McKinney asks council to increase his pay

By Robert Cox

RCox@cherryroad.com

Longtime Berryville Mayor Tim McKinney would like a raise.

McKinney, who’s completing his 32nd year in office and is running unopposed in the Nov. 8 general election, asked city council members to consider his request in an email sent to council members Sept. 16.

Tim McKinney

“I would like to ask you all to consider raising the mayor’s salary to something that is more in line with what other mayors of cities the size of Berryville make, especially in Carroll County,” McKinney wrote. “I have never asked for a raise as I love the job and our town but my situation in life has changed from what I thought retirement might be for me.”

McKinney, who was first elected in 1990, said in the email that his next term would likely be his last.

“This will probably be my last term as mayor and I want to make it a memorable one,” wrote McKinney, 69, who retired from Entergy in 2008. “I have been blessed with a good job and retirement that meets all my needs and some wants. A salary more in line with other mayors would let me save more for [my family’s] future.”

When McKinney was first elected, the mayor of Berryville was paid $1,000.

Since then, the mayor’s annual salary has increased to $27,200.

The city council did not discuss the matter during its regular meeting on Sept. 20, with McKinney telling Carroll County News afterward that he didn’t want to bring it up officially until he had more information to provide.

According to a survey conducted by the Arkansas Municipal League in February, Berryville ranks second in size at 5,652 residents among participating cities with populations ranging from 5,000 to 6,000, but last in mayoral salary.

In comparison to Carroll County’s three largest cities, Berryville — with a population of 5,652, largest in the county — ranks second behind Eureka Springs (population 2,397) and ahead of Green Forest (pop. 2,972) in mayoral salary.

According to the AML survey, Green Forest’s mayor is paid a reported annual salary of $26,400. Meanwhile, in Eureka Springs, the city council earlier this year voted to approve an ordinance raising the mayor’s salary from $18,000 to $48,000, despite Mayor Butch Berry’s objections.

Speaking to the council, Berry said he felt the increase was too much.

“I didn’t weigh in on until afterwards, and I really do appreciate the consideration,” Berry told the council, explaining that he had considering vetoing the ordinance but that he waited too long. “My concern is that I really think that $48,000 was too much money for the mayor. I think $36,000, which at one point may have been mentioned, is satisfactory. And I say that because I am totally a firm believer that it’s not the amount of money that the mayor’s position gets that is going to get you any more qualified people to run [for the mayor’s office].”

Among cities of comparable size to Berryville, the mayor of Mena (pop. 5,589) is paid $66,500, Cave Springs (pop. 5,500) pays its mayor $53,040, and Alma (pop. 5,825) pays its mayor $50,000. Greenbrier, just ahead of Berryville on the mayoral pay scale, has a population of 5,008 ands pays its mayor $37,500.

Among the 54 cities that participated in the survey — all of which have populations between 2,536 and 9,839 — 11 are listed as part-time, including McKinney. According to the AML’s criteria for the listing, those whose salaries work out to less than minimum wage are included in the part-time category. The average salary for that category is $27,171.

McKinney, who in June completed a term as president of the state’s Municipal League, is the only mayor among participating cities with populations between 5,000 and 6,000 residents listed in that category.

“I’m the mayor all the time,” McKinney said in an interview. “I do a lot more since I retired from the electric company. I’m in the office a lot. I don’t think it’s considered full time, but it’s a full-time position and that’s the way it should be paid.”

As for how much of a raise McKinney would like to see, he said he didn’t have a real number in mind.

“I don’t know,” McKinney said, citing the discrepancy between his salary and those of other cities in the county and of a similar size to Berryville. “I’ll just put it before the council — whatever they think appropriate.”

The Berryville City Council’s next meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 4, at Berryville City Hall.

“I appreciate any consideration you could give to this matter,” McKinney wrote in his email, “and I want to assure you whatever your decision is, I will respect it and continue to do the best I can for the city.”