For Immediate Release
August 18, 2003

Oakland, Calif. (August 18, 2003) -At its July 1, meeting, the Board of Port Commissioners appointed Joseph K. Wong as the Deputy Executive Director of the Port of Oakland. Joe, as he is affectionately known at the Port, was the Director of Engineering. His appointment concludes a six-month national search to fill the position.

Board President John Protopappas said, "We are very pleased with the appointment of Joe Wong, and the entire selection process. We wanted someone who had experience in maritime or aviation. With Joe, because of his background, we get both," said Protopappas.

Joe Wong has a Bachelor and Masters of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of California at Berkeley. His career has spanned various aspects of engineering: planning, design, and construction management with the Port of Oakland, the City of Oakland, and the City and County of San Francisco. Wong says that he wanted to be familiar with all aspects of engineering and so specifically sought assignments that would give him the breadth and depth of his profession.

Wong began at the Port in 1979 as Assistant Engineer and his scope of responsibilities has increased steadily since that time. He served as the Port's Director of Engineering for six years. "I am looking forward to working with the other senior managers in a new capacity and learning from them about their line of business," stated Joe.

In the next five years, Wong thinks that we will be transforming gradually from a building and development mode to one of operating and maintaining. "Like any business, we will always continue to improve our existing facilities to meet our customers' needs; but at the same time, we will be challenged to strike a necessary balance between financial, environmental, and community concerns relative to our future development plans," Joe remarked.

Port Executive Director, Tay Yoshitani, says, "Joe has exhibited great leadership throughout his career. He is familiar with all three lines of business as well as the local landscape. He has a broad base of support at the Port and in the community. I look forward to our continued working relationship."

The Port of Oakland is the fourth largest container port in the country. Established in 1927 as an independent department of the City of Oakland, the Port spans 19 miles of waterfront and more than 900 acres of maritime terminal facilities. Port facilities include 11 major container terminals covering approximately 5765 acres; the Metropolitan Oakland International Airport, which covers an area of over 2,500 acres; more than 1,000 acres of commercial, industrial, recreational, and other land; 950 acres of underdeveloped land; and about 9,700 surface acres of water area.

Contact:
Harold Jones
Director of Communications
(510) 627-1564
hjones@portoakland.com