Blytheville Mayor James Sanders recently reflected on winning his third term in the position.
He said it is rewarding getting to return to serve the people of Blytheville for another four years, adding that his entire career has been about serving people. He believes that getting re-elected is reassuring that he is doing the best that he can to make Blytheville a better place.
"My hope is that we can use these next four years to unite the city and allow everybody to come together without regards to political affiliation, skin color, religion or anything else like that to make the city better than it was yesterday," Sanders said.
Sanders said that after the results for the election came in, he simply transitioned back into work mode. He stated that he knew what they were trying to do and that he felt rewarded that the citizens were allowing him to continue what he has started.
"On that same token now I need your help. I've never claimed that I knew how to do everything, but I don't mind asking for help and I don't mind asking other cities how to do it, but I'm going to do it the right way. I don't mind looking at opinion, but I'm also going to look at the laws and make sure the opinions and the laws marry each other," Sanders said.
Though Sanders was re-elected to his position, not everyone in Blytheville's municipal government received the same treatment. Councilman Stan Parks and Councilman L.C. Hartsfield were defeated by their opponents Vera James and Matt Perrin, respectively. Sanders discussed some of the challenges and differences that come with starting a term with new council members. He stated that it was his duty to help guide the council by providing information about the direction the city needs to move in. It is up to the council to create laws that allow for the city to move in that direction.
"The nucleus of it all are the laws that are already created that govern all cities and municipalities in the state. For instance if one city council member makes a comment about wanting to do something then my first comment to them is, ‘Let's look at the law and see if we can do it.' The second one is, ‘Can we afford it?' We put that together and present it to that councilperson who may come up with that idea and then allow them to discuss with the Municipal League to look at the law to determine how we can do it and the best practices," Sanders said.
Sanders said that right now the number one priority on his radar for this term is quality of life issues within Blytheville. He stated that he will continue to push for improvements in Blytheville's parks. He stated that if the council wishes to take on a large recreational project, such as a water park, it is his job to help save as much money as possible while up keeping current equipment.
"Being the mayor, it's actually giving the council a true picture of what is going on in the city and what we are seeing and what direction that the town leaders and people of the community would like to go to," Sanders said.
He stated that he would like to extend a hand to have a friendly, working relationship with the new council members that will be starting in January. He stated that this is all about building a community and utilizing everyone's ideas.
"There are so many different things that people believe or that they assume when they are sitting outside the office. You may assume that when the council votes for us to have three new police cars that we get those cars tomorrow, but that is not true. Those police cars have to be made and paid for and then after we get them they have to be striped. It takes time for different things to happen even in this era where we have been working on a plan to help clean up our city. It didn't happen overnight and it is not going to get cleaned overnight," Sanders said.
Councilman-elect Perrin told the CN that it still feels a little surreal achieving the victory on Election Day; however, he also believes that the real work has finally begun. He stated that he has been reading as much information to help with getting more familiar with the position while talking to those who have held similar positions in the past.
"You crack open this like thousand page Arkansas Municipal Code Book and you pretend to understand it," Perrin said on how to prepare for being on the council.
He believes that his background in accounting and currently managing budgets for KIPP gives him hope that he will be able to act as a voice on the Finance Committee; however, he believes that every committee is important and he is open to serving wherever Sanders believes he is needed.
"I want people to know that it didn't stop after Election Day. I'm still going to be out and I'm going to stick to the promises that I said I would and my phone number and email address are available all the time. You can contact me with as big or as small of a problem as you have. I won't always know the answer, but if I don't know the answer I will find out for you," Perrin said.
gwilliams@blythevillecourier.com