Sunday, November 9, 2025
A recent commentary has accused the Port of Olympia of “financial mismanagement,” suggesting that local taxpayers would be better served if the port were privatized, or abolished altogether. As elected port commissioners, we welcome scrutiny. But we also owe our community the facts and the context that such claims ignore.
Washington’s Port District Act of 1911 was one of the most progressive reforms of its time. It allowed local communities (not private monopolies) to own and operate critical waterfront infrastructure.
In an era when private railroad trusts and shipping barons controlled commerce, ports were created to ensure public accountability, economic inclusion, and long-term investment in local prosperity. That public ownership model has stood the test of time.
Today, Washington’s 75 public port districts manage airports, industrial parks, marinas, and transportation corridors that private companies would never have built or maintained without a guaranteed profit. These assets serve the public good precisely because they are publicly owned.
To abandon that model now, as some recent commentary implies, would return us to an era where corporate priorities (not community needs) dictated who has access to infrastructure and opportunity.
The Port of Olympia is one of only six ports in Washington that operates a marina, marine terminal, airport, and real estate portfolio. Each business line serves a unique purpose within Thurston County’s economy and emergency response system.
These functions go well beyond the balance sheet calculus of a private enterprise. They are part of the public infrastructure that keeps our county safe, connected, and economically resilient.
The recent op-ed claims the port “hides” its debt and depends excessively on taxes, this is a lie, here are the facts:
The idea that the port is “in the red” because it uses property taxes is like arguing a city is “in debt” because it invests in roads or parks. Public infrastructure is not meant to generate quarterly profit; it exists to generate long-term community value.
Long ago this community decided that somewhere among the 495,000 acres within Thurston County, dedicating 65 acres for a Marine Terminal to allow us to utilize the waterways for commercial transport and 845 acres for a federally compliant airport were sound land use decisions. This decision was not based on a “how much money” can we make mentality” but on the idea of does this make us a better and more resilient community. We feel strongly that this still holds true now and it will remain true in the future.
The op-ed also suggested the port “creates only 48 jobs,” its direct staff count. That ignores the broader reality of port economics. Independent analyses show that the Port of Olympia supports more than 5,000 jobs countywide, including longshore workers, truck drivers, mechanics, small business tenants, and hospitality employees who depend on port activity. These are family-wage jobs that strengthen our local economy. Private operators could not simply “step in” to replace the port’s functions without significant disruption or loss of public accountability. The port’s facilities are intertwined with public safety, environmental stewardship, and regional logistics. They cannot be replicated by private landlords.
Over the past two years, the port has undergone a major internal transformation. Under Executive Director Alex Smith, formerly of the Washington State Department of Ecology, we have rebuilt staff capacity, improved transparency, and made measurable progress on environmental restoration. We are advancing cleanup of Budd Inlet and partnering with state and local agencies on restoration of the Deschutes Estuary, projects that reflect decades of deferred responsibility finally being addressed.
We have also raised wages for our lowest paid maintenance staff, strengthened labor partnerships, and launched workforce development programs that prepare young people for careers in the maritime and aviation sectors. These are real, concrete improvements, not political slogans.
Beyond economics, the Port of Olympia plays a critical role in regional emergency preparedness. Our facilities are integral to disaster response planning for earthquakes, floods, and wildfires. Large-scale generators at the Marine Terminal can power emergency shelters; our warehouses can become community staging centers for food, heat, and medical supplies.
In 2022, the port participated in Cascadia Rising, a statewide earthquake response drill. In August 2025, our airport hosted emergency aircraft during wildfire evacuations. These are the kinds of investments that don’t show up as “profit” but can make the difference between chaos and coordination when disaster strikes.
As commissioners, we are committed to continuous improvement. That includes completing the Peninsula Master Plan, finalizing a Habitat Conservation Plan to protect endangered species while allowing responsible development, and ensuring our facilities meet the highest standards of environmental compliance and community benefit.
We believe public ports can balance fiscal discipline with long-term vision. That balance distinguishes stewardship from speculation.
At a moment when corporate consolidation is reshaping transportation nationwide (where a single private railroad merger can control coast-to-coast freight) abandoning public ownership of local infrastructure would be a step backward. Public ports are one of the few remaining tools communities have to ensure that economic power serves the people, not the other way around.
The Port of Olympia’s role is not to maximize shareholder profit. It is to maximize community resilience, opportunity, and transparency. Every decision we make is debated in public meetings, scrutinized by auditors, and driven by local voices, not distant investors.
We welcome continued dialogue about how to make the port stronger. But we also urge residents to look beyond headlines and see the full picture: a small port doing big work for its community, modernizing responsibly, and standing ready for the future.
