Oak Harbor’s new police chief will be riding a ferry to get to work for awhile.

The City Council unanimously confirmed the mayor’s selection of Edgar “Ed” Green as the new police chief at their meeting Tuesday night. Green has worked at the Port Townsend police department for nearly 20 years and is currently the administrative sergeant.

People at the meeting only had glowing reviews of Green.

“It is my strong opinion that Ed Green will make an excellent chief of police for Oak Harbor,” said resident Brian Jones, who was on the panel that interviewed the candidates. “He embodies what all Oak Harbor will want and need of our top cop.”

Green was present at the meeting with his wife, Christy, and made brief comments.

“I look forward to getting in, getting to work. I’m anxious to represent these fine people,” he said.

Green will start work on Oct. 29, just in time to dive into the city’s budget process.

Council members, Mayor Scott Dudley and Green all thanked Lt. Tim Sterkel for leading the police department over the last five months with a short staff. Dudley fired the former chief, Rick Wallace, in June and then Lt. John Dyer quit to take a job as a police chief in Colorado.

Dudley briefly explained that process by which he chose Green. The city advertised the job and received 16 applications, of which only 11 fit the requirements. The human resources department reviewed the applicants and narrowed them down to seven viable candidates. Four of them withdrew their names before the interviewing process.

A panel of City Council members, citizens and police officers interviewed the three remaining candidates and forwarded recommendations to the mayor. The mayor also interviewed them and picked Green.

“I know the citizens of Oak Harbor will be safer with you at the helm of the police department,” Dudley told the new chief.

The Oak Harbor Police Department has been without a permanent police chief since Dudley fired Wallace in June. Wallace is now suing the city for wrongful termination.

The council also approved the employment contract with Green. He will earn $102,000 a year and will receive six months of severance pay if fired.

Green said last week that he and his wife plan to move to Oak Harbor, but they have a home in Port Townsend to sell.