To date, there is not one public boat launch on the south side of the Kenai River, for Funny River area residents or tourists to launch a boat. That’s about to change after the Kenai Peninsula Borough approved a resolution for one at their meeting on Tuesday.

The resolution unanimously passed the assembly. Roughly 20 community members came out to speak in support of the resolution, which came from Mayor Charlie Pierce.

Pierce: “People need a way to access the river safely, they want to fish. If you go to Funny River there is a lot of state land adjacent to many of the properties and the state has closed those sections to bank fishing. On that side of the river the access to the river to fish, the families that live on that side, there access is limited.”

The Alaska Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game jointly manage a piece of property at Mile 12 of Funny River Road, known locally as the Kenai River Ranch or the Hansen property.

Fish and Game and DNR proposed to residents three plans for developing the site in 2015: one that would do nothing other than repair the bank, another that would include a boat launch and parking area, and a third that would provide no boat launch but would allow bank fishing.

Pierce: “There is two sides to the story. I think there are those folks that would prefer Funny River not have the influx of added pressure to that side of the river with the numbers of people. They are coming anyway though, is what I would say to those people who are opposed to building a state-run facility on the Funny River side. Folks are already there, they have counted at that section line easement an excess of 118 cars parked up and down that road.”