Nikiski Alaska

Nikiski is located approximately 16 miles north of Kenai on the Kenai Spur Highway, This area is where numerous offshore oil platforms produce much of the crude oil used in the Tesoro Refinery. These offshore oil platforms can be scene from the drive along the Spur Highway.

Mainly an industrial development, Nikiski also has a growing number of bush style homes, a grade school as well as its own high school to service the local residents. The town of Nikiski is just one block long with a post office, grocery store, and a gas station in a small strip style mall that is intermixed with a large number of oil and gas service businesses, industrial storage areas, a fish processing plant and a fire station.

Nikiski High School is part of the Alaska public schools of the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District.
Located in Nikiski, AK, the schools student population is approximately 400 students in grades 7-12.

Shift work is the norm in the Nikiski area as it is in most oil and gas service areas. Workers spend from days to weeks at a time away from home and family. Areas with these demographics have proven themselves to have an increase in adverse social issues like those Nikiski is experiencing. Drugs, alcohol, vandalism and domestic violence dominate this area decreasing its value as a tourist destination. This is a rough area experiencing many social problems. We do not suggest this area for families or casual visitation at this time. We give Nikiski “Two Thumbs Down” and suggest it not be added to your list of places to visit on the Kenai Peninsula.

Is Tourism To Be In Nikiski's Future?

Not known as an area with much to offer those vacationeers to he Kenai Peninsula, Nikiski tourism remains predominantly dormant as the provision and services to support this leisure travel have disappeared over the past 20 years.

Captain Cook Park located at the very end of the North Road remains as the sole survivors in the industrial expansion of the area.

Bernice Lake was a popular picnic, camping and swimming area. The site was managed as a unit of the State Park System until 1992 when it was closed due to constant vandalism. This recreation area and campground has remained closed to public recreation and lake access every since.

Nikiski residents requested assembly support for Resolution 93-136: Supporting the Nikiski Parent/Teacher Association's Request for Adequate Trooper Coverage in the Nikiski Area. Residents noted Nikiski's population was greater than Soldotna's, and cited the high incidence of crime in the area, the vandalism rate in Nikiski was 41% of all reported incidents in the school district, high volume of traffic due to shift changes at the industrial plants, and increased nomadic visitors. She said Nikiski supported greater trooper coverage for all areas in the borough, but the physical distance from the trooper station validated trooper presence in the community.

Vandalism, vehicle joyriding, petty theft and teenage parties caused a lot of concern on the North Road last year. Domestic violence, drunk driving and driving without a license or insurance kept the Kenai Police and the Alaska State Troopers busy throughout the year, while several cases of sexual abuse showed that Nikiski is not immune from big city crimes. This is not how we need to be portrayed to those looking to visit our area and facilitates the immediate need to reverse this trend if tourism is to be in the future for this area.

Currently, the majority of the land in Nikiski is in private ownership. When this occurs, public access is greatly limited. Vandalism and littering have resulted in lost access to recreational areas and therefore the loss of a local tourism activities. Please help preserve these that which remains by respecting the rights of the private property owners as well as all public lands you visit.

Read Things to do in Nikiski Alaska for our pick on activities in the local area.

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Alaska Job Skills and Training!

With all the problems the area has, it still offers excellent pay for oil and gas workers in the Petroleum Refining, Welding, Non Destructive Testing, as well as many other career fields. Competition is not very high for these jobs in Nikiski as most are now requiring some post high school education. Many of the workers are hired outside the state and transferred into the area after a brief training period.

Trade Schools and junior colleges offer courses and certificates in many of the petroleum career fields including courses for plant operators, instrument techs, pipe fitters, welders, maintenance workers, environmental, safety, industrial hygiene, emergency preparedness and response as well as many other needed areas within the industrial job market.

Alaska Environmental Engineering is always looking to fill positions with individuals possessing experience and expertise in air quality, compliance and permitting, spill response, and environmental management systems.

Whether you're looking for an oilfield job in Kenai or Tyonik, a pipeline job on the North Slope in Alaska or a drilling job in Anchor Point, companies like Baker Hughes, BP, Chevron, and others are all looking for new employees today. Additionally, Prudhoe Bay oil field on Alaska's North Slope is hiring workers with experience for repairs to the aging Trans Alaska Pipeline.

Oil & Gas Industry Jobs as well as Oil & Gas Job Fairs are being offered at colleges and trade schools in order to locate new workers. Search for new locations as jobs are being added on a regular basis.