Commissioner Amy Evans Harding
Commissioner Jasmine Vasavada
Port of Olympia Commission
The opinions expressed above are those of the writers and not necessarily those of The JOLT's staff or board of directors. Got something to say about a topic of interest to Thurston County residents? Send it to us and we’ll most likely publish it. Click here to email to us.
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debpattin
Facts matter. History matters.
Thank you, Commissioners Vasavada and Harding for sharing these facts, and this history.
Friday, October 17 Report this
Qphillips
There is much smoke being blown about the Port and its finances. The two Commissioners who work as Commissioners for a small compensation, set the record straight. If anyone believes the Port is mishandling its finances needs to read this article. Frankly it is reckless to say that the Commissioners and staff are mishandling the Port finances. The staff and Commissioners have great integrity in regard to how they manage Port operations. Facts do matter. Taxes collected by household for Port Operations is a tremendous bargain for citizens as outlined by the Commissioners in their article.
Friday, October 17 Report this
RondaLarsonKramer
Before addressing the substance of this article, I want readers to be aware of something important. Commissioner Vasavada is reported to have recruited Anthony Hemstad to run for Port Commission. His campaign mailer, which just arrived in mailboxes, repeats a statement he has made many times: that he helped redevelop Point Ruston in Tacoma. But many of the commercial properties there are now in receivership due to millions of dollars in unpaid loans. See “From Development Darling to Besieged Debtor: How Things Turned Ugly at Point Ruston” by Debbie Cockrell, Tacoma News Tribune, Oct. 1, 2024: https://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/article282391333.html.
Please vote for Krag Unsoeld and Jerry Toompas instead. Let’s move beyond the status quo and support real redevelopment that benefits the broader community.
As for the substance of this commentary, the claim that the Port “supports 5,000 jobs” is misleading. That number is based on economic multipliers — a marketing construct — not an actual count of local, full-time positions. It sweeps in out-of-county, part-time, and temporary work only loosely connected to Port activity. If the figure were accurate, the Port would publish a verified breakdown showing how many real jobs exist on Port property, along with hours, wages, and benefits.
Instead of using valuable public land for a handful of log shipments each year, the Port could do so much more for our economy. By investing in tourism, small business space, waterfront access, clean energy, and recreation, the Port could create genuine, year-round local jobs — not inflated statistics. This would diversify our economy, attract visitors and entrepreneurs, and keep profits circulating here at home rather than flowing to outside investors.
For details, see “Reader Opinion: Financial Mismanagement at the Port of Olympia” by Jim Lazar and Ronda Larson Kramer, The JOLT News, Oct. 13, 2025: https://www.thejoltnews.com/stories/financial-mismanagement-at-the-port-of-olympia,26719.
Finally, to correct a misrepresentation: our piece never called for dissolving the Port. We simply used a thought experiment — asking how many jobs would exist if the Port didn’t exist — to test the credibility of its inflated job claims.
It’s time to elect Krag and Jerry so the Port can serve the people, not special interests.
Friday, October 17 Report this
Quadlok
They didn't touch on this I don't think, but Swantown also provides a substantial amount of low cost housing with its large number of live aboards. it's impact on housing goes well beyond that as well, as without its boat crane, it os doubtful many of the houseboats at other local marinas could be properly maintained.
Friday, October 17 Report this
jimlazar
I will address only one issue of this piece of promotional advertising: the mythical "5,000 jobs" that the Port claims to support.
In reality, the $8 million per year in property taxes (which have doubled from $4 million dollars per year when I started paying attention several years ago) support about 50 jobs -- the people who actually are employed by the Port of Olympia.
If the Port did not operate a marine terminal, those shipments would go through Aberdeen, Tacoma, Longview, or other ports. The number of jobs handling cargoes would be the same.
If some other agency owned the airports, there would be the same number of mechanics, and the same number of people in the control tower.
If the marina was privately owned, like Boston Harbor, Zittel's, West Bay, or Fiddlehead, there would be the same number of boats. And those private owners would be PAYING property taxes, not COLLECTING property taxes.
The Port's so-called "economic impact study" counts EVERY job of EVERY tenant of the Port. For example, the Market Centre building across from the Olympia Farmer's Market is privately owned, but located on property leased from the Port of Olympia. Merrill Lynch and Mercado restaurant would be creating the same number of jobs had the Port sold the property to the building owner. The economic impact study is utterly bogus. It's really embarrassing to have elected official misrepresent the role of the Port.
The Port loses money on all of its operation. It hides that by using property taxes to subsidize the capital costs, which allows them to offer below-cost rents. No private landlord could (or would) do that.
