BATON ROUGE - The Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport will soon need to fill a vacancy.

Aviation Director Anthony Marino will resign his post, effective Oct. 14, to pursue another opportunity in the aviation industry. In a statement issued by the airport Friday, Marino says he's enjoyed his 45-year career as a city-parish employee but it's time to move on.

According to the Greater Baton Rouge Business Report (http://bit.ly/2daZ4su ), Marino notified the Metro Council and Mayor Kip Holden on Wednesday of his intent to resign.

Airport spokesman Jim Caldwell says it's unclear who will serve as airport director in the interim.

Named director in 1995, Marino has overseen $410 million in airport improvements, the construction of the new 175,000-square-foot terminal building and negotiations of 58 lease agreements and the 650-acre Aviation Business Park project.