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Astoria council adopts draft process, tentative dates to fill Ward 4 vacancy
Summary
The Astoria City Council on Oct. 22 agreed on a draft application and interview format to fill a Ward 4 vacancy by appointment, set target dates for publishing the application and receiving submissions, and prioritized Ward 4 residents for public comment; no appointment was made.
Astoria’s City Council on Oct. 22 laid out a draft, public appointment process and tentative timeline to fill a Ward 4 vacancy but stopped short of appointing anyone.
City Manager Spence walked the council through a staff‑prepared guidance document modeled on the county SEL‑101 candidate form and described three core elements the council agreed to: a public application, a standardized interview process and a voting procedure. Spence said the city would remove election‑specific questions from the county form and focus the application on residency verification, occupation, prior governmental experience and an attestation of qualifications.
The council settled several key procedural points: the application will be published as soon as legal review is complete (staff proposed Oct. 24), a target deadline for applications of Nov. 10, and candidate interviews to be held at the council meeting on Nov. 17 or, if more time is needed, Dec. 1. Spence also proposed a town‑hall meet‑and‑greet after the applicant pool closes so residents can meet candidates; Nov. 19 was discussed as a possible date for that event.
On interview format, councilors agreed to ask four questions (one suggested by each councilor) with 2 minutes per answer, plus an optional 2‑minute candidate statement and a 2‑minute closing statement — roughly a 10‑minute slot per candidate. "Once council has the prospective candidate interviews, they’ve heard public input. Now at some point, the mayor’s gonna ask, is council ready to vote?" Spence said during the presentation.
Councilors debated logistics intended to ensure fairness. Ideas included stamping/time‑ordering applications on receipt, allowing the first applicant to choose their interview slot, or having staff randomize interview order after the deadline. Councilor Lapp suggested a neutral random draw to prevent strategic timing; the council voiced support for a random or neutral ordering mechanism.
The council also addressed participation concerns: when Councilor Davis raised whether Councilor Lump should recuse, City Attorney Blair Henning advised there was "no legal or ethical reason" he could not participate and said ethical decisions were ultimately personal. Councilor Lump told the council he intended to participate because the discussion focused on a neutral process rather than on any particular candidate.
The city did not take a final vote to adopt a binding process; councilors characterized the dates as working targets and agreed to finalize application wording, the town‑hall format and interview questions at upcoming meetings (the council work session and the Nov. 17 council meeting).
What’s next: staff will prepare the final application for attorney review and public release; councilors will submit proposed questions ahead of the Nov. 3 work session and finalize the candidate interview format at the Nov. 17 meeting. No formal appointment or vote occurred at the Oct. 22 meeting.
(Reporting note: quotes and attributions come from the Oct. 22, 2025 Astoria City Council special meeting transcript; City Manager Spence led the staff presentation and Mayor Fitzpatrick presided.)
