By Karen Robes Meeks
Deputy Executive Director Lisa Lefeber will become the Port of Everett’s new CEO, making her the first woman to lead the port in its 100-year history.
The commission this week approved her contract, which will take effect Oct. 16.
“It’s an honor to welcome Lisa into this historic role,” Port Commissioner Glen Bachman said. “She is a strong leader dedicated to this Port District and our greater community. We are lucky to have her and the creative foresight she brings to this organization that helps grow our economy, create and protect jobs and enhance livability in our county.”
She takes over for outgoing Port CEO Les Reardanz, who will move back to Bellingham to care for his aging parents and focus on his expanded military responsibilities.
Lefeber has been with the port since 2005, serving as Chief of Policy and Communications, then Deputy Executive Director.
She was chosen in 2016 to oversee the port’s seaport modernization efforts, which includes more than $100 million in infrastructure spending. In 2018, she was acting CEO when Reardanz was deployed to Afghanistan
“I am honored to have the opportunity to lead an organization in a community that has become home to me,” Lefeber said. “I have a strong passion for the Port of Everett and the surrounding community, and I look forward to continuing on in my predecessors’ footsteps of building a balanced waterfront that supports commerce, Navy operations, jobs, recreation and creates a destination on the beautiful Everett waterfront. I am also excited to grow and diversify the Port to help our surrounding communities with job growth.”
Lefeber, who is in the American Association of Port Authorities Professional Port Management Program, earned her master’s degree in public administration from Seattle University and an undergraduate degree in Journalism from Western Washington University.