Repairs to the Homer Airport are expected to start next month, after a water main break in March caused flooding and structural damage to parts of the building, city officials said.
While air service saw minimal interruption immediately after the break, Public Works Director Dan Kort said there was about 4 inches of water in the building “and rising” when city staff arrived on scene that day. The water main has since been repaired.
Water damage occurred across the facility, but the flooding also washed away sand beneath the concrete slab foundation under the cargo area. Both the cargo area and the airport bathrooms remain closed. Throughout the building, travellers will see where several inches of drywall from the ground up has been removed from the interior walls.
The city’s most immediate concern, however, is the airport roof.
“When the flood happened, it actually lifted up the slab about four inches and it pushed the (cargo area) walls up into the rafters and broke a bunch of the roof trusses as well,” Kort said. “It’s basically equivalent to earthquake damage.”
Roof repairs will likely start in November “to make sure it can bear snowload through the winter,” he said.
Engineers are currently working to complete design for the full airport remediation needed. Kort said he expects the city to open bidding for the rest of the repairs — including the foundation, interior walls, bathrooms and cargo area — in January or February, with construction starting “immediately afterwards, as quick as possible.”
The bathrooms also will receive some accessibility upgrades to meet current Americans With Disabilities Act standards.
“They met ADA compliance when they were constructed, but those rules periodically change over time and … they’re a little outdated,” Kort said. “The ticket counters will also be getting an upgrade for ADA compliance.”
In the meantime, a mobile restroom unit is located outside the main airport entrance and will be available throughout the winter.
“I know there’s frustration for how long this takes, but it takes time to do the design and … work through things with insurance. That’s just the nature of it,” Kort said.
City to pursue essential air service
In other airport-related matters, on Monday the Homer City Council tasked city manager Melissa Jacobsen with pursuing essential air service for Homer.
Homer is eligible to apply to the Essential Air Service program, administered by the U.S. Department of Transportation to help small communities maintain a minimum level of scheduled air service.
As of 2024, 65 Alaska communities use the EAS program, the U.S. DOT website says.
During Monday’s Committee of the Whole meeting, Mayor Rachel Lord explained that, following the city’s application, U.S. DOT would put out a Request for Proposal that air carriers can bid on and provide a federal subsidy to the winning airline to support regular service to the community.
Resolution 26-065 says the city “wishes to pursue every available option” as Homer’s scheduled air service “has become less reliable in recent years.”
After airline Ravn Alaska ceased all operations in 2025, Homer was left with one option — Aleutian Airways, operated by Sterling Airways — for scheduled flight service. Recent posts on the Homer Communications Facebook page show some community members are choosing instead to travel by bus or fly with Grant Aviation out of the Kenai Airport due to frustrations with Aleutian’s cancelling or delaying flights.
Sterling Airways marketing and communications director Katie Loughlin responded via email Wednesday that the company is aware of those concerns but recent disruptions represent a “very small percentage” of its operation.
“Aleutian Airways has maintained strong operational performance in Homer, completing approximately 98% of scheduled flights thus far in October and 100% of all our flights in September,” she wrote.
Cancellations generally occur because of safety, weather, maintenance or other operational considerations, she said.
Jacobsen said the city’s pursuit of essential air service, while happening concurrently, is not directly related to the airport repairs or any issues with Aleutian.
“I think people were struggling a little bit even before (the water line break),” she said. “I think the essential air service is an opportunity to be able to find more reliable service … it might not be perfect, but it will be something.”
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