The City of Hattiesburg recently welcomed its incoming leadership for the next four years, including a second-term mayor along with four returning members – and one new member – of Hattiesburg City Council.
The officials were sworn in for their new terms at the city’s 2021 Inaugural Ceremony, held June 29 at the Saenger Theater in downtown Hattiesburg. Those taking the oaths of office included Mayor Toby Barker, Ward 1 Councilman Jeffrey George, Ward 2 Councilwoman Deborah Delgado, Ward 3 Councilman Carter Carroll, Ward 4 Councilman Dave Ware and Ward 5 Councilman Nicholas Brown.
“I stand before you incredibly humbled and profoundly grateful – not just because you trusted me to serve as your mayor for the next four years, but because I get to live in Hattiesburg, and I get to do life with so many of you,” Barker said upon being sworn in. “I remember on New Year’s Eve 2019, I stood about a block from here on the corner of Front and Main streets on the top of a ladder truck right before midnight.
“In front of 8,000 of our closest friends, I proclaimed that the 2020s could be just as transformative for Hattiesburg, Mississippi as it was in the 1920s for the entire country. Economically, culturally and artistically, we are poised for bold steps forward, and I boldly predicted the forward momentum would start in 2020.”
In a landslide victory in the June 8 general election, Barker, an Independent, won a second term as the city’s 35thmayor by defeating Democratic opponent LaKeylah White 6,697 votes to 1,184.
In his first four years at Hattiesburg’s helm, Barker focused on renewing the bond for the Hattiesburg Public School District, passing the city’s first structurally-balanced budget in 10 years, and securing federal funding for two overpasses in downtown Hattiesburg.
He also championed the additional 1 percent tax increase at Hattiesburg restaurants, hotels and motels that is currently being used to fund several Parks and Recreation Department projects around the city, including a splash pad in Palmers Crossing and an extension to the walking trail at Duncan Lake, among others.
Barker, who represented District 102 in the Mississippi House of Representatives for 10 years, was elected as mayor in 2017, defeating longtime Mayor Johnny DuPree for the seat.
Originally from Meridian, Barker moved to Hattiesburg in 2000 to attend the University of Southern Mississippi, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in communications in 2004 and a master’s degree in economic development in 2006. He received a Masters of Healthcare Leadership from Brown University in 2015.
“I may have been off by about 18 months (in my 2020 prediction), but it’s time to take the next step, and if there are two encouragements that I can impart on you today, it would be these,” Barker said. “First, we cannot be measured or hesitant in our vision for our city.
“We know what Hattiesburg is capable of doing, but becoming a premier city in the Gulf South will not happen if we are simply content just being the best in our league. But secondly, our expectations for our city cannot be higher than what we are willing to invest and do.”
The five city council members who were sworn in by various judges include the following:
•Ward 1: George, who at 23 years old is the youngest elected official in the City of Hattiesburg, was elected to his first term in 2017. His ward includes the northwestern part of Hattiesburg, the University of Southern Mississippi, the Highlands Neighborhood and the Hattiesburg Country Club. George is the director of marketing and business for Mike Rozier Construction and received a bachelor’s degree in political science, a minor in marketing and master’s degree in economic development from the University of Southern Mississippi.
•Ward 2: Delgado will begin her sixth term on Hattiesburg City Council, having been elected to the seat in 2001. Her ward includes the eastern and northeastern parts of the city, and borders the Leaf and Bouie rivers; it also is the site of the urban Renewal Overlay District known as Twin Forks Rising. Delgado is the founder and chairperson of the annual Historic Mobile Street Renaissance Festival, a member of the Advisory Council of the National League of Cities, a past president of the National Black Caucus of Local Elected Officials, and current vice president for Trade of the World Conference of Mayors. She holds a bachelor of arts degree in political science and a master of arts degree in history from Jackson State University, and a juris doctorate from Texas Southern University.
•Ward 3: Carroll, who serves as president of Hattiesburg City Council, will begin his seventh term on council. His ward encompasses western Hattiesburg and some of Lamar County. Carroll is a senior account executive for Ability Network; he is a graduate of Hattiesburg High School and holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Southern Mississippi. He is a lifetime member of the USM Alumni Association and is involved in numerous civic and social organizations.
•Ward 4: The only newly-elected member of council for the next term, Ware defeated Mary Dryden to win the Ward 4 seat in the June 8 general election. He previously served as Ward 4 Councilman from 2006 to 2013, when he gave up the seat for an unsuccessful mayoral bid. His ward includes central Hattiesburg and most of the historic district of the city. A real estate developer and certified registered nurse anesthetist, Ware is a graduate of Jones College, the University of Southern Mississippi, and Xavier University.
•Ward 5: Brown was elected in 2017 to helm Ward 5, which spans across the southern part of Hattiesburg, including Vernon Dahmer Park, the Irene Chapel Community, Palmer’s Crossing, Timberton Country Club, the Hattiesburg-Forrest County Industrial Park and a small part of William Carey University. A graduate of Oak Grove High School, Brown attended Mississippi State University for two semesters before transferring to the University of Southern Mississippi, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration in 2004. He is the owner of Brown Lawn Service, which he established in 2004, and has served as a substitute teacher in the Hattiesburg Public School District.
