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Two council resignations leave Eureka preparing to fill seats; Nov. 10 meeting set to begin process
Summary
Councilmembers Travis Haines and Jeremy Snell announced resignations at Eureka’s Oct. 14 regular meeting, triggering state timelines for filling vacancies. The council agreed to monitor the upcoming election and hold an appointment/election-related meeting on Nov. 10.
Travis Haines announced at the Oct. 14 Eureka City Council meeting that he will resign his council seat effective after that night's meeting, saying he has "too many things going" and that "I need to resign from my duty as city council member after this meeting tonight." Council members also reported receiving a written resignation from Councilmember Jeremy Snell earlier that evening (transmitted by text and confirmed as a written resignation to the clerk).
City staff and council members discussed the statutory timetable for filling vacancies and agreed to coordinate an appointment process and public notice. A staff advisor said state law requires the city to hold a meeting to appoint a replacement within 30 days of a vacancy and advised the council to be prepared to publish a two-week notice and collect applications for appointment. The council tentatively identified its Nov. 10 meeting as the earliest convenient date to begin addressing the two vacancies and agreed to avoid scheduling conflicts with Veterans Day and Thanksgiving-week meetings.
Members clarified election details for other seats on the ballot: three write-in candidates — Tony Adderly, Raelynn Maxfield and Jonathan Street — were identified for regular election contests; the top two vote getters will take the available seats as provided by the election process. Council discussion also covered term lengths for the seats being filled and whether a resigning incumbent could submit a resignation and seek appointment to change the length of an awarded term; staff said they would research the implications and report back.
The clerk noted that resignations must be submitted in writing; council members confirmed they had the required documentation for Snell. The city attorney/administrator reminded the council of a statutory change allowing a resigning member to participate in the final vote to fill the vacancy in some circumstances and said he would follow up with formal guidance and an email to the full council with recommendations.
Next steps: the council asked staff to prepare application materials and public notices so the Nov. 10 meeting can include appointment procedures if necessary. No formal appointments were made at the Oct. 14 public meeting.
