Story by DDNS Reporter Jerry Don Burton

February 4, 2026

 Jonesboro Mayor Harold Copenhaver addressed previous concerns and responded to new complaints about the City Stars booster club during the City Council meeting.

Public and council interest in City Stars remained high at the Tuesday, Feb. 3 city council meeting. Discussion began with Copenhaver’s response to Public Facilities Board Chairman Matt Modelevsky’s presentation at the last meeting.

Copenhaver’s response

“ My responsibility as mayor is to administer city-operated programs, which City Stars was not, in accordance with city council-approved budgets,” Copenhaver said. “I presented verifiable facts, not feelings, not understandings or beliefs like many of the documents presented at the previous city council meeting contained.”

At the previous meeting, Modelevsky said Copenhaver failed to respond to past concerns he raised about City Stars and Danny Kapales, the now-resigned parks director who ran the program.

The City Stars booster club, a youth sports program, was created in 2001. Copenhaver said the original agreement between Jonesboro and the booster club was approved by the council in 2004. He said this contract established mutual agreements, such as the shared goal of providing athletics at no cost for Jonesboro youth.

Despite a shared vision for youth athletics in Jonesboro, Copenhaver said City Stars operated independently.

“Their revenue was their money, their business, not the city’s,” Copenhaver said. “ Fiduciary duties fall to the boards and management of private nonprofit organizations and cannot be delegated, giving them full and exclusive authority over their own money and how it is handled and how their chart of accounts is organized and how their accounting entries are made. Look it up.”

Copenhaver said he asked the management of City Stars to voluntarily undergo an audit, to which they agreed. The Thomas Speight and Noble firm completed the audit and presented it in June 2025. 

“ The independent auditor’s report expressed the opinion that the City Stars financial statements present fairly in all material respects and assets, liabilities, net assets of the City Stars Booster Club,” Copenhaver said. “ In other words, clean audit.”

On Dec. 5, 2025, the City Stars board announced the club will cease operations as a private, 501(c)(3) nonprofit and will transfer operational responsibilities, including banking accounts, funds and sports equipment, to the city of Jonesboro.

Copenhaver said now should be an exciting time for the program and the upcoming generations who will make use of City Stars. 

“Moving forward means moving beyond the past, and now we need to focus,” Copenhaver said.

However, in the public comments that followed, several citizens expressed a desire to stay on the topic of City Stars. 

Public comments

Jeremy Terrell, who ran for Jonesboro mayor in 2024, addressed Copenhaver and said he does not understand why some act like the investigation is not a big deal. He said the mayor has the responsibility to ensure taxpayer money goes to organizations that act in the best interest of the public.

“This is about the responsibility that you hold and that the city council hold to make sure that taxpayer’s money is being dealt with in a manner that is proper and legal,” Terrell said. “So those of us that are asking questions, we deserve answers, period.”

Bill Campbell, who previously served as the mayor’s communication director, said citizens should exercise patience and not jump to conclusions during a federal investigation. 

“I don’t know what the answers are. I do know that you have a mayor who has had clean audits every time,” Campbell said. “So I think I would lean on that and we can’t pretend we know something different.”

Dean Macdonald, a Jonesboro native, said he agrees with Terrell that any allegations of misconduct are serious and should be investigated. However, he said some of the discourse surrounding the investigation has broken down recently. 

Following comments from the public, many city council members voiced support for Copenhaver, but agreed communication must be improved.

Council member comments

LJ Bryant, Ward 5, Position 1 council member, said the public clearly cares and the situation should not be dismissed as something minor. 

“Despite any of the gaslighting going on tonight, the FBI didn’t show up for no reason. So we’re in a very serious situation and as the stewards of the taxpayer’s resources, I feel like we have to take action,” Bryant said.

Joe Hafner, Ward 5, Position 2 council member, said while he supports Copenhaver, the mayor should not have let concerns go unresolved for so long.

“I think that’s one thing that definitely needs to be improved and that’s let something fester, it turned from a little snowball into a big avalanche,” Hafner said. “And now that we got the public here with eroded public trust, just frustrated, the problems have escalated. I don’t take that lightly.”

Ward 2, Position 2 City Council Member Chris Moore said many issues would be absent today if Copenhaver addressed concerns sooner. He said trust should be restored between the council, mayor and community.

Hafner said the relationship between the mayor and council is built on trust. He said they must be transparent with each other.

Copenhaver said he understands many people had honest questions about the City Stars operation. He said while he never meant to come off as dismissive of these questions, the city council never had the answers. 

“Those questions should be properly directed to its own officers and board of directors, which had the full fiduciary responsibilities and duties. The mayor’s office did not have answers about the accounting or handling of money of City Stars,” Copenhaver said. “Part of all the confusion has come from people asking questions or emailing or texting complaints and concerns about City Stars to the wrong place.”

Anthony Coleman, Ward 6, Position 1 council member, said while he appreciated Copenhaver sharing his side at the meeting, he believes the council does have a responsibility to ask questions and look into City Stars. 

“ Maybe not handling a lot of it fiduciarily, but we do have a responsibility to share, to talk, to ask questions, to make certain that we are doing what’s right for our children,” Coleman said.

Chris Gibson, Ward 3, Position 2 council member, said the council has a good platform to build on moving forward and the future is optimistic.

Copenhaver said he appreciated the input from the council and is always up for constructive criticism.

“I apologize to this city council because the last thing I ever want to do is draw a wedge between us because that does not benefit our community,” Copenhaver said. 

Looking ahead, Copenhaver said he is excited for the future of City Stars under the leadership of Jim Stearns, interim director of parks and recreation. 

Other business

In other business, Copenhaver announced InnovAsian Cuisine Enterprise Inc. will construct a frozen food manufacturing facility in Jonesboro. He said this development will create about 200 jobs.

The council also read the following ordinances:

• On first reading:
  • Ordinance 26:004 would amend a zoning ordinance providing for changes in zoning boundaries from R-1 to RS-7 for a property at 1306 Charles Drive. 
• On second reading:
  • Ordinance 26:001 would change the zoning boundaries from R-1 to C-3 general commercial district for a property at 2620 Alexander Drive.
  • Ordinance 26:002 requested approval of a private club permit for Monarca’s Mexican restaurant.
  • Ordinance 26:003 requested approval of a private club permit for Walk-On’s Sports Bistreaux.

The Jonesboro City Council meets at 5:30 p.m. on the first and third Tuesdays of each month at the Jonesboro Municipal Center. Meetings are also livestreamed on the City of Jonesboro Facebook page.