August 5, 2019
By: Dwayne Page
The City of Smithville has a new manager at the airport.
During Monday night’s regular monthly meeting, the aldermen voted to hire Mike Carpenter to succeed Joe Johnson who announced his resignation last month.
Carpenter’s hiring came upon a favorable recommendation from the Smithville Airport Advisory Board.
“I want to thank you for your confidence. I look forward to increasing the scope of the airport and the community awareness of the airport. I also want to give accolades to Joe (Johnson). He has worked tirelessly in increasing the infrastructure of the airport. He has been a good friend. We also have a great community of guys at the airport and I am proud to be part of that,” said Carpenter in addressing the mayor and aldermen.
“I will be trying to expand our services and bring in different types of flight utilization including ultra lights and drone piloting for young people. The FAA approved Amazon for drone usage and a lot of young people need to understand that and learn about drones and the basics of aeronautics . I look forward to things like that. I’d also like to have movie nights for the community. Maybe once a month have a movie and popcorn and show some good old fashioned movies and do something that brings the community to the airport. I am excited and looking forward to it,” added Carpenter.
In other business, the aldermen reappointed Walter Burton to another term as a member of the Smithville Electric System Board of Directors.
Burton, who is chairman of the SES board, serves with fellow members Jason Murphy, Hilton Conger, Sandra Wall, and Mayor Josh Miller.