Kenai’s Planning and Zoning Commission on a 5-1 margin refused to support a Kenai City Council effort to change the name of South Spruce Street to Kenai Beach Street.
In opposing the move, the commission cited opposition from two organizations located on the street.
The LeeShore Center and Our Lady of the Angels Catholic Church wrote to the commission in opposition to the resolution being considered by the council to rename the street. That move, introduced by Vice Mayor Henry Knackstedt, was said to provide clarity as to which road actually leads to beach access.
Members of the commission said they weren’t convinced the change was valuable enough to be worth even the seemingly minor impact to people who live on the street. Several suggested adding a sign to the road that says that there’s an access point to North Kenai Beach without changing the street name.
“I have never noticed that we’ve had any trouble with people knowing where the beach is,” commissioner Stacie Krause said. “Especially in July, during dipnetting season — I’ve seen it backed up onto the highway.”
Jeanne Reveal, another commissioner, was the only member to speak and vote in favor of the move. She said that, especially for visitors using digital technology for wayfinding, changing the name of the road to include “Kenai Beach” would help people more quickly find it as it would come up higher in search results.
The city council will still consider the resolution during their July 2 meeting, though their meeting packet will note that the commission rejected the idea.
A full recording of the meeting can be found at the City of Kenai Public Meetings YouTube channel.
Reach reporter Jake Dye at jacob.dye@peninsulaclarion.com.
