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Florence council limits applicants to most recent council, sets Jan. 6 meeting to fill vacant seat
Summary
The Florence Town Council directed the town clerk to solicit written statements from the most recent sitting council to fill a vacant seat, set a Dec. 30 deadline for submissions and scheduled a special Jan. 6 meeting to vote. The council voted on the motion by roll call.
The Florence Town Council on Dec. 16 instructed the town clerk to collect written statements from members of the last sitting council as the first step in filling a vacant council seat.
Vice Mayor Cathy Adam moved that the clerk be authorized to consult with the mayor during the process; that applicants be limited to members of the last sitting council; that applicants submit written answers to two questions — what they would seek to accomplish that they had not completed previously and what they would do differently — and that statements be submitted to the clerk by Dec. 30. The motion, seconded by another council member, passed on a roll-call vote (Maldonado: Aye; Vice Mayor Adam: Aye; Bedford: Aye; Besina: No; Bucielato: Aye; Mayor (recorded as Eaton): Aye).
Town Clerk Lisa Garcia had described Option 4 from a prior meeting, which would allow council to reach out to former members with institutional knowledge and interview them, and asked for direction on eligibility windows, notification timing and packet inclusion under open meeting law. Several council members favored limiting the pool to recent officeholders so the appointee could “hit the ground running,” while others discussed alternate ranges (4, 8 or 10 years) and whether interviews were necessary.
The council agreed to place the item on the Jan. 6 agenda at 5:30 p.m., with opportunity for on-the-floor questions and a possible swearing-in at that meeting. The clerk was directed to accept written statements by Dec. 30 and to work with the mayor on any procedural clarifications before the Jan. 6 special meeting.
The decision sets a timeline and narrow eligibility criteria for appointing a replacement rather than opening the process broadly to residents or conducting a longer application window. The council’s action was procedural: it directs staff on how to solicit and present candidates for the body to consider at the scheduled special meeting.
