Mayor Barber resigns, says town needs mayor who can devote more time to the work

SULPHUR SPRINGS -- After State Rep. Kim Hendren's speech about the good things to come in Sulphur Springs during the Dec. 8 city council meeting, Mayor Greg Barber read his letter of resignation to the council. The odd event that happened afterwards is noteworthy.

Council members were reluctant to accept Barber's resignation at such a critical time in Sulphur Springs' rebuilding efforts. However, with state representative Kim Hendren and his son, state senator Jim Hendren, and the state's governor, Asa Hutchinson, expressing their desire to help in any way they can to revive the historic town, Barber felt that Sulphur now needs a mayor who can devote full time to the job.

"I look about town and see all the work needed to help [wake up] the town," Barber said. He said he was stepping aside so the residents of Sulphur could have a more full-time mayor and that the town needs a mayor who can devote more time than he can to satisfy the town's needs in such a critical time in its history.

Sulphur Springs' mayors for years have chosen to volunteer their time. Barber is no exception.

Council members reluctantly voted to accept Mayor Barber's resignation, because he served during a most difficult time and did a good job. When he and the new council members took office in November of 2013, the town's financial state was in poor condition. It took the new mayor, new city clerk Jamie Friend and some volunteers a few months to discover the poor condition of the city's finances. Once uncovering accounting mistakes made by the town's former city administration, they found many unpaid bills with funds lacking to pay them.

The most striking financial problem was money owed to the Internal Revenue Service. The IRS sent a letter to the new mayor asking for about $25,000 in unpaid employee withholding.

Mayor Barber said that the city's financial status now is up to date.

Any city resident wishing to apply for the mayor's position can take his or her resume, with a cover letter, to the Sulphur Springs City Hall during normal business hours. Applications will be accepted until end of the business day on Jan. 5, 2017.