End of Eagle Era - Eagle Lady Jean Keene, arguably one of Homer’s most famous citizens, died Jan. 14 at the age of 85. Friends and photographers around the world mourned her passing, but the eagles she devoted her life to feeding continued to roost around her Homer Spit home. That sparked concern from wildlife officials on whether the eagle-feeding should end so abruptly. After much public input, debate and discussion, the Homer City Council voted to let Keene’s assistant continue the feeding as a way to wean them off free fish lunches. Council then enacted a ban on eagle-feeding into law, taking effect March 29. (Photo by Cary Anderson)

Redoubt Roars - After months of toying with observers, Mount Redoubt’s fickle on-again, off-again temperament continued to keep Kachemak Bay residents consistently on the edge. The volcano, some 100 miles northwest of Homer, first blew on March 22, and sent ash north. Within a week, however, Redoubt’s ongoing activity had blanketed Homer in a quarter inch of gray, gritty ash. The eruptions also set off a wave of concern and speculation over the potential environmental nightmare, should the Drift River Tank Farm poised at the base of Redoubt rupture. Cook Inletkeeper sent an urgent message asking for the crude oil stored in tanks at Drift River to be moved. Three months later, the majority of crude was offloaded from the tanks until the volcano stabilized. Just this Monday, the Alaska Volcano Observatory again raised the alert level to “advisory,” and aviation color code to “yellow.”

Exxon squeezes out every drop - The long and slippery road to get Exxon to pay the settlement owed to some 11,000 plaintiffs harmed by the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill in 1989 finally saw some closure. A Ninth Circuit Court ruled in June that the oil giant should pay interest on the $507.5 million in punitive damages at a rate of 5.9 percent annual interest accrued since 1996. Many Kachemak Bay fishermen affected by the spill began seeing Exxon checks trickle in by fall, but few felt the long-awaited award compensated them for their loss.

East End Road Fire - When fire broke out near Mile 17 on East End Road in late May, residents in the area wasted no time responding to what many feared may be a repeat of the 2007 Caribou Hills Fire that burned some 55,000 acres of dry grass and spruce bark beetle kill. As word of the fast-moving fire quickly made its way around the East End neighborhood, people began showing up with whatever heavy equipment they had to help combat flames. Local water carriers showed up during the heated first days of the blaze to volunteer the contents of their tanks to firefighters, allowing the Homer Volunteer Fire Department to refrain from making time-consuming trips back to town to fill up.
The blaze took some 96 hours to suppress. By the numbers: • 1,074 acres burned • 2 homes lost • 8 outbuildings destroyed • 150 homes threatened • 261 firefighters responded • 4 helicopters • 2 air tankers • 4 bull dozers • 12 fire engines (Photo by Vikki Jones Wythe)

HEA turns up the heat - Just as the reality of winter began to set in at the close of January and a temperature drop left residents cold, Homer Electric Association fired things up around town with a rate hike to more than 21 cents per kilowatt hour. The increase hefted rates from 17.5 to 21.5 cents. HEA blamed the hike on an increase in the wholesale power cost adjustment. The hike, coupled with high fuel costs and a recession, left many families along Kachemak Bay literally choosing between food and fuel. At the new rate, the monthly bill for the average HEA member using 630 kilowatt hours was estimated to see an increase of approximately 20 percent. Customers from Kenai to Seldovia to Nanwalek saw an overall increase of 47 percent in rates since July 2008, making rates here some of the highest in the nation; certainly the highest on the road system. By April 1, rates dropped nearly 4 cents per kilowatt hour, and remained level throughout the year.

Swine flu arrives - The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention squealed loud, early and often about the much-dreaded “swine flu” that promised pandemic proportions. Following a makeover into a more appealingly named “H1N1,” the virus claimed thousands of American lives, but had a relatively small impact on Alaskans. Local health officials scrambled to dispense the vaccination that was meted out across the state according to population size. By year’s end, the vaccination was available to all Alaskans, and schools offered free shots to students. Currently, the CDC estimates a mid-level range of nearly 10,000 H1N1-related deaths in the United States between April and Nov. 14, 2009. Since May 1, the State of Alaska has had 464 hospitalized cases and 12 deaths related to novel H1N1.

Jewel shines in Homer - Returning to the stage where she held a fundraising concert some 20 years ago, singer/songwriter Jewel Kilcher returned home in early August to perform for locals in a sold-out fundraiser for the Bunnell Street Art Center’s “Artist in the Schools” program. In her earlier concert, a young Kirchner looked to raise money to attend a performing arts school in Michigan. She made it to Interlochen Arts Academy – and much further. Between her two Mariner Theatre performances, Kilcher released eight albums and picked up multiple music awards throughout her ongoing recording career. In her August performance, Kilcher shared the stage with father and Homer resident, Atz, for a few songs. In a coming-home, Jewel’s mother, Lenedra Carroll, also performed this fall at Bunnell in a singing style all her own. Carroll helped develop Jewel’s career, working as her manager until 2003.

Turning our backs on ‘the black seam’ - After raising eyebrows and blood pressure with its late-January rate hike, HEAD announced in January that it would look to lower electric rates to members by breathing new life into the long-mothballed Healy Clean Coal Plant some 80 miles southwest of Fairbanks. The idea was met with heated opposition, as concerned HEAD members pointed not only to the environmental unfriendliness of the “failed coal facility,” but also a “lack of transparency” from the HEAD Board of Directors. More than 75 gathered in Homer to protest the Healy deal. In May, the board voted 8-1 to forgo the coal controversy and transition away from the fossil fuel as an energy resource. HEAD subsequently pulled out of the HECK deal with the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority, who owns the plant, and Golden Valley Electric Association. Still, the combination of increased fuel and surge in power costs sparked an ever-increasing interest in alternative energy, as folks began seriously considering the feasibility of installing wind and solar energy systems.

Parnell visits Homer - After taking office following an early departure from former Alaska governor and vice presidential candidate Sarah Parlin, Gov. Sean Parnell made two visits to Homer to meet with students and civic leaders. He spoke about his concerns over dwindling oil and gas supplies in Cook Inlet, outlined possibilities for developing the outer continental shelf and explained how a new incentive system would help fund more college educations for young graduates. Other politics in Alaska made 2009 a turbulent year, with seemingly no end to the spotlight on state government as more officials faced corruption charges. However, former U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens was acquitted of federal corruption charges after it was discovered the prosecution withheld information from the defense in the case against him. Locally, a lively Homer City Council election brought out seven candidates, with incumbent Francie Roberts and newcomer Kevin Hogan taking their seats.

Turning 50 - Celebrations throughout the year took on new significance as Alaska celebrated her 50th year of statehood in 2009. Many celebrations provided an opportunity to look back at the slow rise of assembling a city government, a borough and the transfer of federal services to an emerging state system. Officials formed the “Alaska Statehood Celebration Commission,” and offered a number of historical items such as license plates, stamps and coins to commemorate her birthday. A giant Fourth of July celebration in Homer brought hundreds of people to carnivals, concerts and a parade that drew the biggest collection of floats in Homer parade history.