AVOCA BOROUGH, LUZERNE CO. (WOLF) — The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport has a new leader, ending a national search for its next executive director.
The six-member Bi-County Airport Board voted Thursday to hire Kim William “Bill” Hopper of Greenville, North Carolina, who brings more than 30 years of airport management experience to the position.
Hopper most recently served as executive director of the Pitt-Greenville Airport Authority in North Carolina, a position he held from 2019 until retiring in June.
His hiring is conditional on the negotiation of a final employment contract.
The airport launched a national search after former Executive Director Carl Beardsley Jr. resigned earlier this year.
Consulting firm ADK was paid $47,000 to conduct the search. The position was advertised with a salary range of $135,000 to $150,000, depending on qualifications and experience.
Four finalists were interviewed by the airport board earlier this month. The names of three of those candidates, including Hopper, had not been publicly released before Thursday’s decision.
The only publicly known finalist was Lackawanna County Commissioner Chris Chermak, who temporarily stepped aside from his position on the airport board while seeking the job.
Attorney Chris Munley was appointed to fill Chermak’s board seat during the selection process. Chermak is expected to return to the Bi-County Airport Board now that another candidate has been selected.
Chermak had publicly promoted his candidacy and previously claimed he “had the votes” to become executive director, an assertion disputed by all six members of the airport board.
Hopper will take over leadership of an airport jointly owned by Luzerne and Lackawanna counties.
Wilkes-Barre Scranton International Airport Board