KINGSTON — In November, voters will choose a successor to Marc Bissonnette, who is retiring as a Port of Kingston commissioner after 12 years of service.
“I think that’s a lot of time to put in to my civic responsibility there,” he said from New Orleans while attending his daughter’s graduation from Tulane University. “I think I represented the people in my district well.
Bruce MacIntyre, a retired lawyer, and Nels Sultan, a coastal and civil engineer, are candidates for the District 1 position. The general election is Nov. 5. Commissioners are elected for six-year terms and earn $2,400 a year. The Port of Kingston Board of Commissioners meets the fourth Wednesday of every month at 7 p.m., at the port offices near the Kingston ferry terminal.
Commission service was a challenge for Bissonnette. When he was first elected, he worked for the Victoria Clipper and it was easier to take time off for board meetings. He is now first mate on a Manson Construction dredging ship and travels to the southeast United States a few weeks out of the month.
Bissonnette said it’s important that a variety of issues and backgrounds be represented on the board of commissioners. “I do think it’s important that somebody represents constituents in the port district other than just the business interests,” he said.
About his port district career: Bissonnette said he “spearheaded” the passenger-only ferry experiment with Mike Bookey, the port’s late executive director. The port secured a federal grant and first launched the foot ferry in 2008. The project faltered; as the public became disenchanted with the service when it failed to generate enough passengers to cover operation costs, requiring a subsidy from the port district’s reserve budget.
“Of course, I wanted to cut [off the service] a lot [sooner] than what we did. I differed with the other board members on that,” Bissonnette said.
He said he thinks the port is in a better place than it was 12 years ago when he joined the commission. The port made improvements to the marina, bought property for public use, and began the maintenance dredge project during his tenure.
Bissonnette said he’d like to see more community involvement in port affairs.
“A big part of the problem in governance [is] when you don’t have the input and information you need,” he said. “But then again, we’ve gone out and solicited and gotten bad information too.”
Bissonnette plans to stay in Kingston for a while; his wife is a teacher at North Kitsap High School.
“I’d like to stay engaged,” he said. “I love Kingston, I really want to see it do well. We can make [Kingston] an attractive place for people to come to. The economic development will follow.”
Bissonnette has had a longtime relationship with the sea. According to his port biography, he graduated from Cumberland High School in Rhode Island, and then attended the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, N.Y. He obtained a master’s degree in marine transportation from the University of Rhode Island in 1986 and has been a licensed mariner for 30 years, holding an ocean master and unlimited mate’s license.
He has operated cargo, passenger and research vessels worldwide, and spent 20 years at Clipper Navigation in Seattle operating high-speed ferries. He rose to position of director of marine operations/senior master before joining Manson Marine Construction on an unlimited tonnage hopper dredge on the Gulf and East coasts.
Bissonnette has been married since 1986; he and his wife have two children. His hobbies include boating and various sports.
ONLINE:
— Bruce MacIntyre, www.mac4kingston.com
— Nels Sultan, www.sites.google.com/site/nels4port
