By Maggie Calbreathe – September 2, 2026 On August 31, 2026, the local Republican Central Committee voted to endorse incumbent Crescent City Harbor District Commissioners Rick Shepherd and Gerhard Weber for another four years. The decision is difficult to understand considering the information placed directly before committee members. The Central Committee was not simply told that problems existed at the Harbor District. Members were presented with information concerning the District's deteriorating financial condition, its USDA loan obligations, lack of insurance for the Inner Boat Basin, allegations of misuse of public money and property, and photographs showing what was described as extensive hoarding and misuse of Harbor District buildings. After seeing and hearing all of this, the committee nevertheless endorsed Shepherd and Weber. THE NUMBERS MATTER The Harbor District is currently seeking approximately $3.8 million in upfront financing in connection with its MARAD grant awards. Finding that money is proving to be a serious problem. Who wants to lend millions of additional dollars to a public district already struggling financially and carrying substantial existing obligations? This is precisely why oversight matters. The Harbor District's history involving public money should concern every taxpayer. Under former Harbormaster Charlie Helms, approximately $75,000 in Harbor District credit-card expenditures became the subject of controversy and investigation. Records reviewed by this writer included expenditures involving shoes, clothing, cosmetics, skin-care products, casinos, restaurants, hotels and a trip to Ireland. Then there was former Harbormaster Tim Petrick. Petrick was caught using a Harbor District credit card to purchase airline tickets for his wife to Las Vegas. Records also showed Petrick repeatedly "borrowed" money from the Harbor District, sometimes receiving advances of as much as $4,000 per month. By the time Petrick was terminated, he reportedly owed the Harbor District approximately $38,000. Where was the oversight? Rick Shepherd and Gerhard Weber were Harbor commissioners during these years. The public has every right to ask what they knew, what they approved, what safeguards they demanded and why these practices were allowed to continue. Yet both men now want another four years. USDA DEBT AND INSURANCE The Central Committee was also presented with information concerning decisions involving the Harbor District's USDA loan obligations and insurance for the Inner Boat Basin. Shepherd and Weber participated in decisions that raised serious questions about whether the District was adequately protecting the very public assets it was elected to oversee. When an agency is already financially distressed, decisions involving loan payments and insurance are not minor bookkeeping matters. They can affect the future of an entire public district. And now the Harbor needs another $3.8 million upfront to move its MARAD-funded projects forward. That is not a political talking point. That is a financial warning sign. THE PICTURES TOLD THEIR OWN STORY Perhaps some of the most disturbing information presented to the Central Committee was photographic. Committee members were shown photographs depicting what was described as extensive hoarding and misuse of Harbor District property under current Harbormaster Mike Rademaker. Three government-owned or controlled Harbor properties have been at the center of these concerns: the former abalone warehouse, the apartment above the laundromat and the former Coast Guard station. The photographs showed the condition in which public property was allegedly being maintained and used. One room at the former Coast Guard station has reportedly remained under lock and key and contains a bed allegedly used by Rademaker for sleeping. These are public assets. They do not belong to the Harbormaster. They do not belong to Shepherd. They do not belong to Weber. They belong to the public. The Central Committee had an opportunity to look at those photographs and ask whether this represented responsible management of taxpayer-owned property. Instead, its members endorsed the incumbents. WHAT ARE THEY AFRAID OF? Weber made an interesting admission during a Central Committee meeting. He stated that he did not originally want to run again. But after discovering that Linda Sutter and Hank Akin were running for Harbor Commissioner, Weber decided he needed to step up and seek another term. Oops. Perhaps Mr. Weber accidentally identified exactly what this election is about. What happens if Sutter and Akin are elected? What happens when two commissioners start conducting hours of due diligence? What happens when somebody starts examining the bills, contracts, credit-card purchases, advances, loans, grants and use of public property? What happens when commissioners insist that financial information actually be provided? And what happens if the Harbor District's downward financial spiral finally begins turning in the other direction? MEETING DECORUM FOR SOME – BUT NOT OTHERS The Central Committee was also provided information concerning Shepherd and Weber's enforcement of meeting decorum. For years, members of the public have watched contentious Harbor meetings where men have been allowed to make outbursts from their seats while women have been interrupted, admonished or threatened with removal. Female Commissioner Annie Nehmer has also endured attacks and contentious treatment while attempting to question Harbor business and financial decisions. Rules of decorum should be rules for everyone. They should never become a tool used selectively against people asking uncomfortable questions. FOUR MORE YEARS? Shepherd and Weber have already had years to demonstrate what their leadership can accomplish. The Harbor's present condition is part of their record. The approximately $75,000 in questioned credit-card expenditures associated with former Harbormaster Charlie Helms occurred during an era of Harbor oversight. The approximately $38,000 reportedly owed by Petrick at the end of his employment did not appear overnight. The advances of as much as $4,000 per month did not happen in a vacuum. The USDA loan and insurance problems did not occur without commissioners. The photographs depicting alleged hoarding and misuse of public buildings did not materialize the morning of the Republican Central Committee meeting. And the Harbor's present need to locate approximately $3.8 million in upfront financing for its MARAD projects cannot simply be ignored. The commissioners are the governing body. At some point, leadership has to accept responsibility for the institution it governs. The Republican Party traditionally promotes fiscal responsibility, accountability, limited government and responsible stewardship of taxpayer money. Those principles should mean something locally. Yet after being presented with the numbers, the history and the photographs, the local Republican Central Committee voted to endorse the very incumbents who have been sitting at the table while these problems accumulated. Fortunately, the Central Committee does not get the final vote. The people do. The voters can choose the incumbents and four more years of the leadership that helped bring the Harbor District to its present condition. Or they can elect professionals willing to spend the hours necessary to perform due diligence, scrutinize public expenditures, protect public property, demand financial accountability and turn the Harbor District back into the thriving centerpiece of this community that it should be. The choice in this election could not be clearer. More of the same – or change before there is nothing left to save.