The director will be in charge of a staff of 80 employees and will have to navigate the needs of residents who live on the flight path of the planes as well as the airport tenants and other stakeholders involved with the operations.
A city spokesperson acknowledged this week that the applications for the director of the Long Beach Airport (LGB) will be accepted until Sunday, May 8, and interviews will be expected to commence in June.
She confirmed that city officials hope the new director can start no later than August. City Manager Pat West will be the final decision maker on the individual who will be chosen to manage the airport operations, according to Kerry Gerot, West’s public-affairs officer.
“Ultimately, however, the candidates will face several panels,” Gerot said in a phone interview, “so it’s a fairly extensive process.” She explained that candidates will face both a community panel and an industry panel, as well as a thorough reference and background check. According to the City’s human resources’ web page, candidates must have at least “seven years of progressive leadership experience” at a commercial airport.
Gerot was asked about how big that pool of potential candidates is, considering there is a limited number of actual airports in the United States.
“So, I think that you might be surprised,” Gerot said. “A lot of airports have very, very similar challenges and any airport director typically will have to deal with all of those.”
She added that all airports have tenants and are subject to rules and regulations from the federal, state and local authorities.
Aviation Career Services will be handling the applications for the job. The organization apparently handled the recruitment of the last director, Bryant Francis, who left at the end of March for a position at the Oakland International Airport. Francis only served LGB for a little over a year. Aviation Career Services still touts on its endorsement page a happy review from Francis, who praised the company for its discretion and professionalism in his own recruitment.
Prior to his time, Mario Rodriguez served as the airport director from 2009 to 2014. He left Long Beach to be the executive director of the Indianapolis Airport Authority.
Stephanie Montuya-Morisky, who serves as the acting public affairs officer for Long Beach Airport, confirmed that Juan Lopez-Rios is currently the interim director for the airport. Francis’s exit happened at a strange time. City councilmembers had already requested that a study be commissioned to explore the possibility of having a federal customs-inspection facility, a move needed for airlines to offer international flights out of the LGB. The request came directly from JetBlue Airways, the airport’s biggest tenant.
It’s a controversial request, and advocate groups like LB HUSH2 have staunchly opposed it. Residents who have attended community meetings regarding the study have at times voiced considerable frustration.
Montuya-Morisky said in a statement that Jacobs Engineering was responsible for leading the last two community meetings, and the interim director and airport staff are “available for any operational questions concerning the airport.” She added that the customs-facility study should be completed around August or September, when it will be presented to the city council.
LB HUSH2 leader and former city councilmember Rae Gabelich said in a phone interview that the fight over the customs facility is not over whether the airport offers international flights.
“It is not about the destination of the airplane,” Gabelich said, as she explained that an airline that requests the ability to offer international flights could jeopardize the strict noise ordinance that is unique to the Long Beach Airport.
“It is about creating an enhancement that triggers the impetus for a carrier to decide that they want a piece of the action,” she added, “and would it be worth their while to pursue legal action against our ordinance?”
Gabelich expressed her hopes about the next airport director.
“For this next person, let’s hope!that whoever they choose understands that Long Beach is an airport with a noise ordinance with restrictions on flights,” Gabelich concluded, “and it’s not about coming here and growing Long Beach Airport.”
