Astoria City Council agrees public application, timeline to fill Ward 4 vacancy

Astoria City’s council laid out a public, time-lined process on Oct. 22 to fill the vacant Ward 4 seat by appointment rather than by holding an immediate special election.

City Manager Spence outlined the staff-drafted steps the council will use to find a replacement, saying the city charter vests appointment power in the council but does not prescribe a detailed procedure: "the Charter is very clear in terms of the power of appointment is vested within city council," Spence said, and staff proposed an application, public interviews, and a voting method. The council agreed staff should post the application as soon as it is cleared by the city attorney, with staff suggesting Oct. 24 as the public-release date and a Nov. 10 deadline for applications.

Why this matters: Astoria’s charter allows an appointee to serve the remainder of a term, which residents and speakers said raises the stakes for the process. Public commenters urged either giving Ward 4 voters a special election or ensuring the appointment process centers Ward 4 voices. "This is, I believe, a ultimate betrayal of your position to silence the voice of the voters," Lisa Morley told the council, warning that an appointee could serve the remainder of the term and effectively remove a choice from more than 1,000 ward voters.

Key choices the council made or signaled: - Application content: staff will use a form modeled on the county’s SEL-101 filing form but pared back for an appointment; the council agreed to add an optional candidate statement (similar to a voter pamphlet entry) and an explicit attestation that the applicant meets residency and eligibility requirements (including a 6-month residency check box). - Interview format: councilors generally agreed on four questions (each answer limited to two minutes), an optional two-minute candidate statement, and a two-minute closing for a roughly 10-minute interview slot; questions will be provided to all candidates in advance. - Public input: public comment on the appointment will come after the candidate interviews. Councilors and residents agreed to prioritize Ward 4 residents and business owners for speaking slots, then open remaining time to the general public; council left the overall public-comment cap to be finalized later. - Candidate order and narrowing: staff will propose a neutral method to set the interview order (time-stamped first-in, first-out or a randomized draw after the application window) to avoid gaming; council debated but did not adopt any specific ranked or point-based method for narrowing a large candidate pool tonight. - Timeline: staff recommended posting applications Oct. 24, a Nov. 10 application deadline, council questions set by Nov. 17, and candidate interviews at a later meeting (council discussed Nov. 24 and Dec. 1 as options and suggested a town hall/meet-and-greet between the deadline and interviews).

Legal and participation questions: City Attorney Blair Henning advised there was no legal or charter barrier preventing Councilor Lump from participating in the process, noting that any ethical decision to recuse remains the individual councilor’s choice: "There's no legal or ethical reason why counselor Lump can't participate," Henning said. Councilor Lump responded that because the meeting is about process rather than specific candidates he does not plan to recuse himself.

Public reaction: Ward 4 residents who spoke emphasized frustration with recent representation and urged priority for residents in the input process. Mimi Rose, identifying herself as a Ward 4 resident, said residents should lead the comment period and criticized Councilor Lump's record of engagement with the ward: "Mr. Lump should have no say at all, since he's never represented us in his ward," she said. Other speakers urged a town hall style meet-and-greet so residents can see candidates before the council interviews.

Next steps: staff will finalize the application and post it when the city attorney signs off (staff suggested Oct. 24). The council signaled agreement with a Nov. 10 deadline for applications, asked staff to circulate a proposed calendar (including a possible town hall) and to vet applications for basic eligibility after the deadline. Councilors will finalize question sets and interview format at upcoming meetings (staff and council discussed using the Nov. 3 work session and the Nov. 17 regular meeting to firm up details); interviews and a final appointment could occur in late November or early December depending on logistics and public feedback.

The city did not take a final appointment vote at the Oct. 22 meeting. Mayor Fitzpatrick adjourned the special meeting at 8:02 p.m.