Section 7. The authority shall be managed by a board of nine directors, one of whom shall be the secretary who shall serve as chairman of the board and shall not be compensated therefor, and eight of whom shall be appointed by the governor to two year terms beginning July 1 and who shall be eligible for reappointment. The directors appointed by the governor shall consist of one selected from a list provided by the mayor of Boston, one selected from a list provided by the chief executive officers, as defined in section 7 of chapter 4, of the 14 cities and towns excluding Boston, and one selected from a list provided by the metropolitan area planning council on behalf of the 51 cities and towns and other served communities. One of the appointees of the governor shall be experienced in transportation, one shall be a member of a national or international labor organization, one shall be experienced in environmental protection, one shall be experienced in administration and finance and one shall be experienced in consumer protection. No more than five of the nine directors shall be members of the same political party. No fewer than seven of the directors shall be residents of the area constituting the authority. Any director, except the chairman, may be removed for cause by the governor. In event of a vacancy, a successor shall be named in the same manner as the vacated director and such successor shall serve for the remainder of the unexpired term. The provisions of section 3 of chapter 12 shall not apply to said board of directors. The eight directors appointed by the governor shall receive a salary of $7,500. A majority of the directors shall constitute a quorum, but a majority vote of the entire membership of the board of directors shall be required to take any particular action. The directors shall meet monthly, provided that said meeting shall occur no later than the fifteenth day of the month. Each meeting shall provide a sufficient opportunity for public comment.