As Lloyd Bentsen said in the Vice-Presidential debate in 1988: "If you let me write $200 billion of hot checks every year, I could give you an illusion of prosperity, too." That's our Port's idea of how to present it's finances: hide the property taxes in the "revenues" section of their financial reports.
These property taxes should be recognized as a public subsidy to an organization that mostly serves private tenants: Weyerhaeuser's log export operation; a marina full of expensive yachts; an airport serving private jets (and state agency aircraft).
Sorry, Commissioners: you have NOT "set the record straight." You have obscured the truth.
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Saturday, October 18 Report this
HappyOlympian
End the fraud. No need to ship anything out of this port. Let Grays Harbor or Tacoma handle it. Abolish the Port of Olympia.
Saturday, October 18 Report this
TheVirtualOne
This article is so full of baloney that I can’t help but laugh. The waste at the Port is so egregious, it’s ridiculous. These are bureaucrats trying to justify subsidizing industry that’s not needed and is unprofitable, support jobs that are not required, and waste taxpayer money on “businesses “ that would not exist and are not required in the real economy without the taxes that are propping them up. This is no different than the list of woke jobs the City of Olympia has in the other article published in today’s JOLT. Greenhouse gas emissions staff, too many attorneys, social justice positions, sea level rise specialists. The authors here are simply wrong and are arguing for the status quo, just like the City. They just want to keep taking our money to spend like drunken sailors on permanent shore leave.
Saturday, October 18 Report this
LaceyQueen
Why do Port critics get so overheated and involve personal attacks? The original letter from Ronda Larsen Kraemer and Jim Lazar is clearly all about politics and it wouldn't have been written at any other time except when ballots are coming out. They are trying to build a case for their candidates who appear to have no relevant experience. or any involvement with the port in the past. Throwing lots of accusations out and seeing what sticks. Sad.
They repeat that in Kraemer's spurious continued political attack in this comment thread. I heard the candidates speak at the Thurston Chamber forum https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAZRqmEJTog&t=3917s and then checked out their webpages and linkedin profiles. Worth doing to find out more about each of them. Hemsted talked about helping get Point Ruston funded when he was at the World Trade Centre. On LInkedIn that was over a decade ago. Point Ruston's problems are recent and looks to be a family ownership + mismanagement problem over the last couple years. How can you blame Hemsted for something a decade later. Are people responsible for problems at associated companies decades after they left? Just more mudslinging. Disappointing.
Looks like Toompas and Unsold have no management experience at all. Iyall and Hemsted have lots. Why do Lazar and Kraemer think the people with no management experience are going suddenly become great managers of assets they've had no experience with? Would be better if the Jolt didn't allow such ugly political hit pieces that seem to distort the facts. Welcome to the silly season of October politics.
Saturday, October 18 Report this
Qphillips
Words matter. There is confusion around the word “support” from those who are attacking the Port. The Commissioners article states that the Port has created 48 staff jobs that operate the Port day in and day out. The Port also supports 5000 jobs in the local economy. The Port supports/ assists the local economy by contracting with many contractors and vendors of all types. The list is long as you can imagine the variety of companies that support a maritime business, real estate, business, a marina and an airport. By hiring these contractors who hire subcontractors they support/assist these contractors and their employees by providing jobs and projects to work on. So let’s be clear the Port supports 5000 jobs in the economy. The halo impact of a business like the Port is an elemental fact and a contribution to the community. Also of course taxes are public subsidies. How do you run a government without taxes? The tax burden on the public for the Port is minimal. If you complain about the Ports tax burden you probably hate libraries and parks as well.
The responses interesting enough create a conspiracy theory around a Commissioner and a candidate. This is unfounded and is a tool for voices that lack facts. They just create their own facts.
The unrelenting hostility toward the Port has lacked a real factual foundation. The article discusses how the Port is audited which does not seem to have penetrated the hate that permeates these attacks. Real people and families depend on the Port for their livelihood. They live in our community and deserve our support.
Saturday, October 18 Report this
LarryB
I read the commentary by the "financial mismanagement" voices and was skeptical of their claims that the Port is "hiding" deficits. As the Commission's rebuttal points out, the financial statements are published and audited and available to anyone who cares to look.
Yes, like every other public port in the state, the Port of Olympia is subsidized by taxpayers. This question is not whether this represents "financial mismanagement" but rather is there a public benefit that is commensurate to the taxpayer subsidy? The Commissioners who wrote this article attempted to articulate some of these public benefits. As a boater, I can say that Swantown Marina is by far the nicest marina in the area and provides services (e.g. boat haul out) that are not available at any other marina in the area.
