Simon Lopez

Wildfire smoke from Canada drifted into the southern Kenai Peninsula this week, creating hazy skies across the region; and the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District laid off dozens of pool, theater and library employees last week.

Homer’s first-ever Harbor Fest brought more than 1,500 people to the Spit on Saturday for an event that included food vendors, live music and a boat show; the Homer City Council approved the city’s operating budget and discussed projects related to trails, utilities and employee pay at its meeting last night; and a dead gray whale washed up on Kodiak Island late last month.

Strong winds delayed the chef competition, but organizers say vendor turnout and community support exceeded expectations.

Homer’s Pratt Museum will open the summer season with a presentation and reception for artist Sharlene Cline’s “Connected” today; the deadline has passed to apply for three volunteer board seats that help guide key public services across the southern Kenai Peninsula; and young anglers will have a designated area to fish for king salmon this Saturday at the Nick Dudiak Fishing Lagoon on the Homer Spit.

Homer’s Pratt Museum will open the summer season with a presentation and reception for artist Sharlene Cline’s “Connected” on Friday, June 6; the Homer City Council held a special meeting Monday night to discuss plans for expanding Homer’s Harbor; and three harbor seal pups are receiving care at the Alaska SeaLife Center, including one rescued last week from a beach in Homer.

The Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly approved next year’s property tax rates and passed a resolution honoring a Homer resident who died earlier this year at its meeting Tuesday.

Qualifying members of the Homer High School track and field teams attended the Division 2 state championship at Diamond High School in Anchorage last weekend.

National Maritime Day was yesterday, a small but important holiday recognizing the hard work that goes into a career at sea; and nearly 600 seniors graduated from the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District this week, marking a continued decline in student enrollment.

The Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly voted last night to postpone a decision on an ordinance that would set the borough’s budget and determine how much funding local schools receive; and Pier One Theatre’s second show of the summer is “Silent Sky;” another script composed by Lauren Gunderson.

Investigators say the surviving passenger told them the plane banked left about 100 feet above the ground before it went down.