DULUTH, Minn. — The Duluth City Council recently appointed Jerome Johnson and Brian Murphy to the Duluth Seaway Port Authority Board of Commissioners.
Johnson succeeds Commissioner Tyrone Walker, who resigned upon relocating with his family to New Jersey, and Murphy succeeds Commissioner Rick Revoir, who concluded 14 years of service on the Port Authority Board of Commissioners in October.
Both appointments are six-year terms set to expire in October 2030.
Johnson is a business manager with the United Association of Plumbers and Steamfitters Local 11. He serves on a number of boards, including with the Minnesota and Wisconsin Pipe Trades Association, and as a trustee for the Duluth Building Trades Welfare Fund. Johnson attended Lake Superior College and worked locally with AG O’Brien Plumbing and Heating. He served previously in the U.S. Army from 1996-2003.
Murphy will retire in January 2025 as senior vice president and chief lending officer for North Shore Bank in Duluth, where he has worked since 1994. The remainder of his 41-year banking career was with the St. Louis County Federal Savings and Loan Association. He specialized in residential mortgage and commercial lending, with a focus in real estate lending. He is a graduate of Duluth Cathedral High School and Harvard University, where he majored in economics while tending goal for the ice hockey team. Murphy serves currently on the One Roof Community Housing and Kitchi Gammi Club Foundation boards.
The Duluth Seaway Port Authority is an independent public agency created by the Minnesota Legislature in 1955 to foster regional maritime and economic development and advocate for port interests. A seven-member board of commissioners governs the Port Authority – two appointed by the governor of Minnesota, two by the St. Louis County board and three by the Duluth City Council.
Murphy is the 75th commissioner to serve on the Port Authority board, dating back to its inception as a city-founded entity in 1929.
###
More than 700 vessels and 30 million short tons of cargo move through the Port of Duluth-Superior each year, making it the Great Lakes’ largest tonnage port and one of the nation’s top 20. The Port supports more than 7,000 jobs and contributes $1.3 billion in business revenue to the regional economy. Learn more at DuluthPort.com.