The next chapter of the Port of Centralia Commission kicked off Wednesday as Ally Pickard was sworn in as the District 2 commissioner during its first business meeting of the year.
Her first meeting as port commissioner following her defeat of incumbent Julie Shaffley started in an unorthodox manner as the commissioners began with a lengthy executive session, with the regular meeting coming to order about 80 minutes after its normal start time.
After an addition to the agenda, the commissioners gave some clarity regarding the executive session.
The port is appealing two State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) processes, one done by the City of Centralia for its development regulations and the other done by a housing developer for the proposed Norwegian Woods subdivision that would potentially be placed at 3215 and 3217 Harrison Avenue and bring 16 residential lots. The plat construction would also include city utility service extensions, private roads, frontage improvements and fire hydrant installations, among others, according to the notice of application and mitigated determination of nonsignificance document from the city to the property owner.
Pickard made a motion to terminate the two appeals, and the motion was not voted on and therefore tabled. Commissioner Kyle Markstrom disagreed with the idea to remove the appeals and clarified that he doesn’t view the appeals as “adversarial.”
“I think terminating these appeals would be a great disservice to the work the port has done and is continuing to do. It would be a disservice to this community. It would be a disservice to the City of Centralia,” Markstrom said. “I do not see these appeals as something that is adversarial in any way. This is just the standard process by which we come to agreeance on these types of disputes. I think that the port and the city will come to a resolution on these items, and I think it is very important to continue on the path that we are currently on.”
Commissioner Peter Lahmann said there is “validity on both sides of the fence” but asked to table the motion to remove the appeals. After he mentioned finding a middle ground, Pickard said she believed a middle ground doesn’t include legal action against the city.
“We need to move forward in good faith and show that we’re ready to talk together,” she said. “We can all agree that the moratorium and the mediation and all of these things have not de-escalated the situation in any way. I think it’s time we move forward with an effort of peace and not litigation.”
Markstorm clarified that while the appeals are technically classified as litigation, the port is not actively seeking damages or suing the city. He said the port has been counseled by its attorneys, who believe there are “significant concerns” with the SEPAs. The port has expressed those concerns with the city, Markstrom said.
“The city did not accept our comments, and so the next step is to appeal the SEPAs. We’re going to get it before a hearings examiner and let the hearings examiner review all the facts and decide whether the port’s interpretation of the SEPA is correct or the city’s,” he said, further indicating that the port’s concerns were related to traffic.
The discussion was tabled after Lahmann made a motion to postpone it until the next meeting.
Further, the commissioners dove into former executive director Kyle Heaton’s separation agreement, as well as his termination letter to the port. Heaton’s contract was terminated by a vote of the port commission on Dec. 12, 2025.
Heaton, whose final day of his nearly 25-year career as the port executive director was Dec. 31, will receive $326,450.88 in separation payments spread out over the next 18 months, beginning this month. The separation pay is the equivalent of 18 months of Heaton’s $217,634 base salary as of the separation date. This amounts to a monthly payment of $18,136.16. Heaton’s separation payout also includes $77,218.19 for accrued but unused vacation time, which totals 738 hours.
For full Chronicle reporting on the separation agreement, visit https://tinyurl.com/582fched.
Pickard read Heaton’s termination letter to the packed crowd at the port office. In it, Heaton reported that the port enters 2026 with over $13,608,904 in real estate contracts pending closing. He added that, outside of boundary line adjustments and utility easements that are pending approvals with the City of Centralia, all of the port’s contractual obligations necessary to close the transactions have been completed. The port’s assets total $45,308,020, according to Heaton.
The port’s building portfolio is fully leased, and all leases are within contractual compliance, Heaton said. In addition, the port has over $3,213,208 in contract rents due over the next five years, and there is no construction in progress under contract with the port, nor is there any plan for 2026.
Heaton said the only known liabilities for the port are a reimbursement to WinCo for a pylon sign, which will be made in the first quarter of 2026, and the Gallagher Road extension being done through the Logistics Property Company project.
“The port is in a very strong financial position moving forward. I appreciate all the contributions and sacrifices staff have made to put the port in such a strong position and hope they will have a sense of pride at the improvements they brought to the community,” Heaton wrote. “The port is poised for a future of success. Whether the success is realized is entirely in the hands of the port commission going forward.”
Lastly, the commissioners agreed on setting the officers for the commission in 2026. Lahmann will serve as the commission president, Markstrom will serve as vice president, and Pickard will serve as secretary/treasurer.
