By: Brendan McLaughlin
TAMPA - TIA Chief Executive Joe Lopano fidgeted awkwardly at the Hillsborough Aviation Board meeting as the Chairman argued for a pay increase that was more than many people in the audience make in total.
Steve Burton proposed raising Joe Lopano's total compensation to $355,000 dollars a year - a $50,000 pay hike. He also proposed adding another year to Lopano's three-year contract.
"They're paying people in his position hundreds of thousands of dollars more" argued Burton.
All three appointed board members seemed poised to approve the pay raise. But the two elected members, County Commissioner Victor Crist and Mayor Bob Buckhorn were not convinced.
"We're very lucky and grateful to have him here and he knows that, but a contract is a contract and we're only a year into it," said Crist.
Mayor Bob Buckhorn also opposed the raise.
"I said from the beginning that this pay raise was too much and too soon. He has a contract. I expect him to live up to that contract, just as I have a contract with the voters," said Buckhorn.
Lopano has an impressive list of achievements in his first year as chief. He worked to add daily non-stop flights to London. Supported providing twice-weekly service to Havana Cuba for the first time in half a century. And in May, Lopano and his team attracted a new airline, Edelweiss that will fly direct from TIA to Zurich- a service expected to create millions in economic benefit to the Tampa Bay area.
In the end, Mayor Buckhorn and Victor Crist were outnumbered three to two so the raise went through.
Joe Lopano was offered a similar raise three months ago, but turned it down in view of the economy. He did not return our call today asking why he decided to accept the raise this time.
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