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Wolfe won’t seek re-election for port commissioner

Announcement made during Tuesday’s port meeting

By Dameon Pesanti, Columbian staff writer
Published: March 28, 2017, 2:47pm

Brian Wolfe’s last day as a commissioner for the Port of Vancouver will be Dec. 31.

Wolfe has been the commission’s most polarizing figure in recent years, and pegged by many in the environmental community as the potential deciding vote in killing the controversial Vancouver Energy oil terminal lease.

He announced that he won’t seek reelection this fall during Tuesday’s board of commissioners meeting.

“We were hoping he would not run,”  said Don Steinke, a prominent local environmentalist and frequent attendee of the port commission meetings.

Wolfe told The Columbian he made the decision not to run again last week in the middle of the night, in the middle of a vacation. He also noted that, if he were to win again, he’d finish his third term at 80 years old.

Wolfe, who represents District 1 on the three-commissioner board, said he made the decision after considering his wife’s fragile health and what he characterized as anger exhibited by Vancouver Energy oil terminal opponents during the March 7 port meeting when the commissioners voted to continue the lease for the Vancouver Energy oil terminal.

“I realized I didn’t want to put her through that anymore,” Wolfe said of his wife, adding that he believes the divisiveness that’s grown around the terminal has been bad for the community.

While Vancouver Energy’s oil terminal is certainly not the only project the port has worked on in recent years, it’s been the most controversial. If it’s built, it would be the largest in the U.S., capable of handling up to 360,000 barrels of oil per day.

Commissioner Jerry Oliver has been steadfast in supporting the project. Commissioner Eric LaBrant has been against the terminal since he rode a wave of opposition straight into office after replacing the now-retired Nancy Baker in 2015.

Wolfe always stood somewhere in the middle, but after some vacillation, he always voted in favor of the project — much to the vocal chagrin of terminal opponents, who hoped he would vote down the terminal’s lease when it came before commission on a couple occasions.   

“To have the environmentalists beating on me over the oil terminal seems like a divergence from my roots,” Wolfe said, arguing that he was promoted as the environmental candidate when he was elected in 2005.

Wolfe, Baker and Oliver have been publicly criticized for their handling of the oil terminal since they approved it in 2013. Some members of the public felt the commissioners used closed-door executive sessions to keep the public in the dark until the deal on what might be the nation’s largest oil terminal was nearly finished.

Indeed, Wolfe was subject to a recall effort in 2015 in relation to the terminal, but the recall petition was struck down in Clark County Superior Court.

The Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council is currently reviewing the project. Gov. Jay Inslee is expected to make a decision on the project later this year.

Tenure highlights

In a public statement, Port of Vancouver spokeswoman Abbi Russell said the port was grateful for Wolfe’s nearly 12 years of service. During his tenure, Russell said the port became the first U.S. port with two 140-metric-ton-capacity mobile harbor cranes, built the West Vancouver Freight Access — the largest capital improvement in port history — and hired Julianna Marler as the port’s first female CEO in February, among other achievements.

At this point, Wolfe said he doesn’t have ambitions to run for any other public office, but added that he doesn’t see himself “sitting home and watching TV, either.”

Others step up

Wolfe’s announcement, prompted at least one person to announce his candidacy ahead of schedule.

Don Orange officially announced his intention to replace Wolfe just minutes after the port commission meeting was finished.

“We were going to roll this thing out about the first of the month, but Brian announced today, so it’s time,” Orange said.

Orange, owns a local mechanic shop and was a major player in Vancouver 101, a campaign of small businesses that oppose Vancouver Energy.

Orange said the terminal has been an unhealthy element in the community and it’s only created jobs for lawyers and environmentalists. 

“I believe we need transparency and we need to look to the future,” Orange said.

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Columbian staff writer