Port of Bellingham Chief Financial Officer Rob Fix has been
selected by the Bellingham’s three-member Board of Commissioners to become the
port’s new executive director. Fix had been serving in the role on an interim
basis since April.
“Given his experience, local knowledge and the great strides
he has made in the last few months, particularly on waterfront negotiations, we
recognized that he was the best person to serve as the next executive director,”
Commission President Scott Walker said in explaining the decision.
Fix has been with the port since 2008, serving as both chief
financial officer and deputy director. During the past year, Fix also managed
the port’s real estate division.
Fix assumed executive director’s role effective Nov. 9. His compensation
package includes a $140,000-a-year salary, a $600-a-month car allowance, 10
percent-a-year deferred compensation and a four-month separation agreement.
Prior to joining the port, he was a partner and chief financial
officer for hotel management company MTM Luxury Lodging and subsidiary FST
Asset Management. He is a graduate of Washington State University with a Bachelor’s
Degree in hotel and restaurant administration.
Fix takes the place of former executive director Charlie
Sheldon, who resigned under pressure April 3 after about a year-and-a-half on
the job. Sheldon had clashed with Walker, who was upset that Sheldon had
authorized the port’s aviation director to take a trip to a conference in the
Caribbean in 2011 without informing the board first.
