wise participate in a Homer City Council Candidate Forum at Homer Public Library in Homer, Alaska, on Monday, Sept. 18, 2023. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

Homer City Council hopefuls tackle housing, transportation, harbor

The forum was the fifth of eight being held throughout September heading into the Oct. 3 municipal election

Candidates for Homer City Council gathered Monday in the Homer Public Library to talk about their bid for public office and issues facing city voters as part of a candidate forum hosted by the Peninsula Clarion, KDLL 91.9 FM and KBBI 890 AM public radio.

The forum, hosted in partnership with the Central Peninsula League of Women Voters and the Homer Public Library, was the fifth of eight being held throughout September heading into the Oct. 3 municipal election.

Over the course of about an hour, candidates fielded questions from forum moderators Ashlyn O’Hara, the Peninsula Clarion’s government and education reporter, and Kathleen Gustafson, host and producer at KBBI.

Participating in Thursday’s forum were incumbent city council members Rachel Lord and Caroline Venuti, as well as Daniel Hasche and Joni Wise. Homer City Council members serve three-year terms.

Rachel Lord, who has served on the Homer City Council since 2017, owns Alaska Stems, a flower farm and shop in Homer, and has previously served on the Homer Economic Development Commission, the Homer Farmers Market Board of Directors and the Kachemak Heritage Land Trust Board of Directors.

Caroline Venuti, who has also served on the Homer City Council since 2017, taught in the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District for 30 years and now works as the Learning Resource Center coordinator at the University of Alaska Anchorage’s Kachemak Bay Campus.

Joni Wise is a former employee of Homer Middle School and West Homer Elementary School who is now an Indian Child Welfare Act worker with the Seldovia Village Tribe and a Guardian Ad Litem for the State of Alaska. She is also the financial manager at Wise Electric and is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in business administration.

Daniel Hasche has a background in construction and tourism and has lived in Homer for six years. He describes himself as fiscally conservative and has said preservation of grassland on the Homer Spit, regulating bed and breakfasts and promoting the city are among the issues that are important to him.

Harbor expansion

In response to news last week that the City of Homer will have to put up more money for the long-awaited expansion of the Homer harbor, candidates offered different takes.

Hasche said the city should ensure that it has the infrastructure to accommodate the influx of new visitors such an expansion should bring, while Venuti said its as much a public safety need as it is a need for a city experiencing commercial growth. Wise said she didn’t have any concrete ideas regarding fundraising, and Lord said the expansion, while needed, will be a slow process.

“I know there’s been a lot of energy and excitement about it happening now and a lot of feeling like there’s all this federal money with these infrastructure bills … but at the end of the day, I mean, a large project like this is going to have a longer timeline,” Lord said. “We are really out of the starting gate of it and when it comes, we and our federal partners need to be on board.”

Transportation plan

More than one candidate expressed concerns about how the city should regulate e-bike use in the city, particularly regarding a transportation plan on which the City of Homer is currently soliciting public comment.

Venuti said regulation of electric bicycles is something that the city has discussed, including whether or not any motorized vehicles should be allowed on city trails. Hasche said that electronic bikes are motorized and should therefore potentially have their own lanes such that they do not obstruct pedestrians.

“I think that needs to be addressed,” Hasche said. “These things can be 35 miles an hour and they are motorized vehicles.”

Lord said more generally that, when it comes to transportation, she’d like to see Homer shift away from a model that puts cars and vehicles first, noting that she wants to be able to travel safely by foot with her children or while running.

“I think that’s one of my biggest goals, looking at the transportation plan of the city moving forward in terms of movement infrastructure, is making it be accessible to all people and all modes of transportation and trying to at least shift a bit away from (being) fully car-centric and making sure that it’s a safe place,” Lord said.

Affordable housing

On the topic of Homer’s lack of affordable housing, Venuti said it can be a difficult problem to talk about because the word “affordable” can mean different things to different people. Lord said she’s had employees who struggle to find affordable housing in Homer, and said the city “absolutely” has a role in helping address the problem, whether through planning and zoning regulations or limiting short-term rentals.

Hasche called a lack of affordable housing “the biggest problem in Homer right now.”

“As far as the BNBs go, maybe put a cap on that or incentivize in-state residents instead of the out-of-state people,” Hasche said.

Wise said the city should pursue balance with regulating short-term rentals and residential structures that are used for business purposes.

“Those things are concerning to me, not because I don’t think that it’s everybody’s right to sell their house and do what they want to do with it,” Wise said. “That is their right as a citizen of Homer or a citizen of the United States. However, we do have to figure out how to get to a place where we’re not overinflating these houses.”

Budgeting

On the topic of the city budget, Hasche said he’d like to see the city spend money on anything that helps promote tourism, while Wise said she would take a fiscally conservative approach that was informed by input from city staff. Venuti and Lord pointed to deferred city maintenance projects that are eating away at some city finances, with Venuti emphasizing the costly nature of updating the city’s fleet of vehicles.

