NEW BEDFORD Ed Anthes-Washburn, who has served as the New Bedford Port Authority Director since 2015, is stepping down from his role to take a job in the private sector.
Anthes-Washburn, 35, will join Crowley Maritime Corporation, a vessel management and marine and energy solutions company, as director of business development for its shipping division.
The company has headquarters in Florida but locations throughout the country. Anthes-Washburn will remain in New Bedford. It s bittersweet, I ve dedicated so much to this organization, but I think an opportunity like this with a company like Crowley is very unique and very exciting for me at this point, the soon-to-be former port director said.
Mitchell sent a letter to City Council vetoing the council’s ordinance and stating his reasoning behind the veto on Nov. 24, which included that the residency requirement creates a preference for qualified city residents and cultivates a city workforce committed to the city.
Before the ordinance was enacted city employees were required to live in New Bedford unless they obtained a residency waiver, which the mayor had to put before City Council and the council then had to approve.
City Councilors have questioned the fairness of residency waivers with Coelho saying the process seemed to lack equality as some higher-level workers are granted permission to live outside of the city, while lower-level workers seemed to have a different set of rules.
The New Bedford City Council overrode the veto of Mayor Jon Mitchell and put in place a new ordinance covering the residency requirement for employees.
New Bedford City Council President Draws an Opponent [OPINION]
Ward 6 City Councilor Joe Lopes was recently re-elected to another term as New Bedford City Council President. He is the potential interim mayor. He also has opposition.
Lopes is popular with his fellow city councilors. If he wasn t, he wouldn t be the president of the city council again. At the first meeting of 2021, the council suspended the rule that prohibits a council president from being re-elected to consecutive terms at the helm.
No other councilor was even nominated for the presidency.
There was no debate or discussion on the matter.
The vote was unanimous.