Port of Oakland losing executive director

0 Comments | Oakland Tribune, Nov 4, 2006 | by Paul T. Rosynsky

OAKLAND -- Port Executive Director Jerry Bridges accepted a new job Friday as leader of the Virginia Port Authority.

The move takes Bridges, 53, back to his childhood home for a job that may end up paying at least $40,000 more a year.

Bridges could not be reached for comment Friday but said in a written statement released by the Virginia Port Authority that he would work to make it "the nation's leading seaport."

It remains unclear why Bridges took a job that moves him from the fourth-largest container port in the nation to the sixth largest. Speculation ranges from his desire to be closer to home after the death of his mother to his love of the maritime trade. At the Port of Oakland, Bridges must balance several lines of business, including maritime.

"He loves the maritime business, and now he can just focus on maritime activities," said Port Commissioner John Protopappas. "We are very sad to see him go."

Bridges was targeted for the Virginia job earlier this year by Boyden, an executive recruiting company. The firm was hired by the port authority after its longtime director retired.

"In the discussions, people liked his experience and the fact that he had roots here," said Joe Harris, media relations manager for the authority. Bridges is familiar with the Virginia port. While working in the private sector in the 1990s, the former Marine managed a terminal at the port for SeaLand.

His experience also should help Virginia as it embarks on an expansion plan that will add a new terminal to its three-terminal complex. Though that port is ranked sixth in the country, it is the second largest on the East Coast behind the behemoth New York/New Jersey Port Authority.

"As a former U.S. Marine, Jerry Bridges will be able to lead this agency as it climbs onto the next plateau," John Milliken, chairman of the authority's commission, said. "It will be Jerry Bridges' task to lead us in taking that final step."

His repacement has not been named.