Former U.S. Postmaster General John Potter was approved Wednesday morning as the next CEO of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, tasked with overseeing Reagan National and Dulles International airports, as well as miles of toll road and the $6 billion plus Dulles Rail project.
His base salary will be $350,000.
Though he is likely to play a central role in the current controversy between the authority and local communities over the Dulles Metro project, Potter said project “never came up” during his job interviews.
The public battle has been over the MWAA board’s decision to build an airport Metro station underground instead of above ground. The above ground option, favored by local officials and to be paid for largely by local taxpayers, would cost about $330 million less.
Potter said he was hired based on his 10 years at the helm of the USPS, where he oversaw a $3 billion budget and a reduction in staff from about 780,000 to about 585,000.
Two members of the 13-member MWAA board voted against Potter — Shirley Robinson Hall and Richard Carter. Both said they hoped for someone who had past experience running airports.
