Port of Newport commissioners met in a special session this week to discuss the timeline for the hiring process for a new General Manager. The selection committee, consisting of Commissioners Skamser and Burke, Community members Bud Shoemake and Steve Beck and interim port manager Teri Dresler, met to review the 9 resumes received by Special Districts Association of Oregon.
From the 9, the committee felt there were three who were qualified however the committee wanted to have at least 5 to pass on to the next interview stage. As a result the committee asked the commission to expand the recruitment to attract more candidates.
This will allow for a broader search to include national web sites and/or publications that were not used during this first recruitment due to time constraints. The Search Committee felt strongly that due to the significance of this position to the Port, an extended search would yield a broader pool of qualified applicants.
There is also a need to not rush the process and make the right choice as the port is being looked at closely right now by the legislature. Legislative Concept 291 brought by Representative Greg Smith from Umatilla would turn the port over to the state. It has not yet been assigned to a committee.
Smith is looking for a co-sponsor of the legislative concept for it to move forward in the legislative process. The commission approved re-opening the search on December 31st. The port commission is expected to discuss the issue at their regular meeting on December 18th.
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