Three Departing After Long Port Careers

Tuesday, 30 June 2009
Contact: Marguerite Elicone, Photos: Dale Frost

Sailing On
The Port of San Diego says goodbye to three recently retired employees who together share 91 years of experience – Chuck Sefkow, Bill Briggs and Nancy Swihart.

Chuck Sefkow, Land Surveyor, Engineering & Construction

Bill Briggs, Senior Redevelopment Planner

Nancy Swihart, Administrative Assistant II, Real Estate

 

Chuck Sefkow, Land Surveyor, Engineering & Construction
Ask Chuck Sefkow what the Port tidelands looked like in the ‘70s and he’ll tell you, “There was a lot of dirt.”

Chuck, a land surveyor with the Port’s Engineering & Construction department, retired on June 25 after 37 years of service.

He remembers when Harbor Drive was located right up to the edge of San Diego Bay, when Seaport Village was just an empty lot, and when the area from Navy Pier to the new Hilton was undeveloped. There was no Embarcadero Marina Park, no Marriott and Hyatt and no Convention Center.

“That’s the whole reason why the Port was created, “Chuck said. “Before the Port built all of these beautiful parks and developed the hotels, there was no reason to come down to the waterfront.”

Chuck is proud to say that since he started in 1972, he has been involved in every single Port development. From figuring out where a light pole would be installed to surveying the location for the San Diego Bayside Hilton, all of these projects have Chuck’s mark on them.

His favorite projects were the parks. He liked to see the transformation of the waterfront from a place where no one dared to venture to, to a place where families and children could enjoy spending time.

“It’s like being an artist,” he said. “You are working on something and not sure what it’s going to look like. It takes patience and time before you see any kind of result.”

Chuck enjoys taking his children and grandchildren down to the Port parks and showing them things that he’s worked on.

Prior to the separation of the airport from the Port in 2002, Chuck performed survey work at Lindbergh Field. His survey crew was small, only four people, and they often worked 14 hour days. The crew did survey work on the runways, which could only be conducted at night. In the daytime, they did their jobs on development projects.

During that period, the Port was at its height of development, so Chuck was always busy. He was involved with the construction of both Terminal II and Terminal II West at the airport.

One of his biggest achievements while working at the Port was earning his Professional Land Surveyor License. It wasn’t a requirement when he was hired in 1972, but was a personal goal that he wanted to fulfill. The exam is extremely difficult and it’s rare for surveyors to pass it on the first try. Chuck is proud to say that he did and strongly encouraged his co-workers to study for it.

Chuck has been married to his wife, Peggy, for 41 years. They have three children and six grandchildren. He plans on remodeling his house to add room for his family, so that they can come and stay whenever they like.

He enjoys camping, and plans on making several trips to Yosemite. He might also take a trip to Ireland with Peggy, who was born there.

Congratulations, Chuck, and enjoy your retirement!

Bill Briggs, Senior Redevelopment Planner
Bill Briggs has learned a lot about land and water use around San Diego Bay while working for the Port for close to 33 years. During this time, he earned the reputation as a walking encyclopedia of the Port.

At his retirement party, John Helmer, director of land use planning, jokingly announced they were downloading all of Bill’s Port knowledge to a compact disc in a “brain dump” before he leaves.

Bill is retiring from the Port as a senior redevelopment planner, where he participated in drafting over 40 amendments to the Port’s Master Plan. Most recently, Bill was involved with the America’s Cup Harbor Plan, resulting in the redevelopment of Sun Harbor Marina and The Wharf at Point Loma Marina.

“All of the projects presented challenges, but the variety of challenges was part of the benefits of the job,” he said. “They offered many interesting opportunities to make enhancements to the bay while protecting its natural resources.”

One of Bill’s earliest projects at the Port involved the Small Craft Mooring and Anchorage Plan. In the early ‘80s, there were over 700 anchored vessels and “floating craft” scattered amongst 18 locations on San Diego Bay. The Board of Port Commissioners were concerned the bay was being used as a dumping ground for dilapidated vessels. There were no regulations for anchored vessels, so a resolution was passed to designate mooring and anchorage areas.

“It has taken a while to implement, but it was great to be part of a project involving a number of other Port departments that has significantly reduced the risk of pollution from abandoned boats,” he said.

Bill is a landscape architect and was involved in the planning of several of the Port’s waterfront parks. He helped with the design of Coronado Tidelands Park, the Chula Vista Bayfront Park, and coordinated tidelands use studies of parks, shoreline promenades, fishing piers, and boat launch ramps.

