Image Credit: John Partipilo
By Sam Stockard [Tennessee Lookout -CC BY-NC-ND 4.0] –
Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti is challenging Metro Nashville’s legal victory in a lawsuit against the state over control of the airport authority.
The Attorney General’s Office issued a statement Wednesday saying it filed a notice to appeal the injunction issued by a three-judge panel in the case filed by Metro Nashville after the Legislature passed a law this year giving the governor and speakers of the Senate and House a majority of appointments on the Metro Nashville Airport Authority.
Under the court’s ruling, the Metro Nashville mayor’s office regained the authority over appointments to the group, which controls Nashville International Airport.
“We look forward to litigating this case to a clear and decisive resolution so airport leadership can focus on serving our community and our visitors,” the AG’s press secretary, Tim Meads, said in a statement.
The judicial panel allowed the state-appointed board to take control while it heard the case this summer. During its four months in control, the new airport board to approved almost $100 million in contracts and increased airport CEO Doug Kreulen’s salary from $390,000 to $600,000, according to the Nashville Business Journal.
H.G. Realty Hill Realty CEO Jimmy Granbery and businessman Bobby Joslin also each took seats on the state-controlled board. Metro Nashville lawyers contended the two men resigned from the old board, making their seats vacant once the city-controlled board was restored.
They dispute this assertion and attended the last airport board meeting. Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell has so far decided against appointing new members to the airport board, letting Granberry and Joslin retain their seats.
About the Author: Sam Stockard is a veteran Tennessee reporter and editor, having written for the Daily News Journal in Murfreesboro, where he served as lead editor when the paper won an award for being the state’s best Sunday newspaper two years in a row. He has led the Capitol Hill bureau for The Daily Memphian. His awards include Best Single Editorial from the Tennessee Press Association. Follow Stockard on Twitter @StockardSam
