November 26, 2018
By Will Robinson – Reporter, Jacksonville Business Journal
bizjournals.com
The Jacksonville Aviation Authority board Monday voted unanimously to name Mark VanLoh as its new CEO.
VanLoh, previously the CEO of the Tulsa Airports Authority in Oklahoma, had been put forward by the board's search committee out of a pool of 73 candidates. VanLoh previously served as the director of aviation for Kansas City, Missouri, and president of the Chattanooga Airport Authority in Tennessee.
"I'm looking forward to a lot of success here," said VanLoh.
VanLoh succeeds Steve Grossman, who retired in the fall. Grossman presided over JAA for nine years and left the authority on a year of record high passenger counts, record high revenue and a slew of new direct flight destinations. Rusty Chandler, chief of Cecil Airport and general aviation, served as interim CEO while the executive search was conducted.
"There are some big shoes to fill, but we have a lot of faith in you," said board chair Jay Demetree.
In contrast to JEA's board, which on Tuesday will review multiple CEO candidates nominated by its search committee, JAA's board simply had an up or down vote on one candidate. VanLoh had been the clear winner in the search committee's scoring metric based on interviews with four candidates.
VanLoh will begin his duties on Dec. 3.
