Saturday, March 18, 2006
Trumbull commissioners' legal adviser was asked to look into the matter.
By ED RUNYAN
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- A Western Reserve Port Authority member who revealed a financial interest in a flight school at the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport says he'll resign if Mahoning County commissioners think he has a conflict.
Joe Maxin Jr., a Boardman attorney who is a pilot and flight instructor, announced at a port authority meeting this week that he and board member Mike Harshman have a financial interest in Cortland Air, a flight school set to begin operations at the airport this spring.
After that meeting, Trumbull County Commissioner James Tsagaris began asking questions about what would be required to remove port authority members, apparently over questions of conflict of interest.
"I don't want to compound the problem, so if I were asked by Mahoning County commissioners to step down, I would," Maxin said.
Atty. Dan Keating, legal counsel for the port authority, said state law governs the removal of port authority members. It says that a port authority member could be removed for having a true conflict of interest, which would require the majority vote of commissioners.
Keating said he is still researching whether having a financial interest in a flight school constitutes a conflict of interest.
Mahoning County Commissioner Anthony Traficanti said he doesn't have enough details on the issue to comment yet. Traficanti said he wishes that Maxin or Tsagaris would call him to discuss the matter, and he will look into it early next week.
What's suspected
Maxin said he believes Tsagaris is trying to get back at the port authority for its actions in trying to force ReadyAir, a fuel handler and service provider at the airport, to pay its rent.
ReadyAir and the port authority last week participated in a hearing in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court in which Judge John Stuard ordered ReadyAir to put its back rent payments into an account with the Trumbull County clerk of courts. The hearing is part of a lawsuit ReadyAir filed against the port authority after the port authority threatened to evict ReadyAir.
Maxin said he believes Tsagaris is trying to support Bob Moosally, owner of ReadyAir, because the two are friends. Tsagaris has said he is friends with Moosally -- but that he is friends with many people.
Moosally raised to The Vindicator earlier this week the issue of the financial stake in Cortland Air held by Maxin and Harshman. Moosally said the two had a conflict of interest. "They shouldn't even be on the board," he said.
Removal process
Jason Earnhart, assistant Trumbull County prosecutor and legal adviser to the commissioners, said Tony Carson Jr., county administrator, asked him on behalf of Tsagaris to look into the port authority bylaws to see what action commissioners could take to remove port authority members.
Earnhart said he needs a copy of the bylaws first before he can begin to research the issue. He said he will provide information and legal counsel to the commissioners.
"That should not be taken by anyone as [the prosecutor's office] supporting anything [Tsagaris] is saying or that any of the other commissioners is at this point interested in this," Earnhart stressed.
Earnhart said that in most situations, removing port authority members would require the agreement of two or more commissioners.
The port authority is composed of four members appointed by Mahoning County commissioners and four by Trumbull commissioners. Harshman is a Trumbull appointment.
Tsagaris and Commissioner Paul Heltzel could not be reached to comment. Commissioner Dan Polivka said he has no comment on the issue and will not until he has obtained more information. "And then I might not have any comment," Polivka said. "Jimmy's the one making the statement."
runyan@vindy.com