When Bill began in the Planning Department, the office was located on the first floor of the Administration Building, where the board room is now located. Bill remembers the office had the appearance of an industrial warehouse, with high ceilings and fluorescent lights hung from long chains.

“The Port Administration building has been much improved by several major remodeling projects, “he said, “Although it could use a few more windows.”

Bill’s wife of 42 years, Bea, is retiring this month from San Diego State University. They have two daughters and twin granddaughters. Bill and Bea plan on spending more time with family and are planning a trip to Costa Rica early next year with friends they’ve known since college at Michigan State.

Bill said his time at the Port has been a great experience.

“I had the opportunity to work with a lot of bright and friendly people on some very interesting projects.”

The Port will miss Bill’s friendly smile and caring attitude. Not to mention the treasure trove of knowledge stored in his brain. If we could only get that on a compact disc.

Congratulations, Bill, and enjoy your retirement!

Nancy Swihart, Administrative Assistant II, Real Estate
Nancy Swihart remembers when every office door at the Port’s Administration building was left open. “I miss those days,” she said. “You could walk into any department and say hello to anyone.” Nancy, who has been at the Port since July 1988, is retiring today after 21 years of service.

Strict fire codes now mandate that all offices keep their front doors shut. But that didn’t stop Nancy from making her rounds. Ask anyone around the Port and they have good things to say about her. Nancy is a motivator, an inspiration, the embodiment of the power of positive thinking.

Those attributes became abundantly clear following a February 14, 2008 accident that left her with severe burns on over 65 percent of her body. Port employees were touched to hear the personal story of Nancy’s tragic accident at the 2008 safety breakfast. She stood before a crowded ballroom to tell the story of how her life was almost destroyed by fire. Her moving account brought many to tears and brought everyone to their feet.

As Nancy recovered from life-threatening burns, her counselors at the UCSD Burn Institute told her that there would come a point when she would stop thinking of herself as a victim and start thinking of herself as a survivor. She believes that she reached this moment sooner than most burn victims and she attributes it all to her mother and the way she was raised.

“My mom grew up on a farm, and her strength was passed along to me. We weren’t raised to be babies,” she said.

Tragically, she lost her beloved mother during her recovery.

Nancy plans on spending a lot of her time volunteering for the San Diego Burn Institute. She wants to help other burn victims reach that stage where they begin to feel like survivors.

Since Nancy started in the Real Estate Department, she has seen the department go through three name changes. In the late 80s it was called Property Engineering, then Development Services and now Real Estate. She worked with the architects and mapping techs, some of them for her entire Port career, and has been a part of almost every major real estate development.

“I’ve had to stamp every page of the plans for most of the projects,” she said. She said it has been wonderful to see projects advance through the “twinkle of the eye” stage to completion. Examples of these are the Manchester Grand Hyatt, which she had the opportunity to go to the very top while it was being built, with all the “cute steelworkers,” and the Midway Aircraft Carrier Museum, which holds a special place in her heart.

Nancy came to San Diego via an aircraft carrier. Her father served in the Navy and worked on several carriers and she gave up sixth grade camp so that she could go on a dependant’s cruise with him before he started his nine-month tour of duty at sea. She remembers when the talk of bringing the Midway to San Diego first started. She was elated, but secretly doubted that the plans would ever make it to fruition.

After plans for the Aircraft Carrier Memorial project were submitted, she had the opportunity to meet several of the World War II veterans who were involved with the project. Talking to them brought back fond memories of her father and she ended up being a contributing donor to the memorial.

In addition to volunteering at the San Diego Burn Institute, Nancy is looking forward to spending more time with her “cowboy” (husband) Pat, and her family, especially her three grandsons. She plans on traveling to Luxembourg to visit one of the grandsons, along with her stepdaughter’s family. She looks forward to reading, taking photography classes, scrapbooking, getting her life and closets organized, and enjoying being a member of the Red Hat Society.

Her words of wisdom for the co-workers she is leaving behind are to make your personal space reflect your own personality. Her own workspace in the Real Estate Department contains binders that are covered with photos of pets and babies. She is responsible for decorating a department supply cabinet with dozens of photos of co-workers’ children and pets.

Her parting words are that she appreciates all of the kindness and consideration that was shown to her after her accident. She especially wants to thank everyone who assisted her with the donated leave program. She said she has no idea who contributed to the program because the policy doesn’t identify donors, but she wants to make sure everyone realizes how much she truly appreciates their generosity.

Congratulations, Nancy, from all your friends at the Port!

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