Maritime Director Bids Farewell to the Port

Wednesday, 02 December 2009

After more than a year as Director of Maritime Operations, Leonard Fabor is leaving the Port of San Diego to rejoin his family in Sacramento. His last day here is December 4, 2009.

“I’ve enjoyed every minute at the Port of San Diego. There was never a dull moment,” said Fabor. He managed the Port’s two cargo terminals and the B Street Pier Cruise Ship Terminal.

“I was attracted to the challenge and opportunity of managing a variety of cargo terminals and cargoes,” he said.

Fabor said it is unusual for a port to handle and a director to manage such diverse cargoes as windmill tower components for wind farms, steel beams used in construction, and heavy generators for power plants.

Regularly-arriving import cargoes include containers of bananas at the Tenth Avenue Marine Terminal and automobiles at the National City Marine Terminal. The Port of San Diego also handles military cargo load outs and is classified as a Department of Defense Strategic Military Port.

Most recently, Fabor was involved in plans to reconfigure the 96-acre Tenth Avenue Marine Terminal to create more open space for maneuvering and storage of windmill components. Additional open space gained by demolishing some warehouses will allow the Port to handle increased shipments of windmill components from China and Vietnam that are expected by 2012 once the world economy improves.

Fabor also worked with staff and representatives of government agencies involved in the design of the new Broadway Pier Cruise Terminal to ensure it will function smoothly for both passengers and ship crews. The facility is under construction along the North Embarcadero.

“My experience here has been invaluable,” said Fabor, who has held various positions in the maritime industry over the last 30 years.

Ron Popham, Assistant Vice President, International Trade & Industry Development at the Port of San Diego, said Fabor is “a consummate professional” in the field of marine operations who “brought a big heart and a big smile to his job.” Popham said Fabor will be truly missed by the maritime team and by Port staff whose paths he crossed and impacted.

One of Fabor’s first projects at the Port of San Diego was planning and implementing a program to provide a Transportation Worker Identification Credential to the thousands of Port employees, Port tenants, longshore workers and truck drivers that need access to the cruise and cargo terminals.

“There was no blueprint on how to implement this federally mandated program,” said Fabor, adding that the Port of San Diego in December 2008 became the first port on the West Coast to activate this U.S. Coast Guard security requirement.

“I’ll miss the people and the positive work environment at the Port of San Diego,” Fabor said. “My wife and three children liked visiting San Diego but their hearts remain in Sacramento.”