Dec. 17—COLONIE — The board of the Albany County Airport Authority, which ousted former Chief Executive Officer Phil Calderone in August, says it does not anticipate hiring a permanent successor until the completion of an ongoing $100 million expansion project — work that is not expected to be wrapped up until the summer of 2026.
After Calderone was informed in August that his contract would not be renewed, the board said it hoped to have a permanent replacement in place by early 2025.
The amended timeline came into focus as the airport's chief financial officer resigned five weeks after being placed on administrative leave following a complaint from another employee. Michael F. Zonsius' departure after five years in the CFO role was confirmed Monday by a spokesman for the airport authority's board.
When it announced Zonsius' leave in early November, the board said it had raised several issues regarding his performance, including possible procurement issues and the use of funds without the board's input.
The board is conducting an audit examining time and attendance issues as well as looking at whether procurement policies were violated. It is also engaged in a separate workplace investigation into the complaint that led to Zonsius being placed on leave.
The board previously alleged that Calderone, the former CEO, had been allowed to structure vendor invoices in order to avoid board approval for some expenses, but has not said what expenses were allegedly involved.
Zonsius had served as the airport's CFO since September 2019. He has more than three decades of experience working in aviation finance, including more than eight years managing the books for O'Hare International Airport and Midway International Airport, both in Chicago.
Zonsius, who hung up on a Times Union reporter following the board's November action, did not respond to a voicemail message left Monday night.
The decision to put him on leave came two months after the airport authority board effectively fired Calderone in early September, a few weeks after informing him his contract would not be renewed. Calderone was dismissed from his job, but remained on the authority's payroll until his contract expired Dec. 2.
The dismissal came after a tumultuous back and forth with the board when it informed Calderone on Aug. 12 that his contract would not be renewed. Multiple sources at the time told the Times Union the move was made to open the role for Albany County Executive Daniel McCoy. The board denied it intended to hire McCoy and offered a list of complaints it had with Calderone's performance when it announced his dismissal. Among those complaints were allegations that Calderone violated the authority's procurement policies and utilized authority funds without the board's input. As with their action against Zonsius, the board has not provided specifics about those allegations.
Calderone had noted in correspondence with the board that they had never raised concerns about his work before asking for him to step down.
"Additionally, at no point has the board provided me with any performance reviews or feedback regarding my leadership that substantiates your assertions," he wrote in a letter to the board in late August. "Please know that I have always used my best efforts to demonstrate professionalism, sound judgement and respect for the authority, the board, its mission, stakeholders and employees — in fact doing so has defined my tenure as CEO and is consistent with the reputation I have built over 45 years in public service."
McCoy eventually said he would not pursue the CEO post.
After Calderone's dismissal, the board brought back the authority's former top legal counsel, Peter Stuto, and ex-CEO John O'Donnell to serve as acting CEO and COO, respectively.
The search for a new CEO has not yet begun, though the board plans to release a request for proposal on Dec. 26 "for an executive search firm to help find the long-term chief executive officer who will lead the airport once the construction is complete," it said in a statement. Responses to that request will be due by Jan. 16.
The same firm will also lead the search for a chief financial officer.
Casey Seiler contributed reporting.
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