From Sea to Shore

At Coastal Villages Region Fund (CVRF) there is a direct link between our Bering Sea fleet and the benefits we provide to our 20 communities. In 2022, our Bering Sea fleet caught 104.8 million pounds of pollock, cod and crab and generated more than $75 million in gross revenue from sustainable seafood sales around the world.

The federal Community Development Quota (CDQ) Program, created to provide coastal Alaska communities with the “opportunity to invest in fisheries in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands” (16 U.S.C. 1855), directs CVRF and the five other CDQ groups to use earnings from Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands investments to support economic development, alleviate poverty, provide economic and social benefits, and achieve sustainable and diversified local economies.

In 2022, CVRF again delivered on this mission by providing $13 million of direct benefits to residents in our communities. We also expanded CVRF’s footprint through strategic acquisitions of Bering Sea and Seattle assets. Through the purchase of a Seattle Boat Harbor property, CVRF strengthened its logistics stability when our vessels are not in Alaska, generating long-term cashflow, and providing room for future growth. It also negates the need to pay a third party for moorage, storage and offices that are key to our operations and to the generation of benefits in our region. Additionally, CVRF acquired the Bering North inshore pollock fleet, in partnership with fellow CDQ group, Norton Sound Economic Development Corporation (NSEDC).

CVRF continues to support measures to ensure the longterm health and sustainability of the Bering Sea crab resources. We participated in the bairdi crab fishery while the red king crab and opilio crab rebuilding programs are underway. Pacific cod is another important Bering Sea investment for CVRF. In 2022, we operated both the fishing vessels Flicka and Lilli Ann in the Pacific cod freezer long-line fishery, and we continue to look for ways to harvest cod more efficiently and to expand our holdings of cod quota.

Climate change is an alarming threat to the resources that support our fishery operations and to our residents’ way of life. Changing ocean and river conditions are major causes of salmon crises. Extreme weather creates flooding and erosion that impacts our housing and infrastructure. Climate change is top of mind for CVRF as we pursue responsible and sustainable growth through investments and partnerships. We do this with Alaskan values: protecting our resources and strengthening our communities for future generations.

Coastal Villages Region Fund purchased 1801 Fairview Avenue in Seattle, Washington in 2022 . The marina includes 2,770 lineal feet of dock and wharf space, two acres of uplands, and 17,000 square feet of warehouse space and another 17,000 square feet of office space. CVRF has been an anchor tenant at the property for almost a decade—and will continue to rent approximately half of the property to other tenants.