The Kenai City Council passed an ordinance that would amend municipal code to maintain current regulations on off-road vehicle use in Kenai after January 1, 2022. As of the 1st, the state is changing regulations to allow certain all-purpose vehicles on roadways where speed limit is 45 miles per hour or less, unless prohibited by municipal law. To maintain current regulations, the city made a change to the definitions section of municipal code.
Council Member Henry Knackstedt, who sponsored the ordinance, said:
“As was stated, currently it is illegal to take an ATV on a city or state road in the city of Kenai and that’s how our code is written, but it also makes reference to state law regulation and, basically, if we could just change little section take the state regulation out and it would still be illegal to use an ATV, but it’s a great opportunity while you’re working on the definitions to also include what an ATV is. Mr. Bloom helped me with this part, and I really don’t like lists because it’s hard to make them all inclusive but in this particular case it was really kind of necessary.”
Kenai Police Chief Dave Ross explained to council:
“Our city ordinance, our code that has not allowed ATVs on the road for years, is based on a definition of off-road vehicle that will no longer apply when that happens. Our code says that an off-road vehicle is one that’s not allowed on the road by state regulation, basically. So, come January 1st all those ATVs will be allowed on the road by state regulation, that make sense? Kenai municipal code says no off-road vehicles on bike paths, sidewalks, roads, parklands, private or public property without express permission. If we don’t change the definition, then off-road vehicles would probably be allowed in all of those places, bike paths, sidewalks, parks and stuff, so it’s important to change the definition. That’s all that this does.”
Ordinance No. 3260-2021 unanimously passed the Kenai City Council.