The next Lower Cook Inlet regulatory meeting of the State Board of Fisheries will be held in Seward, following scheduling of the meeting for Dec. 1 to 4, 2026, during a work session Tuesday, Oct. 29.
As part of an annual work session, the board set dates for each of its meetings in the 2026-2027 cycle. Board Executive Director Art Nelson prepared proposed dates, which each were accepted without objection.
The Lower Cook Inlet meeting will span four days, and if a venue cannot be secured for the accepted dates of Dec. 1 to 4, Dec. 8 to 11 have been chosen as backup.
When the board moved to discussion of the meeting venue, member Tom Carpenter, of Cordova, moved to hold the meeting in Homer. His motion was seconded by Mike Wood, of Talkeetna. Wood asked for unanimous consent on the move but Chair Märit Carlson-Van Dort objected "for the purposes of discussion."
The board "typically" rotates between Homer and Seward, she said. The board met in Homer in 2023 so Seward would be up next. The motion was swiftly revised and the board approved meeting in Seward by unanimous consent without further conversation.
The board did not discuss or cite calls received from Seward to host the meeting in their community in making their decision.
Included in meeting notes is a letter from Seward Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Samantha Allen, who writes in support of a call from the Seward Fish and Game Advisory Committee's effort to bring the meeting back to the eastern Kenai Peninsula.
"Seward's community is enthusiastic about hosting the Board of Fisheries meeting once again," she writes.
Another letter was unanimously authorized by the Seward City Council and penned by Seward Mayor Sue McClure, also asking the board to meet in Seward.
"We hope you will select Seward and enjoy our wide variety of hotels, restaurants, and holiday cheer in December," McClure wrote.
The board last met in Seward in 2019, when a meeting was held from Dec. 10 to 13 at the Alaska Vocational Technical Center's Student Service Center to consider 47 proposals affecting fishing regulations in Lower Cook Inlet. The board operates on a three-year cycle, so meetings are held for each regulatory area every three years -- with a year delayed in 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
A full recording of the Board of Fisheries work session can be found at adfg.alaska.gov.