Waterfront Wednesday May 6, 2026
Waterfront Wednesday News
May 6, 2026
Northwest Maritime Apprenticeship Inaugural Graduation Ceremony
A historic evening last week saw the first three graduates of the Northwest Maritime Apprenticeship Program graduate and receive their Journeyman certificates after a rigorous 4-year program of on-the-job and supplemental training.
The program is the first of it's kind in the nation, marking the three graduates as the first in the United States to complete the training. You can read more about the program and the graduation from our blog post, below:
Port of Bellingham Commissioner Bobby Briscoe addressed the apprentices graduating with heartfelt advice and congratulations. Photo: Dan Tucker
The travel lift at Seaview Boatyard. The Small Shipyard grant can aid in upgrading infrastructure and equipment in smaller shipyards.
Small Shipyard Grants Open Through MARAD
Small Shipyard Grant Program (SSGP)
- Funding Available: $35 million in total funding is available for FY 2026
- Application Deadline: May 11, 2026, at 12:00:00 p.m. E.D.T.
- Purpose: The program provides grants to small shipyards for capital improvements and maritime training programs to foster technical skills and operational productivity in shipbuilding, ship repair, and related industries.
Eligibility and Project Information
- Eligible Applicants: Small shipyards are eligible if they are in a single geographic location and have no more than 1,200 production employees. The facility must construct, repair, or reconfigure vessels 40 feet in length or greater for commercial or government use, or vessels 100 feet in length or greater for non-commercial use.
- Eligible Projects: Projects fall into two categories
- Capital Improvement Projects: Must advance efficiency, competitive operations, and quality in ship construction, repair, or reconfiguration.
- Maritime Training Programs: Must focus on developing employee skills and enhancing productivity.
Tide to Table Dinner Huge Success
Our Working Waterfront Coalition and Foundation staff and Boards, volunteers and members send a heartfelt thank you for last month's annual Tide to Table event attendees, sponsors and partners.
The event was a success that highlighted the key partnerships, networks, and industry peers that have come together to celebrate our working waterfronts.
The event featured several Bellingham Dockside Market vendors that offered appetizers of their favorite catch, and Drayton Harbor Oyster Company hosted a fantastic down-home seafood boil.
This year, we had several sponsors that made our event truly memorable, and we'd like to thank them for their ongoing support.
We hope to see everyone back next year for Tide to Table '27, and we look forward to a year of promoting the vitality and benefits of our working waterfronts with you all.
Nature's Symphony
Faces of Humanity
Sands of Time
Beyond Boundaries
Trainees work on survival and safety skills with WA Sea Grant training programs. Photo: Robert Maw
Who Should Attend
- Shipyards, marine manufacturers, and fabrication employers
- Port leaders and industrial waterfront partners
- Welding and CTE faculty (K–12 and postsecondary)
- Community and technical college leaders
- Workforce and economic development professionals
- Apprenticeship and labor representatives
- State and regional policymakers
Maritime Workforce Forum Registration Open
The Working Waterfront Coalition is proud to sponsor the upcoming Maritime Workforce Forum with the Port of Bellingham and the Center for Excellence in Marine Manufacturing and Industry. The Maritime Workforce Forum is where you can roll up your sleeves. This is a working session - not a conference - bringing together industry, education, ports, and workforce leaders to tackle the real challenges shaping the nation's current maritime capacity.
The Forum is free to attend.
The 2026 Forum focuses on one of the most critical drivers of that capacity: welding and fabrication. Welding underpins shipbuilding and repair, vessel maintenance, marine infrastructure, and industrial waterfront development. And currently, the shortage of welding capacity is a constraint.
As national focus accelerates around rebuilding the U.S. maritime industrial base—through the Maritime Action Plan and broader Maritime Industrial Base efforts—the shortage of skilled welding professionals has become one of the most immediate barriers to scale, schedule, and competitiveness.
This Forum is built around working sessions—designed to move beyond discussion and into application. Attendees will hear directly from industry and port leaders and walk away with practical information that can be applied immediately to programs, partnerships, and workforce strategy.
