As a trustee, Barry has advocated trimming spending — “like a business,” he has said — and creating revenue without raising taxes, such as by attracting new business.
The president and owner of BarryStaff Inc., expressed a similar philosophy in his county commission campaign. Barry pushed an unsuccessful referendum effort to place the repeal of a 0.25-percent county sales tax increase on the ballot.
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“The county commissioners passed this without getting a vote of the people at a time we are in a good recovery period and there’s a lot of positive things coming out of Dayton and Montgomery County,” Barry said at the time. “We don’t want to see that stopped by an increase in sales tax.”
While improving township parks were a focal point of a strategic plan he supported, Barry in 2015 was one of two trustees who voted against placing a parks issue on the ballot so it wouldn’t endanger a street levy.
Barry also has been the township’s representative on the Miami Valley Fire District Board of Trustees, serving as vice president on the panel that oversees joint fire services for the township and Miamisburg.
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Barry also serves as a board member for the Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission, Montgomery County ED/GE committee, the Sinclair Community College Foundation Board and — since 2007 — has been an assistant football coach at Miamisburg High School.
Barry recently told township officials “this is definitely a first-class organization made up of first-class people.
“I can’t think of an organization that has a better fire district, police, better public works, community development and finance people working for it,” he added.
Barry said he valued the relationships “and the partnerships we have been able to further over the last several years and I look forward to these continue to grow … It’s been a pleasure to serve the public.”
Board of Trustees Vice President John Morris called Barry “a true statesman” whose advice he sought before being elected trustee two years ago.
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“He said, ‘If you’re going to serve the public, do it for the right reasons. Don’t bring any hidden agendas. Plan to do the work knowing that it won’t always be appreciated. But the work needs to be done,’” Morris said.
Barry’s decision to step down will ultimately result in finding a replacement for the trustee seat now held by Don Culp. Culp, who was elected to a four-year term in 2017, last month ran unopposed for the seat Barry occupies.
Culp will resign his current seat Jan. 1 to assume his new one, according to Miami Twp. Administrator Ron Hess.
Application procedures for the future vacancy are being discussed and the process to appoint a new trustee will be announced at the trustees meeting Jan. 14, he said.
Trustees have 30 days to appoint a successor once a seat becomes vacant, according to Hess.
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