There are reasonable questions asked by the "financial mismanagement" voices. For example, would the port property that is currently being used for shipping (mainly logs, it seems) be better used for public open spaces? The idea of publicly accessible open space on the Port property is appealing, but I suspect eliminating the current use as a marine terminal would result in a significant loss of revenue to the Port, and thus more "financial mismanagement." And the argument that logs can just be trucked to different ports doesn't sound all that great to me. More logging trucks carrying logs on our roads for greater distances would make our roads less safe and add to air pollution.
While there are reasonable questions being asked, the way they are being asked in the context of "financial mismanagement" is off-putting to me, and makes me less likely to vote for the commissioner candidates these voices are supporting.
Saturday, October 18 Report this
TheGreatAnon
For decades I have watched a miniscule but vocal cabal bang on about the Evils of waste, fraud & abuse at the Port. Curiously, most of them self-identify as Liberal Progressives. These folk are good on so many subjects; civil rights, climate change, alternatives to auto based transportation, environmental stewardship & such, but when it comes to the Port of Olympia they morph into histrionic Republicans howling that the incompetent if not outright corrupt Gumint is squandering our tax money. I truly don't understand. Political lycanthropy perhaps?
A few points. Should the Olympia Marine terminal close its capacity will not be shifted to other Washington State ports. Here's why. Our ports are run close to capacity with no room to expand, they are not equipped to handle the kind of cargo Olympia does and no new ports will ever be built. Same goes for the airport.
Port jobs are good union jobs. Yannow, living wages, robust health care, pensions, the very things LPs advocate. Also too, economic multiplier effects ARE a real, measurable thing.
And finally, all the Strum und Drang over the Port is some penny ante bullshite. Port taxes on individual property owners such as myself are about as much as dinner and drinks for two at a half way decent restaurant. Or Mikey D's for a family of 5.
“I like to pay taxes. With them, I buy civilization.” -Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.
Saturday, October 18 Report this
rhenda
Regarding “It is also a designated backup facility for Joint Base Lewis-McChord, ensuring rapid deployment capacity during national or regional emergencies.” Our port is backup three behind Tacoma and Seattle. I’m not willing to pay taxes to support the confounding idea that whatever disaster closes those two ports will leave ours alone and able to serve JBLM. If something closes those two ports, the emergency will be right here. JBLM can serve us.
Saturday, October 18 Report this
Wesley
"Every year, the port’s finances are audited by the Washington State Auditor’s Office," That's not saying much. I work for a public agency that lost millions of dollars of public funds to a corrupt employee over several years. The agency passed its state audits each of those several years, the chief executive of the agency each time celebrating the agency "passing with flying colors!!" The state auditor did not uncover the embezzlement. It was uncovered when a low level employee bravely raised his hand and said "hey, something doesn't look right."
Despite that, I love the Port of Olympia. I get excited each time I see a log ship guided by tugs enter the channel. Let's keep it public, and expand it's Marine Terminal business. Keep Olympia connected to the world. "What's that - ? Radical Left Progressives suddenly oppose globalism - ?" #LOL #OMG . . . .
Saturday, October 18 Report this
NutTreeLoop
The Port of Olympia is an essential component of our public transportation system. It's is not supposed to be a profit-making entity. It serves as interface between different modes of transportation and as a critical connection between the greater Olymnpia community and the world. It is a public entity because it is supposed to serve the entire public. We all benefit from its presence in our community, which is why a small portion of the property tax we pay is devoted to keeping the Port public.
Sunday, October 19 Report this
JulesJames
Looking to the future, the autonomous air taxi industry is rising. Do I want private droneports competing from vacant parking lots they can lease? Or farmland they can pave over? Do I trust entrepreneurs aggressively interpreting the zoning code -- or competent commissioners at the Port of Olympia -- to best generate industry while adequately protecting all other legitimate interests? Voting Anthony Hemstad.
Sunday, October 19 Report this
HarryBranch
In the 1980s, driving the length of West Bay Drive past Solid Wood and several other lumber businesses, the parking lots were full of cars with bumper stickers reading "Don't Export Logs and Jobs". Today those mills are all gone and across the bay the Port is exporting raw logs. It's a third world model, a job killer, not a job creator. Exporting lumber instead of logs would restore those lost jobs. We're serving a corporate master. The game itself is rigged, in so many ways.
Sunday, October 19 Report this
HappyOlympian
Port of Grays Harbor can do anything much better than Port of Oly, especially when it comes to the suspect practice of exporting logs, and the Port of GH website readily claims the ability to expand and meet the needs on new users. No surprise a supporter of the Port of Oly would make the fraudulent claim that they at maximum capacity.
