||| FROM KIM KIMPLE for PORT OF ORCAS |||
Orcas Island residents are invited to a reception to meet the Port of Orcas Executive Director finalists.
The reception will be held:
Sunday, June 2 nd
5:30pm to 7:00pm
Madrona Room, Orcas Center
In March we announced that our previous Port Manager was leaving, and that we hired an Interim Manager to keep the airport running while we searched for a permanent Executive Director. Prothman, an executive hiring firm which specializes in small government organizations, was selected to conduct the search.
As a first step, the firm set out to determine what the community is looking for in a Port Executive – interviewing local community members, pilots, and citizens with a keen interest in airport issues. A broad request for applicants was then publicized with a response received from thirteen candidates both from the island and across the country.
Of these applicants, the top eight were presented to the Port Commissioners for review, four of which have been selected as finalists and invited to participate in the final hiring process.
Interested finalists will be present at the reception to meet with members of the public where we hope you will join us for a chance to engage with the final candidates, snack on sandwiches and cookies, and provide feedback about each individual to the Board of
Commissioners. No board action will be taken during the reception event.
Candidates will then complete in-person interviews the following day with a citizen hiring committee and in executive session with Commissioners. The Board of Commissioners will announce a future meeting for further discussion and to make a decision.
Please people, take some interest in your Port, and come meet the candidates. I know I’m going to. This is the only chance for the greater Public to meet and greet the candidates and ask questions, learn about them, and share any concerns or things you wish to see in a manager. Foremost in my mind to ask would be whether the off-island applicants are aware of the housing shortage, and cost of housing, in the San Juan Islands; Orcas in particular.
This is the 3rd search for a manager in several years. Previously, a person selected in the top 3 couldn’t find housing and decided to turn down the job. This housing risk is real. It’s why I feel it’s important to bring it up for consideration. Other important considerations are the Master Plan and safety – both in the air and on the ground. People skills are also right up there at the top, the Manager works with all kinds of people.
There will be forms at the reception for people to fill out and it is my hope that the citizen stakeholders and the commissioners will take your comments in mind. Kim Ihlenfeldt will be facilitating the stakeholder interviews, along with Prothman – the headhunting agency.
This is a taxing district and as such, needs the input of the taxpayers. The Manager’s job has gotten more complex in the past several years. The Port receives more monies and with those come more responsibilities.
Come and share your input and concerns, and meet our interim manager, Chip Long. Kim Ihlenfeldt (Kimple) did a fantastic job as our most recent manager and has stuck around to help with parts of the job, as it is generally agreed that this is turning into a two person job with many responsibilities and time demands.
Michael Johnson brought up a simple way to address the noise issue affecting us all, which is to have all planes fly mid=channel, over water rather than land, before making turns on takeoff of landings.
I used to do a Port email list which had 80 or 90 email addresses on it. That was before the current commission and recent past commissioners. The Port has come a long way from 2017-18. There is transparency. the minutes have been up on the website for a couple of years, the meetings are hybrid zoom and in person, there is good dialogue with the commissioners, Manager, Public and the FAA. People really ought to come check things out. Government is only as good as stakeholder involvement in it.