The Medical Lake City Council on Nov. 4 voted to appoint Lauren Ray Abbott to fill the vacant Council seat No. 6 following public interviews and an executive session.

Abbott, a 25-year Air Force veteran and Medical Lake resident, was nominated and the motion was seconded; the council carried the appointment by voice vote. The council welcomed Abbott and said she will receive information about onboarding and a training scheduled Dec. 6.

Why it matters: The new member fills a council vacancy and will participate in routine city business, including the budget process and upcoming hearings. Council members said the selection will affect deliberations now that the council is at full membership.

The council interviewed three candidates in public session: Patrick Flaherty, Lauren Ray Abbott and Joe David Valise. Each candidate gave an opening statement and answered six identical questions from council members, covering handling difficult people, downtown revitalization, strengths they would bring to council, how they would act in the minority on a contentious issue, local problems that most affect Medical Lake and the general role of a council member.

Abbott described herself as a long-time resident who moved to Medical Lake after retiring from the Air Force and said she is ‘‘honored to be here and to be talking to you about the possibility of joining your team.’’ Abbott told the council she favors ‘‘reimagining Medical Lake’’ and said she supports attracting sustainable businesses to the downtown corridor rather than one-off enterprises that may not last.

Patrick Flaherty said he wants to represent the city ‘‘in a peaceful, positive way’’ and emphasized finding common ground. Joe David Valise, a planning commissioner, told the council he has long-standing local ties and said he would be a ‘‘bridge builder’’ and collaborate across agencies.

Council procedure: The mayor announced the interview format, timed responses and an executive session for deliberations. The council recessed, deliberated in executive session, returned to open session and took the nomination and vote on the record. The motion to appoint Abbott was made and seconded, and the council recorded a unanimous voice vote. The meeting minutes do not list individual roll-call votes for the appointment.

Next steps: Staff said Abbott will be given training opportunities and is expected to attend the Dec. 6 elected-officials training. The mayor indicated Abbott will likely be seated at the next council meeting and participate in the 2026 budget process.

"We couldn't be happier," the mayor said after the vote, thanking all applicants for their public service and participation.

Provenance: The candidate interviews begin in the public record at the council's Nov. 4 meeting (see transcript start of candidate comments) and the nomination and voice vote appear in the meeting record after the return from executive session.