Ken Bell for Port

A few of our favorite candid dog pics from this season!
Capt. Ryan of Legato Maritime's faithful "boat nerd" ⚓️
And my best bud, Stella
Thank goodness for our four-leggeds ❤️

The economy, jobs, and our environment all go hand-in-hand. At the Port of Bellingham, we are continuing to clean up Bellingham Bay and Blaine Harbor, while maintaining an eco-friendly environment.

By doing this, we can continue to attract outside investment for businesses and people that want to be here.

These actions not only help our local economy but also creates more high paying, family-wage jobs right here in Whatcom County.

The Port has made considerable investments in our local Bellingham International Airport, which has expanded travel options for Whatcom County residents and has helped grow our economy.

I’m proud to lead in these efforts and improve our quality of life. There’s more to do, and with your support, we will continue to invest right here in our local economy.

This is a nonpartisan position committed to economic development and job creation for EVERYONE in Whatcom County. I'm proud to be endorsed by leaders from both parties such as former Mayor Kelli Linville, Councilman Mark Stremler, Whatcom County Association of Realtors , Councilman Ben Ellenbaas, former Councilman Rud Browne, Mayor Scott Korthuis, former State Representative LuAnne Van Werven, and many, many others

I'm focused on bringing new living-wage careers to our community so young professionals can find long-term employment and afford to stay in Whatcom County and raise their families.

Only three more days until the election! Make a plan to vote early, then encourage your family, friends, and neighbors to do the same.

This is a low-turnout election, where your vote will a have a bigger impact than normal. We need all hands on deck.

Together, we can continue making our Port a job generator and improve our quality of life right here at home. I would be honored to earn your support.

If this is your first time meeting me, thank you for taking the time to check out my page and learn more about my commitment to the Port of Bellingham and Whatcom County!

I’m a husband, father, grandfather and your Port Commissioner (in that order). My wife and best friend, DeeDee, and I have been happily married for 35 years. We’ve raised two amazing, intelligent young women who have blessed us with three adorable grandchildren (we just welcomed the first boy to our family!). You’ll often see me out and about with my best pal, Stella, our mini Goldendoodle– she keeps us laughing. I’m blessed to be surrounded by so much love!

My career has been dedicated to cleaning up our environment. It’s taken me from the Arctic Circle to Antarctica and everywhere in between providing me with an immense amount of experience and diverse perspective that I bring to the Port of Bellingham.

My focus as your Port Commissioner for the next four years is to continue growing the family-wage careers that Whatcom County needs, ensuring our working waterfront has what it needs to thrive, welcoming business opportunities that will bolster Whatcom County’s tourism and open up new routes at our airport, all while developing the newly restored downtown waterfront area into the space that our community deserves.

Thank you for checking in to learn more about me. I’d be honored to receive your vote!

Tonight is a great time to vote! Make a plan to vote early, then encourage your family, friends, and neighbors to do the same.

This is a low-turnout election, where your vote will a have a bigger impact than normal. We need all hands on deck.

Together, we can continue making our Port a job generator and improve our quality of life right here at home. I would be honored to earn your support.

Being good stewards of our environment is paramount. As someone who runs a recycling company, I know we must use and reuse our resources wisely. We must pass down a pristine environment for our future generations.

With your support, we will continue fighting to clean up Bellingham Bay & Blaine Harbor, and promote sustainable & sensible business practices.

The progress that you want to see from the Port is in process. We’ve taken vital steps to restore organization and fiscal responsibility, cleaning up contaminated sites, rebuilding infrastructure, and modernizing operations.

✅ We have established landmark agreements with the Lummi Tribe to ensure our Port properties are maintained and utilized for future generations.

✅ With help from State and Federal grants, we have been restoring and modernizing our shipping terminal to full functionality, ensuring it’s multimodal and accessible by both rail and ship to bring living-wage careers to Whatcom County

✅ We have made steps towards making the Port more resilient to rising seas and high-water events

✅ We are completing the cleanup of sites in Blaine and Squalicum Harbor for development, and we have 12 more site cleanups underway

✅ We have been working to save industrial land for necessary industries by purchasing the Marine Drive industrial park and providing space for Corvus Energy, Northline Seafoods, Granite gravel, Sierra Pacific Industries, as well as our industrial park at Bellingham International Airport.

✅ We purchased the historic Boxx Berry Farm and established an agricultural research center to keep the property in Agricultural use and protect our agricultural industries.

✅ We initiated a change in the commission structure from 3 to 5 commissioners for broader representation and increased public participation

✅ We are working to attract businesses that will improve our tourism industry so that we generate more internal demand for our airport. Once consistent demand is there, it will open up opportunities for new routes.

Through all this progress, we’ve kept a tight budget and have not raised your taxes. I intend to continue the momentum. We are closer than ever to realizing the waterfront we envision and establishing the living-wage careers at our shipping terminal that our community needs.