Nantucket Memorial Airport Manager Noah Karberg has notified the Airport Commission of his resignation from his position, Commission Chairman Arthur Gasbarro announced during Tuesday evening’s meeting.
“Mr. Karberg has informed us of his intention to move on,” Gasbarro said. “We greatly appreciate his service and commitment to the airport. It has been a pleasure working with you in several of your positions over the years. We will certainly miss you, but we appreciate your continued work with us during this transition period.”
Gasbarro said he would begin talks on Wednesday with ADK Executive Search, a firm that will assist the commission in its search for a new airport manager. ADK is the same executive search firm the commission worked with in April 2012 to hire former airport manager Tom Rafter.
“I hope to have a proposal from them that the Commission can examine at its September meeting,” Gasbarro said.
Gasbarro told the Current that Karberg’s last day of work has not yet been determined and that he will assist with the transition phase with immediate effect.
“We’re going to work on a transition phase and he really wants to leave the airport in good shape,” Gasbarro said. “Hopefully we can find someone. The difficult part, of course, is the accommodation, the challenges, all that.”
After Rafter announced his retirement from the post in November 2022, Karberg was quickly selected as his successor and assumed the position on January 1, 2023. Karberg previously served as the airport’s environmental coordinator for four years and deputy airport director for five years.
Before leaving the island, Rafter spoke at length about the succession plan, which always envisioned Karberg taking over the position once he moved on. This led to a restructuring of the airport hierarchy that created an assistant airport manager position that would allow Karberg to learn under Rafter. Asked if the commission was surprised by Karberg’s decision, Gasbarro said yes, but added that Karberg had to do what was best for him.
“I was completely surprised,” Gasbarro said when asked. “It came as a surprise to us, but it is his decision.”
The current Deputy Airport Manager is Preston Harimon. He was hired in February 2023 and has been a full-time employee at the airport for 20 years.
Karberg did not discuss his resignation with the Commission during the meeting. Current We asked him for comment and he provided a written statement on Tuesday evening.
“I am grateful for the support of the Airport Commission and proud to have implemented projects that benefit the safety, efficiency and financial security of the airport,” said Karberg. “While I will miss leading a great team at ACK, I look forward to taking my career in a different direction and enjoying other personal opportunities.”
This story will be updated.
