Pacific Grove council appoints Cynthia Garfield to fill vacant seat after public interviews

The Pacific Grove City Council appointed Cynthia Garfield to fill a vacant council seat on Wednesday, concluding a multi-hour public selection process that included statements from seven applicants and public comment.

The vacancy followed the resignation of Council Member Debbie Beck effective Nov. 20, 2024. The replacement process is governed by Article 12 of the City Charter, which allows council appointment when vacancies occur. The city received eight applications; one applicant withdrew, leaving seven candidates. Each applicant addressed the council in alphabetical order and answered council questions.

Candidates who spoke to council included Anna Bornstein (chair, Architecture Review Board and land-use planner), Ross Davison (Planning Commissioner), Melvin Duby, Cynthia Garfield (former city councilor), Michael Gibbs, Eugene Lowe and Don Murphy (longtime planning commissioner). Applications and written statements were posted with the meeting agenda.

Council used a two-step narrowing process: the six councilmembers first indicated which of the seven nominated candidates they were willing to support; that produced four names that had at least one nomination and second. Council members then expressed their preferred candidate among that narrowed list. The council received public comments from residents and stakeholders; dozens of written letters on the city's website favored Don Murphy, and several in-person speakers urged Garfield or Davidson.

A nomination for Don Murphy was made and seconded but failed to receive a majority in a roll-call vote. Mayor Pro Tem Amelio then nominated Cynthia Garfield; Council Member Rao seconded the nomination. The roll-call vote for Garfield was unanimous, 6-0. The city clerk administered the oath of office immediately; Garfield took the council seat the same evening.

City Attorney explained the process to the council at the start of the vacancy agenda item and confirmed that, if the council could not reach a majority appointment, the mayor was authorized under the charter to fill the vacancy. Mayor Smith said he would defer to the council's decision and would only appoint if the council could not agree.

What happened in public testimony: dozens of residents spoke during the public comment period on the vacancy item. Many praised the depth of the applicant pool. Written comments posted with the agenda showed substantial support for Don Murphy (34 written submissions as of late in the day); other applicants also received multiple endorsements. Speakers from local civic organizations and volunteer groups highlighted different candidates' strengths: continuity and immediate readiness (Garfield), planning and coastal expertise (Davison), or institutional knowledge from the planning commission (Murphy).

Council members said they considered candidates' municipal experience, readiness to step into the role and the need to maintain institutional continuity during a period when the city is implementing several high-priority projects (housing-element implementation, staffing of development services, and climate adaptation planning).

Garfield was sworn in at the meeting and thanked council and residents for the appointment. The council took no further action on the vacancy item at the meeting.