Berryville council OKs land purchase

The Berryville City Council voted unanimously at its regular meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 5, to authorize Mayor Tim McKinney to enter an agreement to purchase 50 acres of land adjacent to the city’s business park.

McKinney said the owner of the property has agreed to sell it to the city for $750,000 — $15,000 per acre.

“It joins our the business park on the east side and Hailey Road on the west side and I think would be a prime spot for some housing,” McKinney told the council.

McKinney said the city would probably put $250,000 down on the purchase and finance the remainder over five years.

“I don’t think we’ll have any problem paying for it,” he said. “We actually have enough in (the general fund) to buy it, but we don’t want to let our general fund get depleted to that point.”

In other business, council member Linda Riddlesperger presented monthly and annual activity reports for Saunders Museum. Overall in 2024, the museum’s attendance was 917, down from 1,086 in 2023. The museum took in a total of $5,718 in admission, merchandise sales and donations in 2024, a decline of approximately 17.5 percent from the $6,930.50 collected in 2023.

“This year’s been down a little bit, especially the latter part of it,” Riddlesperger said. “I think the economy’s had something to do with it. … We just hope for a better year next year.”

The council also heard a monthly activity report from police chief Robert Bartos. Bartos said Berryville police officers wrote 62 citations in October, down from 99 in October 2023. Thirteen of those were for speeding. A total of 69 offenses were reported, up slightly from 67 the previous year. The department had a clearance rate of 83 percent for the month and took in $365 in fines and bonds. There were 10 accidents reported, down from 15 in October 2023.

“We’ve been a little shorthanded, so that’s kind of why some of our numbers are down,” Bartos said. “But we’ve got a new officer going and we should be back up to full strength.”

The council voted 4-0 to approve a resolution appointing Bank OZK as trustee for the city’s water and sewer bonds. Bank OZK succeeds Cadence Bank as the trustee, with city administrative assistant Jay Lee explaining that Cadence Bank “is getting out of the corporate trust business.”

McKinney signed a proclamation designating Nov. 10-16 as National Nurse Practitioner Week in the city. The council also was introduced to Sophie Bartos, a member of the newly appointed Berryville Youth Advisory Council. Sophie, daughter of the police chief, is a member of Berryville High School’s basketball, cross country and track teams. She also participates in Project Prevent and is a member of the National Honor Society.

In his mayor’s comments, McKinney said the city’s water department, economic development office, building official and parks maintenance have all moved into the former police department building located next to City Hall. The new location includes a drive-thru window where customers can pay their water bills.

The next regular meeting of the Berryville City Council is scheduled for 6 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 19, at City Hall.