Jacksonville, Fla., Airport Director Approached for Job in Denver

By David Hunt, The Florida Times-Union, Jacksonville

Jan. 3–Jacksonville Aviation Authority’s chief executive is on the short list for the top spot at Denver International Airport.

John Clark is one of four finalists for the job, said city spokeswoman Sue Cobb. She said Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper’s hiring decision likely will be made by the end of the month.

Clark has managed Jacksonville’s airports since the mid-1990s and gained the title of executive director in 2001 when the airport and port authority were split into two separate entities.

Clark did not return a phone call, but released a statement Wednesday: “Aviation administration is a close-knit profession, and it is not uncommon for airport directors to be approached by executive search firms. Since moving to Jacksonville 13 years ago, I have been approached by many international executive search firms regarding positions at airports across the country and Canada. Most recently, I have met with the executive search firm Spencer Stuart, the Denver International Airport selection committee and Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper.”

Jim McCollum, vice chairman of JAA’s board of directors, said Wednesday he was unaware of Clark’s job search and deferred comment to Chairman Cyrus Jollivette, who could not be reached.

Last year, Clark signed a new contract securing his job in Jacksonville through 2012. The contract guarantees Clark 5 percent annual raises on a base salary of $230,000. Also, he is eligible to earn performance-based bonuses at the discretion of the board equivalent of up to 30 percent of his salary, according to contract documents.

A recent Times-Union analysis found Clark’s salary to be higher than that of his counterparts in Miami, Orlando, Tampa and West Palm Beach.

Cobb declined to discuss the Denver position’s salary, saying it will be subject to negotiation.

If hired, Clark would be in charge of an airport known as the fifth-busiest in the nation and 10th-busiest worldwide, according to passenger numbers recorded by Airports Council International, a trade group.

Clark has been instrumental in expanding Jacksonville International Airport, which is expecting to see its annual passenger load rise roughly 33 percent to 8 million by 2015.

The Airports Council study says 47.3 million passengers used Denver International Airport in 2006. Flight data released Wednesday by the Federal Aviation Administration ranked Denver International the nation’s sixth-busiest airport with nearly 610,000 takeoffs and landings.

Jacksonville International, with an estimated 157,000 annual flight operations, did not make the list, which ranked 50 airports. But the four airports Clark oversees — including Craig, Herlong and Cecil Field — combine as the sites of nearly 469,000 commercial and general aviation takeoffs and landings, said authority spokesman Michael Stewart.

—–

To see more of The Florida Times-Union — including its homes, jobs, cars and other classified listings — or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.jacksonville.com.

Copyright (c) 2008, The Florida Times-Union, Jacksonville

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.

For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.