The Mississippi Valley Trade & Transport Council

Vancouver USA approves strategic plan

(Posted on 14/09/18)

The Port of Vancouver USA Board of Commissioners have unanimously approved the port’s 2018 Strategic Plan. The new plan includes a new vision statement and outlines 20 goals and 66 strategies to guide the port’s activities and budget for the next decade.

The Port of Vancouver USA is one of the major ports on the US Pacific Coast. It handles a range of cargos and is primarily a bulk import and export facility with dedicated facilities for specific commodities, such as grain, soy beans, corn, mineral ores, concentrates, fertilizers, clays, bauxite and agricultural commodities.

The plan was developed over 11 months with broad public and stakeholder input, including advisory panels, public open houses, commission meetings, public workshops and hundreds of public comments.

“We appreciate all the time and energy our community has put in as we’ve created our new strategic plan,” said CEO Julianna Marler. “We heard from hundreds of people, both within the port and across our community. Their perspectives helped us develop a balanced plan so we can continue to advance as an organization while achieving our state-directed purpose and our mission of creating economic benefit through leadership, stewardship and partnership in marine, industrial and waterfront development.”

The port first developed a strategic plan in the early 2000s and updated it each year as necessary. By 2017, the port needed a new plan to address organisational change, including completion of many key initiatives; marine and industrial business growth; identification of new projects; and changes in staff and elected leadership.

The port hired Vancouver-based Maul Foster & Alongi in summer 2017 to assist in creation of the new plan. The process included interviews with each commissioner and nearly all port staff; stakeholder research interviews; four advisory panels with more than 80 participants; two public open houses; seven public workshops; more than a dozen commission meetings and; hundreds of public comments.

Community input was incorporated in the plan in a variety of ways, including the new vision statement and goals and strategies aimed at:

Supporting job creation and economic development
Supporting regional economic development organizations and identified priorities, including workforce development
Focusing on full utilization of property and infrastructure investments
Taking a leadership role in supporting Columbia River channel maintenance and infrastructure
Adopting a Climate Action Plan
Pursuing innovative business opportunities and renewable, clean energy projects
Additional transparency and regular, two-way communications with the community
Increasing opportunities for public access, including the Columbia River waterfront

The 2018 Strategic Plan is available at www.portvanusa.com/key-projects/strategic-plan, the port’s Administrative Offices and local public libraries.