PORT TOWNSEND — The Port Townsend Paper Corp. mill is without a manager now that Bruce McComas has been fired from his job by a board of directors that took over last year.
McComas, who was released this week, has worked for the company for 24 years. Since 2004, he had served as manager of the mill in Port Townsend, where he oversaw overall performance, production, and personnel in the mill.
He has been active in the Port Townsend community for years. In January, he was named Port Townsend Citizen of the Year for 2007 for his involvement with the Jefferson Community Foundation and Habitat for Humanity, among other civic involvement.
McComas was unavailable for comment on Thursday.
Chuck Madison, spokesman for the company, said the release this week of McComas was not based on anything other than the board of directors’ desire to make changes in the operation of the mill, which is Jefferson County’s largest private employer, with about 320 workers.
“It really had nothing to do with him doing anything wrong,” Madison said.
“It was just that the performance of the mill is not up to expectations, and because of that, they made an organizational change in the top position.”
As of Thursday, the company had released no official statement.
