SCOTT CHADWICK, NEW CEO AT HELM OF PORT AUTHORITY, IS ANCHORED IN EAST COUNTY

By Miriam Raftery

December 1, 2024 (El Cajon) – San Diego Port Commissioners have named Scott Chadwick to serve as the new CEO of the San Diego Port Authority, starting in January. Born and raised in El Cajon,  Chadwick graduated from Valhalla High School and Grossmont College, later obtaining a B.A. in political science from Purdue University. 

Currently he is the city manager for Carlsbad and previously served as the City of San Diego’s chief operating officer, human resources director and labor relations director. Prior to his 20 years of city government intelligence, he served as a U.S. Army intelligence analyst and also worked for AFSCME, a labor union representing state county and municipal employees.

Public service runs in the family.  Chadwick’s mother, Gloria Chadwick, is an elected member of the Grossmont Healthcare District’s board of directors  in district 4.

In an interview with San Diego Business Journal, Scott Chadwick stated, ”As a leader I have always been focusing on continuous improvement and customer service.” He said he is “thrilled” at the opportunity to “serve all who live, work, and play on and around the beautiful and vibrant San Diego Bay waterfront. It is an exciting time at the Port of San Diego."

He called the Port Authority’s environmental leadership “trailblazing” and praised its efforts to open access to areas that the public had been barred from for decades. 

Chadwick, now a resident of Point Loma, will lead nearly 600 employees at the Port. The Port  Authority is responsible for more than 14,000 acres of tidelands, bay, and beaches along 34 miles of waterfront across San Diego, Chula Vista, Coronado, Imperial Beach and National City. The Port supports more than 64,000 jobs and has a $9.2 billion regional impact in San Diego County—all without taxpayer funding.

“It is up to the Port to make sure that we are responsive to the port stakeholders, that we’re responsive to each of those five cities and do the best job we possibly can,” Chadwick said.

The Port’s major projects currently include implementing the Maritime Clean Air Strategy, utilizing zero-emissions technologies such as the first-in-North America all-electric mobile harbor cranes and the first all-electric harbor tug in the U.S., San Diego Business Journal reports.

The Port is also finalizing and implementing its Master Plan Update which aims to balance environmental, economic and community interests along the San Diego Bay waterfront for the next three decades.