"MIA director defends her style, stance"

Saturday, July 10, 2004

MIA director defends her style, stance
In a memo to the county manager, Miami-Dade's aviation director
explained her management tactics and concerns about terminal
construction.
By INA PAIVA CORDLE
The Miami (FL) Herald


Defending herself against a blunt assessment of her management style,
Miami-Dade Aviation Director Angela Gittens' ''biggest disappointment''
about County Manager George Burgess' criticism is that the two don't
talk enough one on one.

And she doesn't see the fact that she signed a petition supporting an
airport authority as being disrespectful to the county manager or the
County Commission.

''My interest is professional, not personal. Reasonable people can
disagree,'' she wrote in a June 30 memo. The five-page memo, which was
obtained by The Herald, was written in response to Burgess' placing her
department on management watch.

Gittens would not talk about the contents of her memo or the
disciplinary action. But in an interview late Thursday, she detailed her
concerns about American Airlines' management of its new terminal at
Miami International Airport.

Gittens said American Airlines has failed to be accountable for the cost
overruns and delays, and that's why the county needs to take control of
the north terminal construction. She earlier expressed those concerns in
two June memos to Burgess.

''This could be the project that ate MIA,'' she said in the interview.
``This is an uncontrollable situation.''

American plans to ask the County Commission for at least $66 million
more to complete construction of its mile-long terminal. Burgess,
Gittens and American executives will meet Monday to discuss the issue.

The airline's request comes two years after American vowed to never ask
the county for more money for the project it is managing, which accounts
for more than $1.5 billion of the airport's massive $4.8 billion capital
improvement program.

EXTRA SCRUTINY

The differences with American come just as Gittens is facing extra
scrutiny.

Management watch, a form of probation, can foreshadow a shake-up in
leadership or restructuring.

Gittens said she learned about Burgess' management watch decision June
26 when Assistant County Manager Bill Johnson handed her the county
manager's four-page memo. It was during a noon break at the Jay Malina
International Trade Consortium board retreat at the Biltmore Hotel in
Coral Gables.

In her response to Burgess, Gittens said the two need to discuss issues
directly and not through intermediaries, e-mails and memos.

Burgess was unavailable for comment Friday, said spokeswoman Hilda
Fernandez. But in a memo he sent to Gittens the evening of June 30,
after receiving her response, he wrote:

``While I certainly stand by all of the concerns outlined, I do believe
that if you are committed to change, we can resolve each of them
favorably. If you are willing, I certainly am.''

In her memo, Gittens defended her management, saying, ``The quality of
the Aviation Department's management has never been higher.''

Despite a drop in MIA's traffic related to the war in Iraq and various
restrictions on international travelers, the Miami-Dade Aviation
Department has maintained its bond rating. And the primary reason cited
by the bond agencies was management, she wrote.

She also addressed Burgess' other concerns, including her frequent
travel to deal with federal issues. The trips, she said, are
''burdensome'' to her as well, but were necessary to work as an advocate
to accommodate foreign travelers connecting in Miami and to increase
security screener staffing, boost funding for security mandates and
capital projects and add agricultural inspection staffing hours.

The airport is a key economic engine, and MIA is undergoing a huge
capital improvement program.

Part of that program, the north terminal, is now $87 million over
budget, Gittens said in her interview, and more than 18 months behind
schedule.

Since 1995, when American began supervising the north terminal's
construction, the project costs swelled from $975 million to $1.62
billion. A compromise reached with the County Commission in March 2002
scaled that back to $1.51 billion, with the airport paying $211 million
in additional construction-related expenses.

Gittens wrote Burgess memos on June 1 and June 16 outlining her concerns
about the latest cost overruns and delays, recommending that the county
take over construction management of all new projects related to the
north terminal.

''My concern is what the county wants is a facility. I don't know if the
county is going to get a facility this way,'' Gittens said. ``. . . And
the hard part is ahead of us, because they are intruding more in the
operations than before, and you're dealing with architectural finishes
now, which are more sensitive.''

AMOUNT DISPUTED

American disputes the amount over budget, saying it is $66 million. An
additional $21 million is contingencies, but that amount already has
been approved by the County Commission, American said.

American Senior Vice President Peter Dolara said the county must agree
to cover the $66 million. Yet because the county charges airlines
landing and user fees related to aircraft weight and passenger seats,
plus rent for counter and other space, American will pay 60 percent of
the airlines' portion of the costs of the total capital program,
including the north terminal, Dolara said. And he says the airline is
committed to MIA.

''I'm not questioning American as a customer. American as a customer has
been wonderful,'' Gittens said. ``But for a county on the hook for the
next 37 years, it's my responsibility to make sure we have been
responsible stewards of the amount of debt we are committing for the
future.''

Gittens said 1,400 construction change orders from subcontractors,
valued at $29 million, are pending on the north terminal. Thirty claims
have been presented, and American has identified an additional 90
possible claims, she said.

One filed alone, by Sumitomo Corp. of America, which is providing
American's people mover, is estimated at $17 million, driven by 29
months of delays. Five lawsuits have been filed, and legal fees are
expected to cost an additional $2.8 million.

''If they are our contractor and have no responsibility for costs or
scheduling, why are they making the decisions on cost and scheduling?''
she said. ``They're asking to not be held accountable.''

The biggest problem, she said, has been poor coordination of the
construction work.

MIA can do a better job, she said, because ``we pay attention to
scheduling on all the other projects, and the costs on other projects.
We have a track record.''

The south terminal, which is also under construction, is only about $5
million or $6 million, or 1 percent, over budget and is not delayed, she
said.

''Let me handle the facility. That's what we do,'' Gittens said. ``We're
good at facilities. They're good at airlines.''

Despite that confidence, Burgess in his disciplinary memo said she had
lagged in hiring a deputy director to oversee construction.

WANTS CONSULTANTS

Gittens wants to keep American involved, but recommends hiring a
contractor with experience handling complex airport construction to
specifically oversee new projects associated with the north terminal.
She said she already has a couple of consultants in mind.

''It's just a mystery to me why you would continue with an approach that
has not worked,'' Gittens said.


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