Board of Directors
RAIC has no members, and all corporate powers are exercised by or under the direction of RAIC’s Board of Directors (the “Board”). The Board consists of five directors (the “Directors”) with currently one vacancy, who also act as RAIC’s officers. The Directors are elected at each annual meeting of the Board. The Department of Airports of the City has, but has never exercised, the right to disapprove the election, reelection, or appointment of any Director.
RAIC’s current Board of Directors consists of the following members serving in the positions described below:
SAMSON MENGISTU
Chairman of the board and president
Samson Mengistu has been a member of the Board of Directors of RAIC since 2021 and currently serves as Chairman of the Board and President of RAIC.
Mr. Mengistu has held various management roles with the City of Los Angeles in a successful public service career that spans more than three decades. He has regularly leveraged strategic relationships across public and private sectors to address complex business needs, and now leads a consulting practice based on those principles.
Mr. Mengistu spent 25+ years specializing in airport management. As COO of Los Angeles World Airports, Mr. Mengistu spearheaded operational and technical innovations and supported a team of several thousand colleagues to lead Operations and Emergency Management, Finance and Budget, Administration, Information Technology, Facilities and Maintenance, and Air Service Development at LAX, the fourth largest airport in the world. His capital development and financial planning efforts for LAX guided the construction and acquisition of over $14.8 billion in improvements.
Prior to his public sector tenure, he worked extensively in the property management field. He has served on numerous boards and committees in the Los Angeles area.
Mr. Mengistu earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and a Master of Science in Public Administration from California State University, Los Angeles.
Patricia V. Tubert
Vice president and treasurer
Patty Tubert has been a member of the Board of Directors of RAIC since 2014 and currently serves as Vice President and Treasurer of RAIC.
Patty joined Mayer Brown in 2009 after over 30 years with the City of Los Angeles. Her practice focuses on governmental, regulatory and administrative law, particularly in the areas of land use, project entitlement and environmental compliance and related matters. Prior to joining the firm, Patty was the Deputy Executive Director of the Department of Airports of the City of Los Angeles and prior to that the Chief Assistant City Attorney of the Municipal Branch for the Office of the City Attorney of Los Angeles. Prior to serving as Chief Assistant City Attorney, Patty managed the Airport Division and the Real Property and Environment Division of the City Attorney’s Office.
As the Deputy Executive Director, Patty was responsible for all real estate matters for the Department of Airports at all four airports, Los Angeles International Airport, Los Angeles/Ontario International Airport, Van Nuys General Aviation Airport and Palmdale Regional Airport, leading the negotiations for major leases, strategic acquisitions and development projects. Before serving as Deputy Executive Director, Patty was the Chief Assistant City Attorney of the Municipal Branch for the City of Los Angeles, supervising more than 150 lawyers providing legal services to City departments and elected officials as diverse as the Department of Water and Power, the Department of Airports, the Harbor Department, the Los Angeles Community Redevelopment Agency, the Los Angeles City Mayor and the Los Angeles City Council.
Joseph Aredas
VICE PRESIDENT AND ASSISTANT TREASURER
Joseph Aredas has been a member of the Board of Directors of RAIC since 2014 and currently serves as Vice President and Assistant Treasurer of RAIC.
A native of Los Angeles, Mr. Aredas began his career in the entertainment industry in 1967 at the MGM machine shop as a member of the former Cinetechnicians Union Local No. 789 of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States and Canada (I.A.T.S.E.). In 1980, Mr. Aredas was appointed Assistant Business Representative of I.A.T.S.E. Local No. 695, a position he held for seven years. Soon after, he accepted a position at Consolidated Film Industries (CFI), a Hollywood motion picture film processing laboratory, as Vice President of Labor Relations. In December of 1997 he left CFI to assume the position of Chief Administrative Officer at the industry’s Contract Services Administration Trust Fund which is jointly administered by Producers and the I.A.T.S.E. In November 1998, Mr. Aredas was appointed to serve as the International Representative-in-Charge of the West Coast Office of I.A.T.S.E.
Mr. Aredas previously served as Vice President of the California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO, as well as a member of the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International Union, the International Association of Machinists, and the United Aerospace Workers. Mr. Aredas previously served on the Board of Directors of the Entertainment Industry Development Corporation, the Motion Picture and Television Fund, the Entertainment Industry Foundation, and the California Film Commission.
kim day
VICE PRESIDENT AND SECRETARY
Kim Day has been a member of the Board of Directors of RAIC since 2023 and currently serves as Vice President and Secretary of RAIC.
Ms. Day has spent the last 25 years of her career in the aviation industry, serving most recently for 13 years as the CEO of Denver International Airport (DEN), where she worked to prepare DEN for the future both fiscally and physically, securing long term commitments of the two largest carriers, overseeing the development of a commuter rail to downtown, an on-airport hotel, 44 additional gates, and the start of the renovation of the Jeppesen Terminal. She also oversaw creation of and beginning of implementation of a Strategic Development Plan for 16,000 acres of DEN property for non-aviation use. She led the airport through the bankruptcy of the hometown airline and the first wave of COVID, keeping the airport financially strong, assisting all DEN’s partners and positioning DEN for a strong recovery. As a result, in 2021 DEN became the 3rd busiest airport in the world.
Prior to her time as CEO of DEN, she served as executive director of Los Angeles World Airports (“LAWA”), and Deputy Executive Director for design and construction at LAWA, which at the time oversaw four airports, Los Angeles International Airport, Los Angeles/Ontario International Airport, Van Nuys General Aviation Airport and Palmdale Regional Airport. Prior to going to LAWA, she practiced architecture for over 20 years. Kim has served on the board of directors for the American Association of Airport Executives, the FAA’s NextGen Advisory Committee, the Denver Chamber of Commerce, and Visit Denver. She is a globally-recognized airport leader and most recently was inducted into the Colorado Tourism Hall of Fame. Kim holds a Bachelor of Architecture from Cornell.