COUPEVILLE: Port director retiring in spring
Marina Blatt reports from the Port of Coupeville for the Whidbey News-Times. Read the whole story.
Summary by Perplexity.ai
After eight and a half years of financial recovery and historic restoration, Port of Coupeville Executive Director Chris Michalopoulos will retire in spring 2026. Michalopoulos takes pride in transforming the port, focusing on economic development through historic preservation, new educational panels on the wharf, and overseeing major projects like the upcoming wharf dock completion. He hopes to leave a legacy of community pride and asset preservation. To ease the transition, Michalopoulos plans to overlap with his successor and has advocated for increased salary to attract qualified candidates. He brought nearly $15 million in grants and funding to the port, highlighting its outsized impact.
They Said It
“When I took over in 2017, it wasn’t the same port. I literally had to rebuild people, everything. It’s been quite a journey,” he said.
“The legacy I want to leave behind is the absolute preservation of our historic assets that this community rallies around,” he said.
“I definitely want to finish up my mission,” he said. “I want to set the port up for the next nine or ten years.”
“I brought the port almost $15 million in grants and IDD funds,” Michalopoulos said, referring to Industrial Development Districts, a valuable source of funds for economic development.
“A small port can do really, really big things in their community that drive economic development,” Michalopoulos said. “If you have the right people and the right board, you can do a lot.”