Senators Murkowski & King propose
Seafood Competitiveness Act
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Angus King (I-ME) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) have introduced legislation to strengthen the American seafood industry by treating it the same as the nation’s farmlands. The American Seafood Competitiveness Act would expand access to U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) loan and grant programs for commercial fishermen, seafood processors, and mariculture-related businesses. The legislation would also expand Farm Credit eligibility to businesses providing services to fisherman and fish processors.
Read more on Sen. Angus King's website below:
Fishing fleet in Alaska. Photo: Nate Thomas
Fishing vessels in Squalicum Harbor. Photo: Dan Tucker
USDA Announces Creation of Office of Seafood
(Washington, D.C., April 15, 2026) – Today, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins alongside U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett, Alaska Senator Dan Sullivan, and Maine Senator Susan Collins announced the creation of the new U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Office of Seafood.
This first of its kind office will prioritize customer service and ease of navigation for American seafood cultivators, producers, and processors to access USDA programs.
Read more below:
Dragonfly Kayak Tours
Grand Opening
Dragonfly Kayak Tours moves to a new location at 704 Coho Way, in Squalicum Harbor, and the grand opening event is this month, May 23/24th, Saturday and Sunday of Memorial Day Weekend.
Owner Tori Ayres is excited to have a new space where kayak trips can outfit, repair, and rent gear. The site has easy access to the hand-launch area in Zuanich Point Park, and can allow for further expansion of the business.
You can check out all that Dragonfly Kayak Tours offers below:
Interim Director DeSimone is set to become Executive Director DeSimone. Photo: Port of Bellingham
Port of Bellingham Selects Next Executive Director
Following a long national search and vetting process, the Port of Bellingham at last week's commissioner meeting selected the next permanent Executive Director.
The position was nominated to go to current Interim Director Tiffany DeSimone by Commissioner Michael Shepard, and passed commission vote unanimously. DeSimone will need to formally accept the offer.
The decision comes after a professional hiring firm conducted dozens of interviews with Whatcom businesses and waterfront organizations prior to beginning their search and writing a description, soliciting Whatcom feedback for the candidate pool.
Outreach for the position contacted 9,500 applicants across the nation, resulting in a pool of 99 qualified applicants, that then was vetted down to 12 in the final stage, including local candidates. The interviews included round-tables the Port Commissioners and with industry professionals and leaders in other Ports in Washington and the nation to determine the fitness of final candidates, and the decision marks the first time in modern history that a woman has led the Port of Bellingham.
You can learn more about Tiffany, formerly the Director of Maritime for the Port, through the interview we conducted with her on our radio broadcast on KMRE 88.3, 'Love Your Waterfront',
earlier this year:
Love Your Waterfront - Tiffany DeSimone
You can read more about the decision via Cascadia Daily News:
Free Molt Search Workshop
Friday June 5, from 10am to noon at the
BP Heron Center
7290 Birch Bay Drive, Blaine
Calling all nature nerds! Invasive European green crabs threaten shellfish, salmon habitat, and juvenile Dungeness. You can help defend our beaches by doing early detection surveys through Molt Search – a free participatory science program. Molt Search reports help guide European green crab trapping and removal efforts and Molt Searchers collect valuable data on Dungeness crabs. Plus, Molt Searching is fun to do!
In this workshop you’ll learn how to:
- Identify common crabs of Washington by looking at their molts (their shed shells),
- Survey for invasive European Green crabs,
- Gather data on Dungeness crabs, and
- Submit your findings via the free MyCoast app.
The workshop includes doing a practice Molt Search together on the beach.
Please dress for the weather, wear good walking shoes, and bring something to collect molts in – a one-gallon plastic bag, clean take-out container, dishpan, or bucket works well!
To register please go to:
https://wsg.washington.edu/crabteam/moltsearch
To learn more about Molt Search visit wsg.uw.edu/moltsearch
Port Commission Meetings
Port Commissioners Open Meetings are held at the Port Admin Offices and are open to the public. Check the Agenda Center (Linked on each meeting time below) for posted agendas. Agendas typically get posted a week in advance of the scheduled meeting. Two periods of public comment occur each meeting before and after the agenda items, as well as special public hearings as designated on the agendas.
*NOTE SPECIAL MEETING FOR COMMERCIAL FISHERMEN*
The Port of Bellingham has been actively addressing maintenance needs and planning long-term improvements at both Blaine and Squalicum Harbors. Over time, the capital costs associated with facility life extension projects have increased, even as the Port has worked to keep rates competitive in support of our commercial fleet.
