Oakland’s Bridges will become Virginia port director

Oakland’s Bridges will become Virginia port director    Virginia Port Authority on Friday named Jerry A. Bridges as its candidate for executive director.
   Bridges, 53, replaces J. Robert Bray who will retire in December after 29 years of leading the authority.
   Bridges has been head of the Port of Oakland for two years.
   The 12-member board of commissioners is scheduled to vote on a new executive director Nov. 28.
   The authority owns three Hampton Roads marine terminals and is the seventh largest container port in the country.
   Among the challenges facing Bridges will be the start up of a large new privately owned container facility being built by A.P. Moller-Maersk affiliate APM Terminals in Portsmouth. Also pending is a plan by Virginia International Terminals, the operator of VPA’s terminals, to get into the stevedoring business. The proposed VIT venture would compete with stevedores like CP&O LLC and Ceres Marine Terminals Inc.