Sooter Resigns From Bentonville Council

Sooter
Sooter

BENTONVILLE -- A second seat on the City Council will be vacant as Chris Sooter, Ward 1 alderman, announced his resignation, effective Friday.

In a letter to Mayor Bob McCaslin and council members dated June 16, Sooter wrote, "My family will be moving to another address in Bentonville which will not be within the geographical area of Ward 1."

His announcement comes four days after Leah Williams resigned from her Ward 3 position because her family moved into Ward 1.

Aldermen are no longer qualified to hold office if they move outside of the ward they were elected in, according to state law. A vacancy is created until new aldermen are appointed by the remaining council members to fill the positions.

Sooter and his family will move into a house with a bigger yard in Ward 2 on Friday.

"I hated that we couldn't stay on the same side of town," he said Tuesday.

He wanted to stay in Ward 1, but when that wasn't possible, he wanted to make sure his family stayed in Bentonville, Sooter said.

"We found something that we really like," he said. "It's in Bentonville. That was something that was really important to me."

Sooter has served on the council since 2002.

"I hope to remain involved in the city in some capacity in the future," he wrote in his letter.

Sooter said he's considering running for a Ward 2 council seat in November's election. He said he'll decide that in a couple weeks.

Sooter will have to vacate his spot on the Advertising and Promotions Commission, as well, as he was a council member appointed to the position.

McCaslin has been Bentonville mayor since 2002. He said he doesn't recall a time when there was more than one vacancy on the council at a time.

"It's going to take some extra effort, but there will be no city service that will be compromised because of this," he said, adding it's just a matter of filling the positions according to state law.

An advertisement soliciting applications for the Ward 1 and 3 positions will run Thursday and Sunday in the Benton County Daily Record, McCaslin said.

The idea is for the remaining council members to appoint new aldermen at their June 24 meeting, he said.

Letters and resumes can be submitted by mail or delivered to City Hall at 117 W. Central Ave., by fax at 479-271-3105 or by email to [email protected].

Submissions must be made by 9 a.m. June 24. For more information, call 479-271-5966.

NW News on 06/18/2014

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