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Soldotna, Alaska

Soldotna, Alaska
City
From top left: Joyce K. Carver Memorial Library, Kenai Peninsula Borough Building, aerial view of the City of Soldotna, Central Peninsula Hospital, Soldotna Creek Park, and the Kenai Peninsula College.
From top left: Joyce K. Carver Memorial Library, Kenai Peninsula Borough Building, aerial view of the City of Soldotna, Central Peninsula Hospital, Soldotna Creek Park, and the Kenai Peninsula College.
Official seal of Soldotna, Alaska
Seal
Location of Soldotna, Alaska
Location of Soldotna, Alaska
Coordinates: 60°29′12″N 151°4′31″W / 60.48667°N 151.07528°W / 60.48667; -151.07528Coordinates: 60°29′12″N 151°4′31″W / 60.48667°N 151.07528°W / 60.48667; -151.07528
Country United States
State Alaska
Borough Kenai Peninsula
Incorporated July 1967
Government
 • Mayor Pete Sprague
 • State senator Peter Micciche (R)
 • State rep. Gary Knopp (R)
Area
 • Total 7.4 sq mi (19.2 km2)
 • Land 6.9 sq mi (18.0 km2)
 • Water 0.5 sq mi (1.2 km2)
Elevation 105 ft (32 m)
Population (2010)
 • Total 4,163
 • Density 603.3/sq mi (231.3/km2)
Time zone Alaska (AKST) (UTC-9)
 • Summer (DST) AKDT (UTC-8)
ZIP code 99669
Area code 907 (local exchange prefix: 260, 262)
FIPS code 02-71640
GNIS feature ID 1414025
Website http://www.soldotna.org

Soldotna is a city in the Kenai Peninsula Borough, in the U.S. State of Alaska. At the 2010 census the population was 4,163. It is the seat of the Kenai Peninsula Borough.

Soldotna is located in the Southcentral portion of Alaska on the central-western portion of the Kenai Peninsula. The city limits span 7 square miles along the Kenai River, which empties into the Cook Inlet in the nearby city of Kenai. The Kenai River was selected by CNN Travel as one of the "World's 15 Best Rivers for Travelers," due to its fishing and hunting opportunities. Soldotna is located on the western edge of the vast Kenai National Wildlife Refuge, a protected area spanning nearly 2 million acres and home to bears, moose, caribou, sheep, and many fish and bird species.

The city is located at the junction of the Sterling Highway and the Kenai Spur Highway, which has enabled Soldotna to develop as a service and retail hub for the Central Peninsula as well as for travelers between Anchorage and Homer. The Central Peninsula Hospital serves the medical needs of the region's residents and tourists. The Kenai Peninsula College, a branch of the University of Alaska Anchorage, operates the Kenai River Campus in Soldotna. Additionally, the headquarters of the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge, the Kenai Peninsula Borough, and the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District are located in the city.

In 1947, after World War II, the United States government withdrew a number of townships along Cook Inlet and the lower Kenai River from the Kenai National Moose Range, opening up the area to settlement under the Homestead Act. Veterans of the United States armed services were given a 90-day preference over non-veterans in selecting land and filing for property. Also in that year, the Sterling Highway right-of-way was cleared of trees from Cooper Landing to Kenai. The location of present-day Soldotna was selected as the site for the highway's bridge crossing the Kenai River.


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