FORT WORTH — Tarrant County College District trustees offered Chancellor Leonardo de la Garza a new three-year contract Wednesday, hiking his salary 10.2 percent to $325,000 per year.

The offer came shortly after trustees announced a deal to buy the RadioShack corporate headquarters and convert it into a downtown Fort Worth campus.

He is the right guy in the right place at the right time. He really has been masterful in how he has led his team, TCC board President Louise Appleman said. Now we’re into a real forward-progress mode.

De la Garza, who was hired in 1997, made $295,000 per year under his current contract, which began July 1, 2005.

He oversees the district’s $251.7 million budget, four primary campuses and other affiliated programs. His current three-year contract expires Monday.

The chancellor’s new salary is less than those of the leaders of community colleges in Dallas and Collin County, Appleman said.

He was way out of whack with comparable Texas community college leaders, Appleman said.

Appleman said the three-year deal allows the chancellor to preside over the opening of the new campus.

De la Garza is TCC’s third chancellor and its first Hispanic chancellor. He was previously president of Santa Fe Community College in New Mexico.

De la Garza said he was so busy with interviews about the RadioShack announcement that he had not had time to review the new salary offer by midafternoon. In fact, he hadn’t heard the dollar figure.

We have not had a talk, de la Garza said. But he said, I have never been an unhappy person.

Appleman called later to say that de la Garza was inclined to accept our offer and we’re all celebrating.

Trustee Randall Canedy applauded the contract. You look at what he’s done, Canedy said. It’s pretty amazing.