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Moliterno's Priority for WRPA: Build Relationships
VIENNA TOWNSHIP, Ohio -- Building relationships with political leaders and economic development entities in the Mahoning Valley is one of the priorities for the new interim executive director of the Western Reserve Port Authority.
John Moliterno, former president of the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber and a past chairman of the port authority’s board of directors, was hired at a special meeting of the port authority board Tuesday afternoon.
“He is absolutely the perfect choice,” Ron Klingle, chairman of the port authority board, said following the vote. Moliterno is “well known and well respected” by area business and government leaders, he added.
Moliterno, a Girard councilman and former city treasurer, was the president of the Youngstown Area Chamber of Commerce and oversaw its consolidation two decades ago with the Warren and Niles chambers to form the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber.
“I’m excited,” Moliterno remarked. The port authority board of directors recently added three members and is working as a team and the boards of commissioners from both Mahoning and Trumbull counties “are totally on board with what we’re trying to do, which is bring jobs to this valley and move this airport forward,” he said.
“We need to create that excitement and activity in the Valley,” he continued. “We need to be able to work with every other entity in this Valley that’s trying to do the same thing. This isn’t the port authority out there doing it on its own. Our job is to bring people together, to cooperate with other agencies and other entities and help them bring jobs here.”
The vote to hire Moliterno came following a 45-minute executive session, with six of the eight members of the board voted in favor of hiring Moliterno. Member David Detec recused himself from the closed-door discussions and abstained from the vote, citing a conflict of interest due to a “professional relationship” with Moliterno. The board’s eighth member, Scott Lewis, was unable to attend Tuesday’s meeting.
Moliterno brings skills “that will allow a much better relationship with the port authority, the Regional Chamber and other government entities in the area, Klingle said. He attributed many of the port authority’s problems in recent months to poor communications between the board and those other entities. “John is going to make a very big difference in making a much better situation,” he said.
Moliterno will be paid at a rate of $88,000 annually under the at-will agreement, which is subject to termination by either party with two weeks’ notice. No term has been set for the interim appointment and there is “absolutely that potential” for Moliterno’s employment to extend beyond the interim period, Klingle said.
Over the next few months, the port authority will receive additional information from the Council of Development Finance Agencies, the firm contracted to help prepare a strategic plan for the agency, Klingle said.
The port authority will work with CDFA to prepare a five- and 10-year plan, Moliterno added. “And it’s going to be a plan that won’t be successful unless everyone buys into it,” he said.
“Once that is received we’ll have a better understanding of … the type of person that’s qualified to take charge going forward, once we’re all in agreement what our strategic plan should be,” Klingle said.
The port authority will also “take a very close look” over the next few months at what the executive director position should be and determine “whether or not we’re going to do any type of an additional search, which we probably will, to see if there are other people out there,” he said.
“We’re going to see how things go,” Moliterno said. “We’re going to work together. It gives me a chance to work with the board and with the other entities within the community and if we’re able to make some positive moves forward then we’ll consider what happens at that point in time. Right now, it’s day-to-day. It’s how do we get everything together so that we can all work as one.”
Moliterno will oversee both the economic development and aviation divisions of the port authority, Klingle said. “The Western Reserve Port Authority has enough things going on that it needs and good administrator also on a day-to-day basis,” he said.
Dan Dickten, who manages Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport for the port authority, remains aviation director, and Klingle doesn’t envision any “noticeable” administrative changes, he said.
“The airport has been doing quite well on its own with Dan Dickten at its head, but as it relates to economic development, there’s some areas we can manage and coordinate better,” he continued.
The airport has made “tremendous strides” in recent years under Dickten, Moliterno agreed. “It’s a great facility, underutilized but moving in the right direction,” he said.
Pictured: John Moliterno, newly appointed interim executive director of the Western Reserve Port Authority.
Copyright 2014 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
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