Long Beach Harbor Commission appoints Director of Finance
The Long Beach Board of Harbor Commissioners on Monday approved the selection of Wei Chi to lead the Finance Division at the nation’s second-busiest seaport.
The Director of Finance is responsible for ensuring effective implementation of fiscal policies at the Port of Long Beach; sound oversight of Harbor Department income, expenses, capital projects, and debt issuance and service; and budget alignment with the Port’s Strategic Plan. The Port operates entirely on revenues and existing funds and is not funded by taxes or the City's General Fund.
Chi returns to the Port of Long Beach after working for several years as Deputy Executive Director, Comptroller for Los Angeles World Airports, the city agency that operates Los Angeles International Airport. In that role, he oversaw the implementation of an ambitious $14 billion overhaul of LAX, including the expansion of the airport’s international terminal, the modernization of three domestic terminals and several airfield improvements.
Before landing at LAWA, Chi was an assistant chief financial officer for the Port of Long Beach from 2007 to 2008, where he was part of the executive team that spearheaded the San Pedro Bay Ports’ Clean Trucks Program financial initiatives. The Program spurred the replacement of 17,000 older drayage trucks serving the Port of Long Beach and the Port of Los Angeles.
Prior to his first stint with the Port of Long Beach, Chi was a senior executive with BP and ARCO, serving in a variety of roles touching on retail, diversity, business development, marketing, treasury and financial planning.
Chi holds a Master of Business Administration in Finance from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, and a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from Columbia University.
The appointment of Chi was effective Tuesday.
