Mike Wilson has been the head man at the Willacy County Navigation District for the past 18 years.

Wilson said that he and his wife Claudia are moving from Port Mansfield to Corpus Christi where he intends to join his son in the shipping business.

The Port director told board members at the July 14 meeting that he intended to make a change and he said that he will work part time in his office until November 1, when his resignation will become official.

Willacy County Navigation District board members are Don Donaho of Raymondville, Terry White of Port Mansfield and Troy Shewmaker of Port Mansfield.

Because of a Bill introduced in the Texas Legislature by State Senator Eddie Lucio, changes are coming for the Navigation District beginning with the November 2, election of five board members.

Here-to-fore since 1948 the district has had three board members and now it will be expanded by two.

Senate Bill 2569 authored by Lucio of Brownsville was signed last year by Governor Rick Perry and will take effect on Sept. 1, 2010.

The Bill reduces the terms of board members from six years to four and provides that board members be elected from single member districts based on population with one at-large member, who will serve as the presiding officer of the board.

The commissioners will serve staggered four year terms.

The Navigation District acts as a city government for the residents of the Port, providing services, but unlike a city residents of the district lease the property rather than buying it.

Wilson said that he believes now is a good time for him to step aside and that he is willing to stay long enough to help new board members get a handle on how the district operates.

He said he understands why some voters wanted to see the number of board members increased to provide a voice for those who live in various north Willacy County communities. Wilson said, however, he did not like the way the Bill was introduced in the legislature without any consultation with the current board.

When the District was founded after World War II, it was hoped that it would provide employment to the citizens of the county.

To make Port Mansfield possible it was necessary to cut a channel through South Padre Island to give the county residents access to the Gulf of Mexico.

In the early 1970's Port Mansfield began to develp and a shrimp packing plant opened where locals were hired to clean and pack shrimp.

Other businesses sprang up including service companies that provided fuel, ice and groceries for offshore oil rigs.

By the 1980's those businesses disappeared with the decline in drilling and competition from the shrimp packing plants in Port Isabel and Brownsville.

Since then Port Mansfield was a sleepy fishing village until it eventually became known as one of the best fishing spots on the Gulf Coast.

Senator Lucio said he is mindful that people across the northern half of Willacy County pay taxes to the district often with little to show for their tax dollars.

His former aide, Paul Cowan, said that the senator is interested in seeing to it that the Port has a chance to develop commercially, the way it was intended to in 1948.

Wilson confirmed that the election will be held on Nov. 2, at the same time and in the same polling places where the general election will be held.

However, Navigation District voters will have a seperate ballot and will vote in a different room than those who are voting in the general election.

The cost to have a seperate ballot will be about $5,000, Wilson estimated. His justification for the added expense.

"If our election was held on the same ballot it probably would be on the tail end and a lot of voters might not even scroll down that far," said Wilson, as the reason why board members decided to spend the extra money on their own ballot.

Critics of the district, however, will say the reason for different ballots is the hope of current board members that many voters will vote in only the general election and not in the Navigation District election.

The five new directors will draw lots to see which two will serve a term expiring Dec.l, 2012 and which three will serve a term expiring on Dec. 1, 2014. Two directors will then be elected to four year terms in November, 2010 and three will be elected to four year terms in 2014.

"All the Senator intended to do is to give everyone who pays taxes in the district an opportunity to participate in it, to help the local economy," Cowan said.

Candidates may begin filing for the election on July 26 and the deadline for filing is August 25, Wilson said.

Tuesday morning John Buffo a certified public accountant for Buffo and Berkman a local accounting firm was at the Navigation District working on the annual audit.