This article was updated on 6/20/23 to include new information on the status of the harbor’s floats and crane.
The fishing season is upon us and changes are afloat down at the Dillingham harbor. This includes repairs on half of the harbor floats, which have seen the better part of 50 years of fishing in the Nushagak District.
"All the time that it spent in the water has given a lot of wear and tear to it," said Daniel Miller, Dillingham’s new harbormaster. "We're seeing a lot of rust and developing holes, thinning of the walls of the floats.”
In previous summers, the floats have had to be pumped out up to three times a day, which Miller said is a lot of water — and a lot of work for the harbor staff.
The city council approved repairs for two floats in the first week of June. This is a reversal from a previous meeting in May. The cost of repair is $28,445 per float. Miller said these repairs are complete, with both floats splashed in the water last week.
“Both of them are in the water now and they look like they’re holding up really well,” he said.
But despite the repairs, Miller said the harbor will be down a float this season because of damage to one of the unrepaired floats.
“Eastside docks are a little shorter. We're going to be a little bit short on space this year due to one of our floats not being in great condition,” he said.
Miller says there are six floats total, and two more floats will be repaired after the fishing season is over. He says the short-term goal of these repairs is to get another five years of use out of the current float system. With this spring’s repairs, the floats will likely only have to be pumped once a year.
The long term objective is to completely replace the harbor’s floats. The state legislature allocated $5 million dollars to Dillingham harbor repairs this session as part of its budget, which the governor is reviewing. If approved, these funds could help with the eventual replacement of the harbor’s floats.
There are a few other big changes at the harbor this season. The ice machine is broken. Miller said the machine has functioned faithfully since 1997, but this year, the compressor broke and needs to be replaced, though that won’t happen this season. Additionally, the harbor’s bathhouse hours have been reduced. For now, it will be open from 7 a.m. until midnight. Miller said the city made the change in response to vandalism of the bathhouse, and that these new hours are subject to change.
Use of the harbor’s crane is on hold. This season, the harbor had planned to charge $85 an hour to use the Stellar Crane on the Bulkhead, but as of last week, the crane did not pass inspection.
“Sometime this week I'm expecting to get a full report from the inspector on what's wrong with it and what’s needed to fix [it]. From there, we will be able to pursue getting it fixed,” Miller said.
If the crane is repaired, the new fee will go into effect on July 1st. Miller said the goal is to make more money for the city.
"The city needs to make more revenue in certain places. The harbor in the past has been kind of a money pit in some ways. So we're trying to make up for that deficit a little bit more,” he said.
Miller said that the harbor wants to promote and prioritize safety as well. Narcan kits will be available at the harbor office and the Dillingham EMS and Fire Department building next to Tide Table.
"We have Narcan kits here at the harbor office, for any fishermen that want them," he said. "It's good to have, even if you don't expect to have any problems… We have lots of it. And the volunteer fire department will have more for us throughout the summer as well.
Miller reminds anyone who would like to use the harbor services to check in with the harbor office first.
Get in touch with the author at jessie@kdlg.org or 907-842-2200.
