Kodiak Urban Area: Demographics & Economy

The Kodiak Urban Area includes the road system communities of the City of Kodiak, Kodiak Station (U.S. Coast Guard Base), & Women's Bay.

Population (size & census year)	City of Kodiak: 5937; Kodiak USCG Station: 1941; Womens Bay: 703 Census Year: 2006
Percentage Alaska Native	13.10%
Seasonal Population	There is an influx of summer workers in the fishing industry, especially at canneries in the Kodiak Island area.
Local Housing Units (total, occupied & vacant)	Estimated 2006 Total: 2255; Occupied: 1996; Vacant: 259
Brief History	The Island has been inhabited for the past 8,000 years. The first non-Native contacts were with Russian fur trappers in the mid-late 1700s. Sea otter pelts were the primary incentive for Russian exploration, and a settlement was established at Chiniak Bay, the site of present-day Kodiak. At that time, there were over 6,500 Sugpiaqs (Koniags) in the area and the Island was called "Kikhtak." It later was known as "Kadiak," the Inuit word for island.
	The Town of Kodiak was incorporated in 1940. During the Aleutian Campaign of World War II, the Navy and the Army built bases on the Island. Fort Abercrombie was constructed in 1939, and later became the first secret radar installation in Alaska. Development continued, and the 1960s brought growth in commercial fisheries and fish processing. The 1964 earthquake and subsequent tidal wave virtually leveled downtown Kodiak. The fishing fleet, processing plant, canneries, and 158 homes were destroyed - $30 million in damage. The infrastructure was rebuilt, and by 1968, Kodiak had become the largest fishing port in the U.S., in terms of dollar value. The Magnusson Act in 1976 extended the U.S. jurisdiction of marine resources to 200 miles offshore, which reduced competition from the foreign fleet, and over time, allowed Kodiak to develop a groundfish processing industry.
	Today, the local culture surrounds commercial and subsistence fishing activities. The Coast Guard comprises a significant portion of the community, and there is a large seasonal population. Kodiak is primarily non-Native, and the majority of the Native population are Alutiiq. Filipinos are a large subculture in Kodiak due to their work in the canneries. A Russian Orthodox Church seminary is based in Kodiak, one of two existing seminaries in the U.S. The Shoonaq' Tribe of Kodiak was federally recognized in January 2001. A branch of the University of Alaska Anchorage, Kodiak College is located in the City of Kodiak.
Present-day Economy	The Kodiak economy is based on fishing, seafood processing, retail services and government. Adaptability and diversification in a variety of fisheries has enabled the Kodiak economy to develop and stabilize. 665 area residents hold commercial fishing permits, and numerous fish processing companies operate here year-round. The largest processors include Trident, Ocean Beauty, North Pacific, and Western Processors.
	Tourism is a growing component of the Kodiak economy. Recreational fishing opportunities, bear watching, hiking and kayaking draw a large number of tourists every year, and an increasing number of bed & breakfasts cater to summer tourists."
	The hospital and City also rank among the top employers.
	The largest U.S. Coast Guard station lies just south of the city. The Kodiak Launch Complex, a $38 million low-Earth orbit launch facility on 27 acres, was completed over 8 years ago at Cape Narrow near Chiniak. The Kodiak Launch Complex, operated by the Alaska Aerospace Dev. Corp., is the only commercial launch range in the U.S. that is not co-located with a federal facility. The KLC launched its first payload in November 1998. In August 2003, Alaska Aerospace Dev. Corp. was awarded an $8 million contract to handle two or three Missile Defense Agency launches in 2003-2004. The Kodiak-launched missiles will be targets, not interceptors. With similar launches planned annually over the next five years, the contract could be worth up to $40 million.
	The Kodiak Chamber of Commerce provides economic development services to the area.
Local Jobs	3,159
Subsistence	More than 2.3 million pounds of wild foods are harvested annually in the Kodiak Island Borough. Over the entire Borough, annual wild-food harvests average 169 pounds per person. The figure above shows a relatively lower dependence on wild foods for communities in the Borough compared with other communities throughout the state. By community, wild-food harvests range from 151 pounds to 451 pounds per person per year.
Unemployment Rate	5.00%
Median Household Income	$55, 142
Other Information

More information: Kodiak Island Convention & Visitor's Bureau

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