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Mayor highlights $10 million sewer upgrade, holiday events and interim parks leadership; council schedules budget working session
Summary
The mayor reported a near $10,000,000 City Water and Light sanitary-sewer upgrade in the West End, announced seasonal events and an interim parks director, and council members flagged a pool-heating safety concern and scheduled a 2026 budget working session.
During the Dec. 2 Jonesboro City Council meeting the mayor delivered a report that covered personnel, infrastructure and holiday programming.
The mayor announced Jim Stearns will serve as interim parks director during Danny Kapalis's leave and said staff expect no disruption to park programming, noting a youth tournament was underway that evening. He also named Charles Martin as the First Security Bank Employee of the Month for his work in the sanitation department and cited program totals for the year: about 198,000 pounds of bulky junk collected, more than 20,000 pounds of glass recycling, 6,000 pounds of cardboard and over 500 tires.
The mayor addressed a major infrastructure project: City Water and Light is replacing parts of the sanitary-sewer system in the West End that in places are more than 100 years old. He described the upgrade as nearly a $10,000,000 investment and said repaving will follow once utility work is complete.
He promoted several upcoming community events, including a Sounds of the Season concert at the Fowler Center, the annual Christmas parade, Joyfest and Winter Wonderland programs downtown, and Foundation of Arts performances in mid-December. The mayor gave dates and times and directed residents to event websites for more information.
In council reports, members announced a Dec. 22 drive-thru toy giveaway for children ages 0–12, and one council member asked staff to prioritize an apparent safety issue at the city pool after 10 children were observed swimming in 32°F weather without heaters. Another council member announced staff is scheduling a working session for the 2026 budget (no action will be taken at that session). The mayor also said the city is cooperating with an ongoing investigation but offered no further comment while the process continues.
No public commenters spoke during the allotted public-comment period; the council later moved to adjourn.
