For 26 years, one month and 15 days, Donald Barrett served the citizens of Carbondale as a police officer, and although he is now retired, he says he is not done serving his community.

One of six remaining candidates in the April 5 race for three open City Council seats, Barrett said he thinks his experience as a Carbondale Police officer gives him an edge over the other contenders.

“I think I have a lot of experience in city government from the inside,” Barrett said in an earlier interview with the DAILY EGYPTIAN.

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Barrett, 48, was born at Holden Hospital in Carbondale in 1956. After high school he attended John A. Logan College where, for three semesters, he struggled to find his niche in life.

“I did not know what I wanted to do,” Barrett said. So he got a job at a service station.

At the station, Barrett said the owner, a former Jackson County Deputy Sheriff, began to spark his interest in law enforcement.

While working at the service station, Barrett also served as a tow truck driver for the Carbondale Police Department, where he had the opportunity to meet other police officers.

After being encouraged by the officers to go into law enforcement, Barrett returned to school and later graduated from SIUC with an associate’s in law enforcement and a bachelor’s in law enforcement administration.

In January 1979 Barrett began his first day on the Carbondale Police force where, over a period of 26 years, he served as the city’s first Cedar Lake patrol officer, a trained hostage negotiator, an undercover officer with the Southern Illinois Enforcement group, a detective and a patrol officer.

In 2000, Barrett’s career as a police officer was cut short when he sustained a back injury in an auto accident. After undergoing surgery and physical therapy, Barrett returned to work with the Carbondale Police Department before re-injuring his back, forcing him into early retirement.

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A lifelong resident of Carbondale, Barrett said he felt compelled and obligated to continue to serve the city after his retirement.

“I wasn’t done serving the citizens,” Barrett said. “I’ve helped people for 26 years and I want to continue to help people.”

Barrett, who retired from the Carbondale Police Department in February, said he now spends his days lecturing at John A. Logan College, where he has been a part-time criminal justice instructor for 12 years, helping his son prepare for college and helping his mother and mother-in-law, both of whom are recently widowed, as well as campaigning for a seat on City Council.

“I’ve stayed so busy I don’t know when I had time to work before,” Barrett said.

Barrett said two of his biggest issues with the city are its purchase of the old American Tap Bar and inequitable pay raises between city employees and city administrators.

For 11 years during his childhood, Barrett lived in a house located at 518 S. Illinois Ave. His former childhood home became the American Tap Bar. Last year the city purchased the property and demolished the building, which had fallen into disrepair.

Barrett said he does not think the building was worth the city’s purchase price of $150, 000, especially since taxpayers will foot the bill.

He said by purchasing the American Tap Bar, the city is ignoring its basic function to provide police, fire, water and sewer services.

“These should be our priorities, to provide top-notch services, not to speculate in the real estate market,” Barrett said. “They’re cutting services, they’re cutting personnel, trying to stay within their budget. What are they doing paying four times the appraised value for an old, run down bar?”

In addition to the city’s purchase of the American Tap Bar, Barrett said misappropriated funds have created budget problems for the city, causing large gaps in salary increases, as well as the cut-back of vital services.

This year Carbondale City Manager Jeff Doherty received a 7.8 percent salary increase while non-union city employees received 2 percent increases.

Barrett said as a City Council member he would try to make salary increases among city administrators and employees more equitable, because all have a hand in running the city.

“Doherty deserves to be well paid, but he doesn’t run the city by himself,” Barrett said. “He does a good job but there are also a lot of other people who do good jobs. If times are lean we should make sacrifices together.”

Barrett and his wife Anne have been married for almost 22 years and have a son who is a senior at Carbondale Community High School.

During his tenure with the police department, Barrett remained active within the department, serving two terms as union president of the Carbondale Police Officer’s Association, two terms on the Carbondale Police Pension Board and approximately 20 years on the union’s contract negotiating team.

Barrett said his experiences on the police force have made him a good listener, given him a good memory and helped him learn to think outside of the box, all things he said he thinks will be beneficial to the City Council.

“I’m not afraid to try new things and think outside of the box,” Barrett said. “I don’t give up easy.”

Reporter Ashley Richardson can be reached at [email protected]