EDMONDS — Taking the position of Port of Edmonds executive director is a little like a homecoming for Bob McChesney.
Before beginning his role at the Port of Edmonds on June 1, McChesney finished five years as the executive director of the Port of Port Angeles.
While working in Port Angeles, he maintained a family home in the Richmond Beach neighborhood in Shoreline. Now he’s back in the area and glad to be a part of the Edmonds community through his new position.
“Edmonds is a wonderful, gracious community and I’m really proud to be part of it,” McChesney said. “It’s got all the feel of a small town in a large metropolitan area so it’s very, I think, amiable to a healthy lifestyle. That’s how Edmonds is; it’s about having a good lifestyle.”
The self-described “home boy” grew up in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle and graduated from Bishop Blanchet High School. He earned a bachelor’s degree in political science and master’s in marine affairs from the University of Washington. He has spent the past 20 years working in the port industry.
His experience with the port industry began after he spent several years working for a steamship company and learned about vessel and terminal operations, McChesney said. Although his specialty was in port and marine transportation management while earning his degree, he decided to shift from a focus on “ships, and cargo and manning machines” to port operation for a broader appeal when beginning his career.
McChesney was chosen from a pool of 74 applicants for the position by the port commission in early April after former Port of Edmonds executive director Chris Keuss announced he would retire at the end of May.
“I think that having had considerable experience in the port industry and recent experience as an executive director was helpful for being appointed to this position,” McChesney said.
Before joining Port Angeles, he was the properties director for the Port of Everett.
While McChesney expects the Port of Edmonds will continue to be defined by the marina, he also knows some challenges lie ahead, namely the redevelopment of the Harbor Square property.
“My intention over the first few months of my tenure will be to understand and manage those properties so that over time I think that the port strategic direction will shift ever so slightly and become focused increasingly on the property side,” he said.
His job at the Port of Edmonds will have similarities and differences from the same job title he left behind in Port Angeles, McChesney said, but he’s looking forward to learning as much as he can about the Edmonds port and the surrounding community.
“I’m really happy to be here,” he said. “We have our challenges, there’s no doubt about it, but I think we have the right commissioners and the right staff and the right vision to move the port forward.”
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