Sunday, October 19 Report this
Bobwubbena
The Port of Olympia is not a "private business" but rather a public agency in partnership with many private businesses to provide a supportive infrastructure for our community, including our youth and general community users of the Port developed waterfront.
The balance is to provide support systems that become an "incubator type of partner" with the larger Thurston County community. The airport, the public boat launch/hoist/fuel docks, Farmers Market, Hands on Children's Museum, the Port Plaza, the NorthPoint entertainment site are all supported by the Port tax. Their deep-water port, Swantown with over 20 low-income housing "rental slips" and the airport that benefit all of Thurston County would not exist without our/Port's tax investment that brings good paying jobs throughout the County. Sending that opportunity to Gray's Harbor will not benefit our citizens that now reap the benefits of the Port's involved management of our waterfront.
Investments in our smaller cities as well as being a significant partner with the City of Olympia and Tumwater and the State to make our marine waterfront a destination for all of the County's citizens would not be possible without the Port's using our collective investment. No Jim or Ronda, without the Port, our beautiful downtown waterfront would not exist without the Port's leadership in partnership with others.
Our family businesses have been a neighbor (Fiddlehead Marina) to the Port property for 40 years. We had no direct activity on Port property. They and we/other private business helped to privately finance the City's Percival Boardwalk used extensively throughout the year as a community gathering place. I haven't always agreed with Port decisions, but the last ten years of Port staff and commissioners have focused on improved reporting and transparent plans with extensive community input. Mismanagement is not one of the Port's current problems. The problem is the misinformation from claimed experts that mislead the community. This is why the community should NOT vote for individuals that "complain about the Port's Community and Master Plan" and do not offer a valid alternative--except to destroy, not build a better community. .
Bob Iydall, Anthony Hemstad and Joel Hansen are focused on adding positive leadership to an already good team at the Port.
Monday, October 20 Report this
jimlazar
It is correct that the Port of Olympia only gets a small percentage of my total property tax bill. But the Thurston PUD, which is also elected County-wide, manages to pay its election costs and other county-wide expenses with a tiny fraction of the property tax the Port collects.
The City, County, and School Districts provide me with police protection, fire protection, roads, schools, public health service, parks, and trails with my property tax.
The Port of Olympia provides me with air pollution, water pollution, and roads that are pulverized by heavy logging trucks.
There is little or no public benefit that comes from the taxes I pay to the Port. The benefits all go to millionaire yacht and airplane owners, and to billionaire companies that use cargo ships to export raw logs that should be processed here with local workers.
Vote for Krag Unsoeld and Jerry Toompas for Port Commission.
Friday, October 31 Report this
RondaLarsonKramer
@bobwubbena -- I appreciate your family's long history of service with Fiddlehead Marina and your support for community amenities like the boardwalk and Farmers Market — those are real community assets, and nobody is suggesting getting rid of them.
What I and others are pointing out is that the Port’s commercial ventures — the marine terminal, airport, and real-estate holdings — lose money every year and are propped up by nearly $8 million in property taxes. That’s not a sign of strength; it’s a sign of dependency. The problem isn’t the public amenities — it’s that the Port continues to use industrial-era business models while claiming financial success. Without taxes, the Port lost $2.8 million in just the first half of 2025.
It’s also worth remembering that many of the “public” spaces you mention — like the Hands On Children’s Museum, the Farmers Market, and Port Plaza — are actually managed or financed by other public and nonprofit partners. They would still exist even if the Port stopped running money-losing commercial operations. The community doesn’t need to subsidize log exports to keep our waterfront vibrant.
As for “lifeline” and “partnership” claims — in any emergency, barges with landing ramps can deliver supplies to almost any shoreline. FEMA and the Army Corps use temporary beach landings all the time. The Port’s handful of annual log shipments don’t make it indispensable to disaster response.
And to your statement that we offer no “valid alternative” — we absolutely do. Look at Scissortail Park in Oklahoma City. It transformed 70 acres of former industrial land into an award-winning public waterfront filled with green space, small businesses, cultural events, and recreation — all publicly owned and accessible. It generates tourism, boosts nearby property values, and creates real, year-round jobs. That’s the kind of community-oriented redevelopment Olympia could pursue on its waterfront: a model that produces lasting economic value and public benefit, not recurring losses.
We all want a strong waterfront economy, but that requires focusing on what works: tourism, small business incubation, clean energy, and recreation — not doubling down on outdated, loss-making ventures. Calling for transparency and fiscal accountability isn’t “destroying,” it’s trying to build a Port that truly serves the community and invests in our shared future.
Saturday, November 1 Report this