They invite you to the first in a series of small, informal workshops with fellow commercial fishermen. The purpose of this gathering is to share perspectives and engage in an open discussion about current market conditions affecting moorage and gear storage pricing, as well as how rising costs might be addressed.
This is a complex topic. This workshop is not intended to establish standards or promote any specific viewpoint, but rather to provide a respectful space for exchanging ideas that will provide a starting point used to inform future decisions.
Workshop details:
- Date: May 12, 2026
- Time: 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM
- Location: Harbor Center Commission Room, 1801 Roeder Ave.
If you’re interested, they encourage you to join. If you would like additional information, please contact either Harbor Office:
- Blaine: 360.647.6176
- Squalicum: 360.676.2542
Location: Port Admin Offices, 1801 Roeder Ave, Bellingham
Port of Bellingham Agenda Center (check here for updated agendas)
Upcoming Meetings:
May 12 - 1:00pm - ACF Rate Workshop
May 12 - Board of Commissioners Open Public Meeting
May 26 - Board of Commissioners Open Public Meeting
Past Meeting Information
YouTube Link:
April 14 - Board of Commissioner's Open Public Meeting
April 28 - Board of Commissioner's Open Public Meeting
Recent Minutes Posted:
April 14 - Board of Commissioner's Open Public Meeting
Want to get the highlights from each meeting on our maritime trades and marine-related topics? Join the Coalition as a member to get access to Commissioner meeting briefs, available on the member page of our website! Join us and add your voice to the waterfront discussion HERE.
Upcoming Waterfront & Coalition Events
Waterfront Events:
Blessing of the Fleet - Bellingham
Zuanich Point Park, May 9th, 11:00am
Join the Whatcom Commercial Fisherman's Association and the Port of Bellingham for the annual Blessing of the Fleet. This ceremony honors those who have lost their lives in our commercial fishing fleet, and gives blessing to those embarking on the upcoming season for a safe return.
Mother's Day @ CBC
Community Boating Center - Fairhaven, May 10th
Come celebrate Mother's Day at the Community Boating Center in Fairhaven! Activities are going on all day to celebrate moms and families, with guided excursions, rentals, and group adventures that are sure to create lasting memories for that special mom in your family!
Seafood Shellebration!
B-Town Kitchen & Bar, May 16, 1-4pm
Skagit Shellfish and Swinomish Shellfish will both be on site talking about their farms, sharing their shellfish, and explaining how and where to get their products locally.
Penn Cove and Drayton Harbor Oysters will have blue mussels, shucking, and grilling oysters.
Free Molt Search
BP Heron Center, Birch Bay, Blaine, June 5th
Calling all nature nerds! Invasive European green crabs threaten shellfish, salmon habitat, and juvenile Dungeness. You can help defend our beaches by doing early detection surveys through Molt Search – a free participatory science program. Molt Search reports help guide European green crab trapping and removal efforts and Molt Searchers collect valuable data on Dungeness crabs. Plus, Molt Searching is fun to do!
Coalition Events:
Are You Hiring? Use the Coalition Job Board
The Coalition's
Job Board is free, contactless, and easy! We designed this board for our commercial fishermen, marine trades industries and other waterfront jobs in mind, to act as a digital bulletin board for crew positions, contract hires, or regular employee spots that you want to have a digital space for.
If you have any questions on using it, reach out to our staff, info@whatcomworkingwaterfront.org. To submit a job posting, use the link below:
Affordable Health Benefits
for Statewide Maritime Companies
The Working Waterfront Health Trust provides affordable pooled insurance health plans for qualifying marine-trades businesses -
state-wide. The Trust launched two years ago, has grown steadily each year and provides a range of health plans to consider through Premera Blue Cross.
If you'd like to know more about the Health Trust, contact your insurance broker today and ask them about the Working Waterfront Health Trust. Fall is the peak time to meet with your broker to discuss options for your employees for 2025.
This newsletter sponsored by:
Alta-Gas
Premera
Copyright 2025 Waterfront Wednesdays by Whatcom Working Waterfront Coalition
Waterfront Wednesday is a publication
of the Whatcom Working Waterfront Coalition.
www.whatcomworkingwaterfront.org
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