In his short tenure as head of Tampa International Airport, Joe Lopano has established himself as one of the preeminent leaders in the Tampa Bay area. Unfortunately though, he's been in the news nearly as much for his various pay raises as he has for accomplishments at TIA.
The latest controversy over his pay was resolved today when his bosses, the Hillsborough County Aviation Authority, voted 4-1 to pay him an additional $100,000 a year over five years in deferred compensation as an incentive for him to stay with the authority. He won't get that money unless he is still CEO at the end of five years from today. The new contract also removed the aviation authority's ability to fire him without cause.
But as the lone board member to oppose that plan, Mayor Bob Buckhorn asked fellow board member Robert Watkins why the board would remove that provision allowing them to fire Lopano without cause, since it appeared that's what the board intended to do with his predecessor, Louis Miller.
This article appears in Apr 4-10, 2013.