Laney Harris, the Ward 2 Director, took the oath of office as assistant mayor during the Texarkana, Arkansas, Board of Directors’ first regular meeting of 2025 on Monday. This follows a 2023 ordinance that established a rotation for the one-year term.
The rotation order began with Ward 1 in 2023 and proceeds through Wards 6, 2, 4, 5, and 3. Harris takes over from Jeff Hart, the Ward 6 Director who served as assistant mayor in 2024 but did not seek reelection in November. Harris previously represented Ward 2 for two terms until 2005 and has been reelected every four years since 2008.
Runway Project on Agenda
The board will also consider approving a contract with McClelland Engineering for a $502,203.20 runway strengthening project at Texarkana Regional Airport. The costs will be shared by Arkansas ($451,982.88), Texarkana, Arkansas ($22,503.73), and Texarkana, Texas ($27,716.59).
This project is part of a larger $16.7 million upgrade approved by the Arkansas Legislative Council in 2024, aimed at expanding the nearly 100-year-old airfield to accommodate larger aircraft like the Boeing 777 and enable cargo and maintenance operations.
