In a stunning move, Louis Miller, who has run Tampa International Airport for the past 14 years but has been under fire in recent months, announced he was resigning as the head of the Hillsborough County Aviation Authority, beginning April 23.
Under Miller's tutelage, TIA has grown to be considered one of the finest airports in the country. However, there had been criticism on several fronts lately, and Miller's previously impeccable reputation had taken a few shots in the process.
Perhaps the biggest issue was the proposed razing of a $4 million building owned by the airport that had previously been used as a reservation center by Continental Airlines. The decision to do so was made unilaterally by Miller, who had only consulted with Authority member Al Austin, who owns property in the Westshore District. That razing has been halted, as there may be the possibility of a tenant coming in and renting the building, bringing revenues into the airport.
That was followed by another story about Miller's unilateral ways that prompted the authority to bring in an outside attorney — David Smith from the law firm of Gray Robinson — to look at his dealings with the airport.
Also, as CL reported in December, there was frustration amongst some members of the community that Miller had been slow in trying to bring more direct international flights to Tampa. That story was spurred on in part by an incident that occurred at the Authority's December meeting, when board member Steve Burton (who was unavailable for comment tonight) made a motion to create a committee on international marketing, and claimed Miller had been "stiff-arming" him in the process.
This article appears in Feb 24 – Mar 2, 2010.