Charlevoix Municipal Airport manager Scott Woody says he is resigning from his city job because he has been "micro-managed," specifically when it comes to his effort to change a policy that charges customers parking fees in a separate credit card transaction from their flight tickets as they stand at the same counter within the airport lobby.
CHARLEVOIX — The city's airport manager announced his resignation this week during a public meeting because he said he has been "micro-managed."
Scott Woody told Charlevoix city councilors on Monday that he would resign — effective on Saturday, Aug. 23 — after he presented a report about a more than $1.5 million grant from the Federal Aviation Administration to be used on a multi-million-dollar infrastructure improvement in 2015 at the airport.
"I was made a promise by Rob Straebel that I wouldn't be micro-managed and it's happened," Woody told the city council. "Today he told me my heart is not in this job."
Woody said he intends to remain in Charlevoix and be available to help with aviation across the area.
Straebel, Charlevoix city manager, said out of respect for Woody he would not make specific comments about the personnel issue.
"I wish him well on future endeavors and thank him for his time working for the city," he said.
Woody came nearly two years ago to Charlevoix to administrate the municipal airport, which a recent state-completed community benefits assessment showed makes an annual $20 million impact to the area. During his time in the post he found inefficiencies to remedy, but said he found resistance to his latest suggestion. The issue became the "last straw," he said.
"I've tried to make this more efficient, but I've been prohibited from making these changes," Woody said.
The first inefficiency Woody said recently was successfully addressed is the prior policy of frequently driving a city-owned fuel truck down the airfield to Fresh Air Aviation. Now the mid-field airline owns and operates its own fuel wagon, saving expenses for both the city and the business.
Woody said he next wanted to change how the city charges customers parking fees to leave vehicles in the municipal lot in front of the airport along U.S. 31 South. Currently, Island Airways customers must first pay for their tickets and freight to Beaver Island, then slide down the counter and in a second transaction pay the city parking fee.
"People always complain about having to do that. Some actually get irate about it," Woody said.
To solve the customer service problem, Woody said he worked out a deal with the airline to charge the city parking fee in addition to its ticket and freight rates, in exchange for a 10-percent cut of the revenue. Despite the loss of some parking fee money, Woody said the city could save funds by a combination of not paying an employee to stay late to charge night flight customers parking fees, along with saving thousands of dollars each year in credit card transaction fees.
Straebel declined to comment on the parking fee situation, other than to say, "the issue was much bigger than that specific issue."
Island Airways formerly operated the airport as a "fixed-base operator" until in April 2011 the city government took over operations. Officials at the time said the move would make the facility more self-sufficient and reduce the need to use general fund dollars to supplement the airport budget.
On Wednesday, Woody showed a reporter city revenue reports that show during the last year the Charlevoix airport experienced an approximate 48-percent increase in overall landing fees, even though officials dropped a previously charged single-engine landing fee. He also pointed to an increase by 5 percent in parking fee revenues, something Woody attributes to improvements in the airport's customer service.
Woody previously worked as the airport manager at Gaylord Regional Airport, owned and operated by Otsego County.
- Source: http://www.petoskeynews.com
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