For the first time in 20 years, voters have a choice in a Port of Ridgefield race.
Commissioner Scott Hughes, who has been on the port commission for nearly 10 years, is being challenged in District 2 by David Kelly, a Ridgefield school board member during the 1990s.
The last time the Port of Ridgefield had a contested election was when Commissioner Bruce Wiseman defeated Vern Veysey in 1999.
Port of Ridgefield commissioners are nonpartisan and elected to six-year terms. They earn a $3,190 annual salary.
Candidate profiles
Scott Hughes
Age: 64.
Occupation: owner of Ridgefield Hardware.
Previous elected office: elected to port commission in 2009, re-elected in 2013.
Top issues: demand quality over quantity, find more capital/revenue for future projects, provide strong leadership at the port and in Clark County.
David Kelly
Age: 60.
Occupation: owner of Windy Hills Winery.
Previous elected office: appointed to Ridgefield school board in 1992, elected in 1995.
Top issues: develop dark fiber optic infrastructure, work with other agencies and private landowners for south port district development, offer active listening and questioning to meet growth needs.
Hughes and Kelly both filed statements with the Washington Public Disclosure Commission saying they will not raise or spend more than $5,000 for the election.
Hughes said the port is working on projects that will help the community meet its future needs.
“I am passionate that the port maintain the momentum that makes the Port of Ridgefield one of the greatly respected public agencies in the state,” Hughes said in a questionnaire returned to The Columbian. “With our recent growth, fantastic opportunity for job growth exists, and it is my passion to oversee that (so) we get the infrastructure right.”
Kelly noted the lack of contested races for 20 years in explaining why he decided to challenge Hughes.
“I am running for port commissioner as a fresh set of eyes, ears and ideas,” he said in response to The Columbian’s questionnaire. “I see the port as transitioning from being focused on environmental cleanup to be fully focused on job and economic growth, and (I) feel my experience in the private sector can help speed this transition.”
Kelly said he believes the port has done an excellent job cleaning up contamination from the former Pacific Wood Treating site on Lake River, but it has fallen short in spurring job creation and economic growth.
“You must go out and recruit businesses to your area, not wait for businesses to show up,” he said. “I would think the community would rather have businesses that they want versus having to accept the businesses that show up.”
Hughes said the port is on a solid path to the future.
“Our leadership and vision has uniquely positioned our community to respond to the changing technologies that will significantly alter the future of employment opportunities,” he said. “We pay attention to changing job training and requirements. We consider ourselves a ‘community port.’ We operate inside and outside our port property. My desire is that we build a community where our citizens want to live, work and play, all of this in an environmentally friendly way.”
Both candidates support the port’s project to develop dark fiber optic infrastructure to provide broadband internet and promote economic development in the Discovery Corridor, an area identified for job creation along Interstate 5.
State law allowed “rural” port districts to build broadband networks, but the Port of Ridgefield did not qualify because of its proximity to Portland. In 2018, the Legislature changed state law so that all ports could provide open-access broadband infrastructure for lease to service providers.
Kelly said he wants the port to develop mapping, timelines and funding to guide the program to completion, along with exploring possible public-private partnerships to accelerate network development.
“I just want to have a public business plan in place that has benchmarks on when fiber will be available, where fiber will be available, and the funding mechanisms needed to execute the plan,” he said.
Hughes called the dark fiber network “the infrastructure of the 21st century.”
“Those communities without it will be at a huge disadvantage,” he said. “We identified this four years ago and are now beginning to roll out the project. Being considered ‘rural’ by the service providers, Ridgefield was not going to get service within the near future. To make our community prepared for the future, we knew that the port would have to step up to the task. And we have.”
Hughes is stressing his experience, both in the public and private sectors.
“I have 10 years experience in port management,” Hughes said. “It is significantly different than private business. I live in both worlds, and ambivalence to the ways of public administration can yield unintended consequences. It takes several years to fully learn this.”
“I am a strong believer in leadership and partnership building,” he said. “Being elected doesn’t grant you respect. You must earn it by working with people and being honest.”
Kelly is emphasizing the need for new perspectives and ideas.
“I bring a fresh approach and new energy to the port that it has not had in quite a while,” Kelly said. “This is not a criticism, but when the same people have been in place for over 10 years, most 20-plus years, ideas and perceptions become stagnant and stale. Looking at opportunities and issues through a fresh lens only strengthens the port and the team that we have.
“I have been a ‘get it done’ type of guy, both in the public and private sectors, and look forward to bringing that same attitude, energy and drive to the port commission,” he said.
