Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
By RALPH ANSAMI
Bessemer — The Gogebic County Board of Commissioners Tuesday agreed to sign the necessary documents for a $6.6 million project at the Gogebic-Iron County Airport.
The project will involve resurfacing the runway and lighting improvements, according to board member Jim Oliver, of Ironwood.
Gogebic County’s share of the federally-funded project will be 2.5 percent, or around $116,000. Iron County, Wis., will be responsible for the same amount.
The county will again deal with the Mead and Hunt firm for the airport improvement project.
There was discussion Tuesday about negotiations to widen the resurfacing of the runway, providing the counties won’t be charged an extra amount.
In another matter involving the airport on Tuesday, the board voted to release first quarter appropriations to the airport.
Airport manager Mike Harma had requested the release of both first and second quarter funding, but on a 3-3 vote, a motion to release both quarters failed.
The county board appropriates around $150,000 annually to the airport, which is governed by an airport board consisting of three Gogebic County members and two from Iron County.
On Monday, the airport board granted a raise of $6,500 to Harma, or about 14 percent.
Commissioner Tom Laabs, of Ironwood, said the raise was “setting a precedent” that he opposed.
Oliver said the raise was approved on a 3-2 airport board vote and he explained the reasoning behind it.
A previous raise of $1,000 to Harma actually resulted in him losing money because he was required to pay $2,400 more in insurance costs as part of the deal.
“He went backwards,” Oliver said.
Harma has been airport manger for about five years, starting off at a pay rate of $38,000, which was lower than the previous manager was paid, according to commissioner Joe Bonovetz, of Bessemer. The understanding was that Harma’s salary would would increase to $45,000 after five years and now it will be around $52,000 in the sixth year, Bonovetz indicated.
Laabs contended the salary should have been increased more gradually over the years and the county shouldn’t have been hit with a $6,500 raise.
The airport board’s approval sealed the pay raise.
