After four years serving as Texarkana Regional Airport director, Mark Mellinger resigned his position during a special Airport Board meeting Wednesday.
Of the seven board members present, six voted to accept Mellinger's resignation and separation agreement, which took effect Wednesday afternoon following his final task of directing the airport's triennial disaster preparedness exercise.
Board Member Adger Smith was absent and Board Member Don Ruggles abstained from voting.
Mellinger told board members that having to split time traveling back and forth from Texarkana to Fayetteville, Arkansas, where his wife, children and other family members live, was becoming more difficult every year.
"I want to thank the board for these last fours years I've served as airport director," Mellinger said. "As time went on, it became more difficult and more of a struggle to take care of both my family and the airport. I didn't want this to go on with both the airport and my family having to suffer, but I hope the airport's future projects continue to turn out well."
Airport Board Chairman Matt Robertson expressed thanks to Mellinger for his service as director, which started in 2015.
"On behalf of the board of directors, we would like to thank Mark for his service over the past four years," Robertson said. "In that time, we've made tremendous strides in a number of areas, including the (passenger) terminal(construction) project, automated parking system, successful negotiation of a long-term lease agreement with TAC Air and revising the fuel flowage rate to one more in line with industry standards. We wish Mark and his family all the best and much success in his future endeavors."
In other business, board members agreed to allow Robertson to conduct negotiations to secure some local interim management employment services until a new director can be hired.