Ward 7 City Director and Vice Mayor B.J. Wyrick says the mayor ignores her ideas. She wants fewer potholes, less crime, more cops, more transparency. But, when she takes her concerns to the mayor, she is told: “I'm not changing.”
Mayor Frank Scott Jr. has “no idea what she is talking about,” because Wyrick hardly interacts with him.
“I haven't known her to work on many pieces of legislation at all,” he said.
Scott is fond of using the phrase: "catalyst for a new south.” Job creation is a "catalyst for a new south.” An unsuccessful plan to pass a sales tax increase would have created a "catalyst for a new south.”
In his interview with Little Rock Public Radio he questioned: “How do we help grow and change the City of Little Rock, and help us become a catalyst for the new south?”
Scott says he's fixing problems Wyrick cares about. Crime is going down in Little Rock. Shelters for unhoused residents are being built. The population is growing. And, there are more drainage and infrastructure improvements.
But, Wyrick thinks the mayor cares more about being the mayor, than being a good mayor. The conflict sounds personal.
“He's pretty dogmatic in what he wants to do,” she said.
Scott told Little Rock Public Radio being “dogmatic” may not be a bad thing.
“My understanding of what dogmatic is, is having a very strong belief,” he said. “So, I have a very strong belief on how we grow the city of Little Rock.”
Perhaps Director Wyrick’s falling out with the mayor started over a personnel debate.
In 2023, longtime city manager Bruce Moore died. A city manager has a lot of power in Little Rock’s system of government. They oversee almost every branch of city government from parks to electricity. Without Moore, the job sat vacant for almost two years.
It's the mayor's job to appoint the city manager. That's in state law.
Wyrick thought he wasn't moving fast enough.
In June of last year, she put forward a resolution to speed up the process.
The mayor vetoed it. He had a candidate ready. Delphone Hubbard, the city’s fire chief, was appointed that night.
Wyrick says Mayor Scott waited to fill the job because he didn't want a city manager.
“He thinks he can do it all,” she said. “He thinks he's the executive officer and he can run the city.”
Mayor Scott denies this.
“Any leader knows that they can't do anything without a great team.”
Crime
Mayor Scott is adamant crime has fallen in Little Rock, and he's largely right.
Violent crimes like murder, rape and robbery have generally gone down across the city.
And 2025 was a record low year for crime. Little Rock had fewer than 11,000 violent crimes.
Wyrick thinks the 11,000 number is an undercount.
“They're not reporting all the crimes,” she said.
When touting crime numbers, city officials mostly focus on violent crimes. But, other crime numbers are being reported. The state police release data on lower-level offenses annually, and the FBI keeps running totals.
Last year, there were over 26,000 minor offenses reported to Little Rock police. The state calls this group: “crimes against society.” It’s a category covering drug possession, illegal sex work and weapons violations.
Wyrick says those numbers aren't going down.
The mayor credits the decrease to his “holistic approach.”
“We have to focus on prevention intervention and treatment programing.”
Part of this is his much-referenced Real-Time Crime Center. It’s a mix of high tech police strategies, like public safety apps and thousands of cameras across the city.
High tech policing is controversial. Citizens opposing police cameras worry they amount to government surveillance. Most of the testimony at city meetings has been critical of things like automated license plate readers.
Both candidates acknowledge police technology isn't popular. But, Mayor Scott says it's saved lives, and Wyrick has a similar opinion.
“I mean it's a tool,” she said, referencing how it can be helpful to investigate kidnappings.
Data Centers
At least two data centers are set for construction in Pulaski County. At city meetings, residents oppose the centers. The state legislature has limited what cities can do to regulate them.
Claiming his hands were tied, the Mayor supported a June ordinance on data centers within city limits.
“We will continue to regulate those data centers, knowing our residents don't want them but knowing too that the legislature has prevented us from banning them.”
Wyrick is dissatisfied with the current city policy.
“I thought we were going to have something at the end of August that adds some additional guidelines.”
She wants more ordinances covering pollution and emergency response if a data center were to go up in flames.
If Wyrick loses, it will be the end of her time working for the city. She's served on the Board of Directors since 1994, and is giving up her seat to run for mayor. Meanwhile, if Mayor Scott loses, it will be the end of his eight year tenure as the first Black popularly-elected mayor of Little Rock.
