Both sides might be right in BGRAA issue

For anyone who has been paying attention to the rumor mill for the past few months, it shouldn't come as any surprise that outgoing Blytheville Mayor Barrett Harrison was selected to replace the retiring Joe Gurley as director of the Blytheville/Gosnell Regional Airport Authority.

What was somewhat surprising, however, was that the vote was so close.

Harrison was tabbed to take over the Aeroplex gig during a BGRAA board meeting last Thursday. Board members actually split, 4-4, on the vote, and it took a vote from board chairman Don Houseworth to break the tie.

Though it was no doubt contentious, I personally found the split vote to be refreshing, and I commend those who voted on both sides. It always scares me when I see governmental bodies voting unanimously time after time. It's not human nature to be in constant agreement, and when there's never any dissent on boards, councils or committees, it's often a sign that the fix is in.

And when it comes to this particular split vote, it could be a case when everybody's right, at least in some ways.

Those voting against making the job offer were basically saying it was about the money, citing the $100,000 salary the Aeroplex director apparently receives. With rising utility and fuel costs, not to mention impending equipment costs and the impending loss of a major tenant, the argument was that BGRAA could save money by hiring from within, or leaving the executive director's post vacant.

On the flip side, those in favor of the the job offer argued that it would be a step backward for the Aeroplex to go without a director, that BGRAA needs a leader who will bring direction and vision to the organization.

I think both sides make great points. On one hand, I agree that you need a forward-thinking leader to head up the Aeroplex. Like anything else in our community, the Aeroplex needs to be, and can be, better than it is. There's more to do than manage day-to-day operations. Besides, once you take the viewpoint that you'll do something "when you have the money," it's a safe bet that you'll never do it.

Likewise, there's some financial realities that must be taken into consideration. At Thursday's meeting, board member Dick Reams said BGRAA is over budget on 57 line items, as of July 31. And with costs going up, and income potentially going down, there's obviously some tough decisions to be made.

The point here is not to debate whether or not Barrett Harrison is the best candidate for the job. As someone with 12 years of municipal management under his belt, he seems as qualified as you could expect a candidate for the Aeroplex job to be. And since BGRAA determined that the personal privacy of the 11 other applicants outweighed the public's interest in evaluating candidates for the job, we have no way of knowing if any candidate is better than Harrison.

But Harrison does have a way to remedy this situation in a manner that could benefit everyone: As executive director, he could recommend a pay cut for himself.

As Blytheville mayor, Harrison makes in the ballpark of $65-70,000 a year. As Aeroplex director, he stands to make upwards of $100,000, according to comments made at Thursday's meeting.

What's stopping Harrison from proposing that his salary be reduced to say, about $80,000 a year? Everybody would benefit — Harrison would still be getting a raise over his old job; BGRAA would have a solid leader at the helm; and there would be an extra $20,000 a year to put into the Aeroplex. It's a win-win-win possibility.

Of course, it would take a pretty selfless executive director to propose such a sacrifice for the common good. Is Barrett Harrison community-minded enough to propose such a thing? Who knows.

But one thing's for sure — Harrison will have some challenges ahead of him when he begins his new job. And some of those challenges may require some out-of-the-box thinking. Here's hoping Harrison considers all alternatives when it comes to making the Aeroplex prosper.