Knox County Commission approves hangar lease transfer and creates per‑diem airport maintenance role

Knox County’s three commissioners unanimously approved two airport items during their Jan. 14 regular meeting: the transfer of a leased hangar on airport property to a family member of the prior owner, and a new per‑diem airport maintenance assistant job description intended to give the airport manager flexibility to call in short‑term help.

The hangar action transferred lease rights for “hangar number 28” from the estate of the late Daniel Elliott Sr. to Kathy Elleman. Jacob Johnson, airport manager, told the commission the transfer was needed because “the previous owner has passed away and went to the estate of the family. The estate has selected a family member to inherit the hanger and inherit the lease. Anytime there is a transfer of whose name is on the lease, it has to come to the commission for approval.” The transfer passed 3–0.

Commissioners also approved a new job description for a per‑diem airport maintenance assistant, a role described by Johnson as an on‑call helper for tasks such as wildlife control, grass cutting and seasonal workloads. Johnson said the county’s full‑time maintenance staff are expected to operate heavy equipment and hold commercial driver licenses, while the per‑diem hires will generally support day‑to‑day tasks and specialists (for example, a wildlife specialist) who may not have those certifications.

County staff acknowledged the position was not budgeted in the 2025 personnel line items and said they would cover near‑term needs within existing lines and review pay/grade placement as part of a county‑wide job classification study. Amber (county administrator/staff) said the county is “doing a study with MRI to look at all of our job descriptions, make sure they’re accurate, put them in a 2025 format, look at compensation across all departments” and that the MRI project is funded with ARPA dollars. Commissioners approved the job description by a 3–0 vote.

Both airport votes were taken as part of the meeting’s action items; the transfer of hangar 28 and the per‑diem job description were each approved with all three commissioners voting yes. The meeting also approved the broader consent agenda and a slate of committee assignments by the same 3–0 margins.

Why it matters: airport leases and staffing affect operations of airport property maintained by the county and, in some cases, obligations driven by Federal Aviation Administration expectations. The new per‑diem job description gives the airport manager a formal mechanism to bring in short‑term help for seasonal peaks and specialist tasks while county staff complete a compensation review.

Commissioners and staff said they expect the MRI study’s recommendations by mid‑year and will consider budget adjustments for 2026 as needed.

Votes at a glance - Transfer of hangar 28 lease (from estate of Daniel Elliott Sr. to Kathy Elleman): approved 3–0. - Approval of per‑diem airport maintenance assistant job description: approved 3–0. - Consent agenda and committee slate (approved as designated): approved 3–0.

Speakers quoted or cited in this article are those who introduced themselves in the record: Jacob Johnson, airport manager; Amber (county administrator/staff); Kathy Elleman (hangar transferee named in the transfer); Daniel Elliott Sr. (decedent, named as prior owner).