INSIDE

New port director targets lineups

By Meg Olson

On Super Bowl Sunday Linda Robinson came to work, "so the boys could
go watch the game." The new Immigration and Naturalization Service
(INS) port director combines over a decade of border enforcement
experience with den mother sentiment and an appreciation for the interplay
between an isolated community and an incongruous border.

Before coming to the Point Roberts position in November Robinson was
the port director in Skagway Alaska, in charge of four small land ports.
"This is a piece of cake with everyone under one roof," she said of the local
port of entry. She is no stranger to cross-border grocery shopping,
plant-starved local gardeners and service availability. "Point Roberts is
unique, but so is Skagway," she said. The two ports also share swings in
seasonal traffic volume. In Skagway winter lows could sink to 30 cars per
day using the port of entry while in summer volumes could spike up to 500
cars a day. On the Point winter lows hover around 1,000 cars per day
while highs in July hit over 2,500 cars.

Robinson has been with the INS since 1986 and spent the first 12 in Prince
Rupert pre-clearing passengers before moving to the Skagway ports. She
chose Point Roberts because it fit the bill for both her and her husband. "He
likes the country and I wanted to be closer to stores. ItÕs a little isolated
up there." Her first goal in her new position was to get to know her crew
and the traffic patterns they deal with. "My goal is to keep them happy
because if theyÕre happy your lives will be easier too," she said.

With some schedule adjustments Robinson said she has been able to
adequately staff the port while cutting down on overtime and consolidating
days off into larger blocks of time. "When I have everyone here I wonÕt
have any extra overtime during the week," she said. "If theyÕre rested they
move that line faster because their brain is working."

As U.S. Customs and the INS merge in the department of homeland
security there could be changes at the local border and Robinson hopes
they translate into more, and not less staff. "Right now we have the bare
minimum to run thie port," she said. "Customs has added a trainee and we
hope to keep her but technically what we need is five more."

Robinson said she is spending the slower winter months looking at numbers
and working with inspectors to map out a strategy for minimizing wait times.
"TheyÕve got the message we will be moving traffic faster, but we do have
to do our jobs," she said.

RobinsonÕs first traffic-tweaking step will be to expand NEXUS hours and
keep track of the volume of cars using the lane. Starting February 1
NEXUS will be open from 2 to 6 p.m. "We want to see if we get enough
traffic," Robinson said. "If we donÕt get the traffic, in the summer weÕll be
better off with two regular lanes and closing NEXUS." She said one reason
NEXUS flows have been low is that being open from 5 to 7 p.m. didnÕt fit
with traffic flows. "If you look at peak travel times theyÕre from 2 to 6
p.m.," she said. "From 2 to 6 p.m. with everyone here we have enough staff
to open a third lane for shot periods." Future changes will depend on when
Robinson sees heavy traffic volumes. "IÕm willing to adjust schedules," she
said. "For example, in the future with the golf course we may need an extra
lane open early in the morning and we can look at that."

Another thing Robinson is looking at is complaints about how inspectors
behave when dealing with the public crossing the line. She is reviewing all
the complaints received since the 1980s, but does not expect her review to
result in any wide disciplinary strokes. "I know who theyÕre talking about
and its something IÕm watching," she said. "I prefer to work with positive
and not negative reinforcement." As an example she said that one
inspectorÕs somewhat detached and business like attitude can be seen by
some as "mean" when she feels he is just trying to be professional. "You
have to find some middle ground and change slowly," she said.

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