Archer’s new city manager, Donald Barber, and Deputy City Manager John Martin tackled a laundry list of city updates during Monday’s commission meeting, including an internal forensic audit.  

In an effort to keep the nearly five-hour meeting shorter and work towards resolving recurring items, Barber tacked public comment to the end of the meeting’s agenda and started with commissioner and staff reports. 

Barber, who was hired in January, prefaced his report that it wouldn’t include a financial update because the city doesn’t have information to make one. 

He raised several concerns contributing to the lack of information, including incorrect IRS transactions, intermingled funds that should be separated into multiple bank accounts, and non-existent standard accounting procedures like General Ledger codes for distinguishing transactions. 

Martin added that W2s are currently delayed due to Social Security payment mistakes made by the city. Whether Archer paid too much or too little, its reports aren’t accurate, Martin said, but should be fixed later this week. 

Barber also said Archer’s current budget, created by a non-city employee, doesn’t accurately reflect revenues coming in or bills going out. 

He asked for patience from constituents while he and staff build a new budget bill-by-bill. The budget should be ready by Oct. 1 for the 2026-27 fiscal year and weekly budget reports will be posted to meeting agendas. 

Until then, all unnecessary spending and appraisal of surplus properties are paused. 

“The reason why we’re not approving anything other than what is absolutely necessary to keep lights on is because we put a stop on spending until we understand how far over or under, we are,” Barber said. “So, I want to make it very clear, money is not being spent.” 

The city managers also said Archer is beginning to recover some of its finances previously lost. 

The $3,600 from a derelict bank account has been reconciled, and the $14,500 stolen in September from the city by a former employee was returned this week. The restitution will go to the insurance company that reimbursed Archer for its loss to keep premiums from rising. 

Barber and Martin announced new measures aimed at instilling more checks and balances into the financial reporting system. 

Monday’s consent agenda, unanimously passed by the City Commission, included a resolution to hire J&S Accounting. The firm will give day-to-day financial assistance and perform monthly reconciliation, reporting, audit coordination and grant or enterprise-fund compliance, according to meeting backup documents. 

Barber said J&S already has access to all of Archer’s reports and bank accounts dating back to 2021 and that he intends to have Michael Whitehead from the company give an update on its findings and recommendations at the April or May commission meeting. 

Dual-signature check cashing will provide more accountability and the city’s bookkeeping, currently spread between multiple software systems, will be consolidated into one, with staff training on the programming beginning this week. 

Once the “cleanup” is finished, Barber said the commission will be able to get quarterly financial reports and track its budget in real time. He said the work will be worth the cost, whatever it ends up being.  

“There’s no way of knowing until they clean up these things, and we’re required to clean up these things,” he said. “I want to make sure that we all understand that the state, [Joint Legislative Auditing Committee], the audit, have said we are absolutely required. It wouldn’t matter if it put us in the red; we have to clean this up.” 

Martin said staff is also working to switch city emails to position-specific mailbox names with dot gov domains to prevent hackers, and a few updates to city hall, including an office for Barber, along with new microphones and tv monitors for presentations, and with flooring coming in the commission chambers. 

Two whiteboards in the building will communicate to residents active or completed public works projects, as well as outstanding administrative tasks. 

Barber also proposed creating Friends of Archer, a new 501-C3 nonprofit that would act as a board similar to the city’s planning and zoning board or board of adjustments. 

Friends of Archer would be comprised of a nine-person board—all residents who voluntarily apply—focused on fundraising for services and events that “uplift” and “beautify” the community, like festivals, gardens, museum and splashpad repairs that might otherwise be more difficult for the city to secure grants for. The board would present monthly updates to the commission. 

The city attorney will present an outline for the new board during the April meeting.  

Editor’s note: This story was underwritten by a grant from the Rural Reporting Initiative at the Community Foundation of North Central Florida.