Cleveland Port’s Friedman elected national board chair

ED CARROLL | STAFF REPORTER ecarroll@cjn.org | @EdCarrollCJN

The American Association of Port Authorities is turning to Cleveland for its chair of the board for next year. Port of Cleveland president and CEO William D. Friedman was elected as chair of the board of the AAPA on March 20, and the Shaker Heights resident assumed the position for his one-year term on Oct. 10.

Friedman, who has been at the Port of Cleveland since the summer of 2010, said being elected to the chair position of the AAPA, which represents seaports in the U.S., Canada, Central America and the Caribbeans, was an honor.

“I’ve been in this industry for a long time, going back to late 1980s, and I really enjoy the work I do,” Friedman said. “I feel strongly and have a lot of passion about the importance of port authorities both locally to their communities and nationally in their importance to our economy ... I also get gratification working with colleges in Canada and Latin America.”

Friedman, who attends The

Temple-Tifereth Israel in Beachwood, said a goal of his term is to continue to carry on some of the AAPA’s strategic initiatives that are already underway, and he hopes to be able to advocate on behalf of the nations’ ports if the president decides to put forth an infrastructure bill, as he considers the ports important connectors of the economy and doesn’t want them to be overlooked. He will also head a search committee to find a replacement for AAPA’s longtime president and CEO, Kurt J. Nagle, who plans to retire next fall. Nagle said the other members of the board recognized Friedman is well-respected in the industry and able to build a consensus among the organization’s members.

“(Friedman) has been actively involved in the industry and association for many years and that leadership and respect has resulted in him being elected as chair,” Nagle said. “The association is over 100 years old, I’ve worked here for 30 years and known Will for 20 (years). We don’t come to these decisions lightly.”