The Albuquerque mayor has appointed a new ABQ BioPark chief executive who will oversee the attraction's aquarium, zoo, botanical gardens and other sites.
James T. Allen was selected for the job after a months-long search.
A retired U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel and civil engineer officer, Allen moves to Albuquerque from Denver, where he was a senior director for Denver Public Schools. He also is a former construction director for the Los Angeles Unified School District.
The BioPark chief executive's job is a new position created to implement a re-design, construction and renovation of the Albuquerque site.
The project is being funded by a gross receipts tax approved by voters last year.
The tax will fund most of Allen's $158,000 salary, while the BioPark Society will pay $60,000 of it each year.
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