Antonio Silva said there are several reasons why he is running for the port commission. He wants to stay involved in planning for the downtown harbor rebuild, and he wants to continue speaking up for all fishermen who depend on the town’s harbors and marine services.

That includes sport, commercial and subsistence fishermen, he said.

“I love that the Wrangell Port and Harbors (Department) offers so many amenities to these groups,” he said, noting that the work floats and net racks are particularly important for the fleet.

And while “commercial fishing is one of the largest employers in town,” other harbor users are equally important.

“My goal is to continue to encourage the ports to not forget about the little guys.”

Silva, 40, was appointed to fill a vacancy on the commission in February 2025 and then elected that fall to a one-year term. He is seeking election to a three-year term, running against Mechel Meek in the Oct. 6 municipal election.

Now in his 13th year as a commercial fisherman, he participates in multiple fisheries — halibut, pot shrimp and Dungeness crab, and trolling and gillnetting for salmon. This is his first full year with the Danegeld, a 46-foot gillnetter. It’s his fifth boat; he started out with a 30-foot wooden troller “and then slowly moved up.”

Factoring in maintenance and other chores for the multiple fisheries, he works 12 months a year, adding, “the safest way to make a living is to diversify.”

One thing he learned soon after joining the port commission 18 months ago was that it is an advisory council to the borough assembly. “We just make the recommendations,” though he added that the assembly “does really kind of take our advice really seriously.”

In that role, he wants to stay involved in the borough’s plans to dredge and rebuild the Inner Harbor and other downtown floats, and the proposal to bring a privately run shipyard to borough-owned land at the former 6-Mile Mill site.

He also supports the ongoing effort to push boat owners to ensure that their vessels are operational, not “stagnant, derelict,” or give up their moorage stall.

“You can see what’s being moved around, letters being put on boats and an effort there to kind of encourage people to use their boats,” Silva said. If not, there is a waitlist of boat owners who want stalls.

“Wrangell is a working community,” and that’s a good thing, he said.

“I think Wrangell is on a great trajectory right now, making some fantastic decisions … with JAG (the potential shipyard developer) coming in and the 6-Mile property getting put to use there, I think all of that is just fantastic.”

Silva said he is aware that boat stall renters and Marine Service Center customers are conscious of rate increases, but he believes “our rates are some of the better rates” in Southeast.

“I think we pride ourselves on being the most affordable communities to get hauled out,” in addition to having a skilled workforce of marine service professionals.

Much of the port and harbor facilities were built with grant money, he said, pointing out that “down the road, when those start to need being replaced,” or require heavy maintenance spending, the borough needs to have sufficient reserve funds built up to cover the costs.

“It’s interesting to see the budget and understand where money is coming and going,” he said of a port commissioner’s job.