Williamsburg-Whitley Airport Board abandons search for full-time manager

After months of discussion and financial maneuvering, the Williamsburg-Whitley County Airport Board has abandoned the search for a full-time manager at the facility, saying hiring one would be too costly.

The issue was raised during the board’s regular monthly meeting last Tuesday.

Board member Jeff Shelley made the motion to disband a standing committee that was conducting a search for a full-time manager for the airport, and it was quickly seconded by fellow member Mike Colegrove.

Shelley justified the move by saying that the airport had too many other issues that needed attention, and hiring a full-time manager would draw away the necessary resources to address them.

“The time I’ve spent out here, there are a huge number of items that need to be taken care of and these things are going to cost a lot of money,” Shelley said. “With that information, I don’t really see a need that we need to keep a manager search committee open.”

“I personally would like to take that money that would have been spent for a manger … and use that to take care of some of the issues out here, which are some serious issues.”

Board bookkeeper Don Stricklin was hired in January as a temporary, part-time manager of the facility. He is paid only $300 a month to fill the role in addition to his bookkeeping duties.

Board members gave Stricklin effusive praise during the meeting, pointing to a tripling of aviation fuel sales at the facility, as well as attention to other details, since he was named manager.

“You are doing much more service than you are being rewarded for here,” Colegrove told Stricklin during the meeting. “If you are going to be in business, you got to be in business. Somebody’s got to be around. Somebody’s got to be answering the phone. Somebody has to be out here … I kind of feel like we are back in business.”

In a budget summary provided to the board, Stricklin noted that about $28,000 existed in the budget to hire a full-time manager, an amount most board members felt was too little.

Bob Moses, who was a member of the manager search committee, said the committee had been talking to someone who was very qualified for the position, but wanted a larger salary than the board had to offer.

“We can’t afford him now. Maybe someday, we can.”

Colegrove said he felt as though the board was a long way from being able to afford the potential manager candidate, and called for a vote on the issue.

All members present voted to disband the search committee with the exception of Rich Prewitt, who was serving as chairman during the meeting in place of normal board chairman Tim Mays. Prewitt said he abstained from voting out of professional courtesy to Mays.

In other business, the board

• Discussed the need for an audit.

Prewitt said that state law required the board be audited at least once every three years, and estimated an audit would cost around $3,500.

“That’s going to be a big lick for a small budget like ours,” Prewitt said.

He added he felt like airport boards ought to be exempt from the requirement.

Paul David Steely, of PDC Consulting, said legislators in Kentucky’s General Assembly are being lobbied on the issue during the current session and he hopes airport board will be exempted by new legislation.

“That’s a huge, critical issue statewide and they are actually going to the legislature to meet to try to get the airports excluded from that,” Steely said.

Steely is a former chairman of the Williamsburg-Whitley County Airport Board.

The airport is projected to have $171,800 in revenue this year.

• Heard and approved a financial report from Stricklin.

Stricklin pointed out that fuel sales had sharply increased since regular quality testing had resumed, and since someone was at the airport regularly to answer the phone. In January, the airport sold $4,955 worth of fuel and made a profit of $735.

Stricklin said cost of fuel had dropped significantly and suggested that the airport lower its fuel prices. The board agreed.

He noted that $900 was spent in the last month for a new computer. He also said that an $8,000 quarterly payment due from the city of Williamsburg had been delayed, but would be paid this month.

“We are in fairly good financial standing,” Stricklin told the board. “Most expenses were normal.”

Stricklin informed the board that he had secured a $7,500 refund for the airport in sales taxes that were erroneously paid. The facility ended with a cash balance in its main account of $37,575.97

• Discussed a myriad of maintenance issues at the airport. No formal action was taken.

• Held an executive session to discuss the hiring of a part-time employee.