“If anybody has purchased one car, imagine replacing all of our police cars, or all of our fire trucks … you can’t do it at once,” Venuti said.

Candidates were also asked about their vision for the future of the Homer Education and Recreation Complex, or HERC, buildings, which have long been known to be contaminated with hazardous material.

Hasche said Homer should look to other cities, like Fairbanks. Lord said the city is making slow progress on the project, while Venuti said the longer it takes for demolition work to begin, the more hazardous material and work the city is going to find.

Wise said the city has been talking about the HERC buildings for years with little actual action taken.

“I would like to see … the council, the people in charge, those who are able to make these decisions … make the decisions and stick with the plan and go for it,” Wise said. “I see a lot of a lot of talk, a lot of questions, a lot of studies and not a lot of movement on certain areas. I’d like to see some more definitive things.”

Building community

Candidates had different opinions on what they think contributes to a high quality of life in Homer. Hasche pointed to the tourism industry and local arts scene as among Homer’s strengths, while Wise and Lord emphasized the city’s rich community fabric. Venuti pointed to the city’s local businesses and said she’s a big proponent of shopping local.

“I’m so happy that Pioneer businesses — I see the same people there all the time, same workers, same dedication of service,” Venuti said. “I encourage everyone to shop locally because I think that is the beauty of this town is that we do support the town.”

Candidates also talked about how the city helps communicate emergency notifications and were given the opportunity to make opening and closing statements during Monday’s forum.

Monday’s full candidate forum can be streamed on the Clarion’s Facebook page, on KDLL’s website at kdll.org or on KBBI’s website at kbbi.org. The next forum will be held on Thursday, Sept. 21 at the Seward Community Library and will feature candidates for Seward City Council.

Election Day is Oct. 3 and absentee in-person voting started on Sept. 18.

Reach reporter Ashlyn O’Hara at ashlyn.ohara@peninsulaclarion.com.

More in News

Liz Harpold, a staff member for Sen. Donny Olson (D-Golovin)​, explains changes to a bill increasing per-student education funding and making various policy changes during a Senate Finance Committee meeting on Thursday, April 24, 2025. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Revised education bill with $700 BSA hike gets new policy measures, advances to Senate floor

Changes easing charter school rules, adding new district evaluations fall short of governor’s agenda.

Students of Sterling Elementary School carry a sign in support of their school during a special meeting of the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District Board of Education in Soldotna, Alaska, on Wednesday, April 23, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
District adopts budget with severe cuts, school closures

The preliminary budget assumes a $680 increase in per-student funding from the state.

A vote board shows a veto override attempt Tuesday by the Alaska Legislature on a $1,000 increase to per-student education funding falling short of the necessary two-thirds majority with a 33-27 vote. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire file photo)
Senate adds $700 BSA hike to school phone policy bill a day after veto override on $1,000 increase fails

Lawmakers say quick floor vote by Senate, concurrence by House may set up another override session.

The Soldotna Public Library is seen on a snowy Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022, in Soldotna, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Soldotna library advisory board hears update on federal funding cuts

The federal government’s dismantling of the Institute of Museum and Library Services could cause the reduction or elimination of some statewide library services as soon as July 1.

Protestors stand with an American flag and a sign that reads “DEFUND HATE” on Saturday, April 19 at WKFL Park during the “Sustained Resistence, Makes a Difference” Rally. (Chloe Pleznac/Homer News)
More than 600 gather in Homer for ‘Sustained Resistance, Makes a Difference’ rally

It was at least the third time this year the Homer community gathered to protest the Trump administration.

Sen. Jesse Bjorkman, R-Nikiski, speaks in support overriding Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s veto of House Bill 69 at the Alaska Capitol in Juneau, Alaska, on Tuesday, April 22, 2025. (Mark Sabbatini/Juneau Empire)
Legislature upholds governor’s veto of increased school funding

The governor last week said he vetoed House Bill 69 because it didn’t include any policy changes and because of the state’s “deteriorated” revenue outlook.

Kenai Central High School’s Kyle Foster speaks during the 35th Annual Caring for the Kenai Oral Presentations at Kenai Central High School in Kenai, Alaska, on Thursday, April 17, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Seward freshman wins 35th Caring for the Kenai with thermal asphalt proposal

Twelve finalists were chosen in this year’s competition.

Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R-Alaska) speaks to reporters about his decision to veto an education funding bill at the Alaska State Capitol on Thursday, April 17, 2025. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)
Dunleavy’s veto of education funding bill puts pressure on lawmakers during final month of session

Governor also previews new bill with $560 BSA increase, plus additional funds for policy initiatives.

Brent Johnson speaks during a meeting of the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly in Soldotna, Alaska, on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Assembly kills resolution asking for option to cap property assessment increases

Alaska municipalities are required by state statute to assess all properties at their full and true value.

Most Read