Baker is resigning

Three Rivers City Commission member Ken Baker has announced he will be resigning from the position next week.

Baker, 70, cited his health as the reason for his impending resignation, which will become official Monday. Baker said he discussed the situation with his family and his doctor, and concluded it would be in his and the city’s best interest that he step down.

Baker has been battling kidney cancer for more than two years.

His term as city commissioner expires in November 2013. Consequently, the city will be soliciting applications from Third District residents interested in completing the balance of his term. The position must be filled within 30 days of Baker’s resignation.

The former police chief and one-time interim mayor of Three Rivers, Baker said he will remain a member of Friends of Riverside Cemetery but will no longer serve as the organization’s president.