Chuck Mikkola

As suggested by last week’s lawsuit by Pacific Seafood versus the Port of Peninsula and its manager, it’s difficult to understand how the port has ended up in such a tangled knot.

Observers in the other branches of local government and many private individuals who rely on the port are bewildered. Basic business practices and prompt answers to straightforward questions are in short supply. Prompt responses to the Washington Department of Ecology — and timely filing of permit applications — might avoid a heap of trouble, but it appears to be more than the port can manage.

Pacific Seafood, though not universally beloved in West Coast seaports, is a solid and professionally run corporation. To be sued by them is a serious matter, something to be avoided at all costs. Managing to worry and irritate this powerful company to the point where it is asking a judge to issue orders and essentially oversee port actions is eyeopening. It illustrates just how fraught the situation has become. If anyone new might have contemplated getting into business at the port, this lawsuit is a flashing red warning sign that all is not well.

Instead of threatening to counter sue, the port manager and board would be well advised to simply get their house in order. There are much better uses for the public funds that would be wasted on defense attorneys. It is reaching the stage at which the individuals involved are at risk of personal liability. Squandering money in a doomed legal fight might increase this risk.

As the company’s lawsuit argues, “Like an ostrich with its head in the sand, defendants are seemingly hoping if all the public outcries for answers and accountability are ignored that the multitude of problems will go away.” It’s past time to get back to business, in ways that don’t create legal liability.

At a time when many would run from any connection with such a mess, it’s gratifying that two candidates are running for a seat on the port commission. We are grateful to each of them. Chuck Mikkola, who many of us have known for decades as a transportation expert, is the best choice to wade into this quagmire and begin sorting things out. His attendance at port meetings this year and his resulting reports in the Observer have helped us all stay abreast of developments in the port controversy.

As a board member for the local Loren H. Corder Foundation, Mikkola dreamed up the annual Food Bank Challenge, a successful fundraising drive that has helped feed hungry south Pacific County people since 2019. He has the experience, energy and backbone it will take to wrest the port back into the right lane. He deserves your vote at this crucial time.

Although many peninsula people may be only slightly aware of the port in Nahcotta, it is the recipient of nearly $1.1 million of your property taxes this year, in addition to more money in the form of lease revenue, user fees and other sources. It can be a potent force for good in the local economy, but it came close to folding in the 1970s. If its supporters hope to avoid that outcome today, it’s time for serious attention to every important detail of port operations.