By GARRET JAROS/YachatsNews
WALDPORT — The Port of Alsea board selected Dean O’byrne as the probationary candidate for port manager during a special meeting Dec. 3.
O’byrne is currently working three days a week as he trains to take over as port manager at the end of January for Roxie Cuellar, who is retiring after nine years on the job.
The board hopes the third time is a charm, said Cuellar, after the previous two hires resigned not long after beginning their training.
In April the board had hired Ron Graves of Waldport for the position, which comes with a probationary training period. He resigned in late May after not receiving a commitment that he would take over as port manager in the fall.
In August the board selected Signe Reese, who resigned in mid-November.
“Signe did a great job,” Cuellar said. “And we thought she would have been a great manager. But she was uncomfortable. She said ‘I’m outside my comfort zone. And I’m not sure I can do this’.”
O’byrne will take on normal port maintenance duties and shifts at the Dock of the Bay store while also training in the office under Cuellar. Unlike Graves, who was paid $19 an hour during the probationary period, or Reese, who was paid a salary at the “low end” of the port manger’s salary or about $40,000 a year, O’byrne will be paid an hourly rate of $37.50.
When Cuellar retires, the port manager position will ramp up to 80 percent of fulltime in February and fulltime in May. The top annual salary is $65,000.
O’byrne, who lives with his wife just south of Waldport, has a background in business, construction management and nearly 25 years in the restaurant and hospitality industry. He currently owns a mobile coffee van that operates in Waldport.
O’byrne compared the port manager job to running a small business and said he looks forward to it. “It’s going to be great,” he said.
And although he moved to Waldport from Phoenix, he said he grew up in small towns, so living in Waldport is getting back to his roots.
“For me to come here has just been amazing,” he said. “We love Waldport.”
The Port of Alsea district stretches from an area south of Seal Rock through Waldport, east to the Lincoln-Benton county line and south through Yachats to Lane County. It is overseen by a five-member board and the manager, who is responsible for preparing the budget, which is about $500,000 a year.
I’m somewhat confused about what the “Port of Alsea” actually is. Is it that day use marina with a boat launch by the Salty Dawg restaurant or does encompass more than that?
I would like to know that as well. It seems the Port job has been a part-time job and not a lot to do most days. Before paying someone $65,000 a year, would be nice to see what we will get for that money.
It’s a real shame they don’t have a website or something similar with all that information.
They have a website and a Facebook page, but it has not been updated since March. I tried for this position twice and was turned down and I managed a full-time automotive dealership for 12 years. There is a lot of bookkeeping and grants that have to be done and filed per state laws. There is a lot that goes on behind the doors at the port and a lot of people don’t know because they don’t attend any of the meetings monthly. The board members of the port are some very nice people. I would suggest the community of Waldport stop in and say hello.